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Catalina Direct Discussion Topics / Catalina 22 Discussion Area / Cabin / screeching hatch
 
 
Author screeching hatch
Nancy Varvil
Fayetteville, Arkansas

Boat Name: Cha-Ching

Model/Year: 1981

Hull No. 10448

Hailing Port: Beaver Lake, Arkansas
01/02/2005 9:34 AM Pacific Time

Is there just one cause of a companionway hatch that screeches when you open/close it? Could putting two-sided teflon tape along the track between the two pieces of fiberglass help? Or is it an ill-fit that needs to be replaced/repaired? Thanks for help.
Joe McElroy
Snoqualmie, Washington

Boat Name: Teasel

Model/Year: 1979 Swing Keel

Hull No. 9014

Hailing Port:
01/02/2005 10:12 AM Pacific Time

I discovered that our hatch cover was cracked and dragging on the cabin top. Removing one side runner to repair it, I was able to blow out the tracks to clean them up. The hatch was wonderfully quiet for a while, but is now pretty loud again. I suspect it is just dirt now. It seems like teflon tape might work if it were really thick, but the stuff I can get doesn't seem like it would take the abrasion. Nylon inserts in the wood would seem ideal, but securing it might be a problem. Still thinking-------

Joe
Al
Eckhart

Boat Name: Gallivant

Model/Year: 88/C25TWK

Hull No. 5801

Hailing Port: Houghton, Michigan
01/03/2005 4:23 AM Pacific Time

I have a C25 which had the same problem. Though I do not know how the C22 is set up, I asume it is the same. The problem is caused by the wearing of the two flanges on either side of the sliding hatch, which in turn allows the hatch to scrape on the cabin top. I removed the hatch and built up the flanges, which run in the teak "slides", with fiberglass mat. Several layers sanded smooth raised the hatch enough so that it no longer scrapes (screeches) on the cabin top.

Al, C25T
GALLIVANT #5801
---Turk ---
Canfield, Ohio

Boat Name: Miss Kitty

Model/Year: 1974 C22

Hull No. 3520

Hailing Port: Mosquito Lake, N.E. Ohio
01/03/2005 4:56 AM Pacific Time

My hatch guides were built up with a teflon - plastic type material by the previous owner. It allowed the hatch to run very freely back and forth. It all cracked though, so I question if using another material to support the hatch will last very long. I bit the bullet and gave up the teak for the guides offered right here from CD. They are a white solid UV material and quite attractive and I know will last a long time. I have not installed them yet, but looks simple enough and will look very nice. I believe they are about $60.
Dick King
Melbourne, FL

Boat Name: Twilight Zone

Model/Year: Sport/2005

Hull No. 15546

Hailing Port: Melbourne, FL
01/03/2005 7:47 AM Pacific Time

The cause of the "screeching" is the forward lip of the hatch dragging across the deck as the hatch is opened or closed. It is like fingernails on a blackboard.

The combination of the hatch wearing on its flanges and the teak slides wearing on the bottom of the slot, lowers the hatch to the point were it makes contact with the deck.

Remove one of the the teak rails and the hatch and examine the slot in the rail and the flanges on the hatch. The flanges on the hatch should be about 1/8 inch or more thick. If they are worn or cracked, then build them up with fiberglas cloth and epoxy resin.

If the slots in the slides are worn, fill the slots with resin and recut, using a table saw or router.

My hatch had worn to the point where one flange actually broke off. I was fortunate in finding a used hatch that had had the flanges reinforced and hatch slides that had been filled and recut. I now have a hatch that DOES NOT screech anymore.

By the way, putting everything back together is definitely a multiperson job. Getting everything to line up and work smoothly is a pain in the backside. However the pain is well worth it to eliminate that awful screech.
Nancy Varvil
Fayetteville, Arkansas

Boat Name: Cha-Ching

Model/Year: 1981

Hull No. 10448

Hailing Port: Beaver Lake, Arkansas
01/03/2005 11:30 AM Pacific Time

Thanks, Dick. That is just the info. I was looking for. Something else to do this winter, waiting for spring. Nancy
Dan Schafer
Traverse City, MI

Boat Name: SeaBatical

Model/Year: C22 / 1983

Hull No. 1577

Hailing Port: Grand Traverse Bay
01/03/2005 9:50 PM Pacific Time

Thanx to everyone for their input into this thread. My hatch also has the 'blackboard screech' and I'll have to fix it in the spring.

Fair Winds,
DS in TC
Tim Tucker
Morganton, NC

Boat Name: Leikela

Model/Year: 1978 C22

Hull No. 7842

Hailing Port: Lake Norman NC
01/05/2005 8:18 AM Pacific Time

One topic on one of CD's vhs tapes is how to correct this problem. Place strips of gasket cork[my boat took 2 pieces on each side] under the teak slides. Works great and its cheap. Tim Tucker- Leikela # 7842
Ed Sloan
Lawrenceville, GA

Boat Name: Win-Tig

Model/Year: C 22 / 1977

Hull No. 7573

Hailing Port: Lake Lanier, GA
01/05/2005 4:01 PM Pacific Time

Tim - Where did you get the gasket cork in the length needed and how did you seal wood to cabin top. I am about to go thru same process. Would appreciate any advise. Thanks
Dan Schafer
Traverse City, MI

Boat Name: SeaBatical

Model/Year: C22 / 1983

Hull No. 1577

Hailing Port: Grand Traverse Bay
01/06/2005 1:58 PM Pacific Time

Tim?..... how long have you had the gasket cork on your boat? I'm wondering how long that kind of material would last in the elements since it's made to be pressed between to pieces of metal.

Nancy Varvil
Fayetteville, Arkansas

Boat Name: Cha-Ching

Model/Year: 1981

Hull No. 10448

Hailing Port: Beaver Lake, Arkansas
01/06/2005 2:52 PM Pacific Time

would some other material work there - to raise those teak rails?
Nancy
Mike Bracket
Clinton Twp, MI

Boat Name: Gunsmoke

Model/Year: 1979

Hull No. 9150

Hailing Port: Lake St Clair MI
01/06/2005 5:27 PM Pacific Time

I made a new set of "teak" rails from an old 2x4 and stained them. I raised the slot a bit and it not only eliminated the screech, it also made the sliding much easier. It only took about 30 minutes with a table saw and the finish lasted 4 years. They are in the basement now awaiting a refinish job this winter.
The wood wears away over time so I would expect to have to make another set sometime in the future. Might make them out of aluminum with an integral hand rail!!
Mike
mark miller
deatsville al

Boat Name: blue heron

Model/Year: catalina 22 1977

Hull No. 7309

Hailing Port: lake jordan
01/07/2005 6:59 PM Pacific Time

You guys just don't know how much I love this site! When I first bought my 22, the "screeching hatch" thing drove me crazy. Actually, it still is cause I hav'nt fixed it yet! But I have a new twist...my pop top appears to have, for lack of a better term, a "bubble" in the nonskid area that the front edge of the main hatch catches and "screeches" over. The bubble is about six inches across and does not flex in the least when you step on it. I was thinking about grinding it down and reglassing, but some of the other solutions sound a lot easier. What do you think?
Tim Tucker
Morganton, NC

Boat Name: Leikela

Model/Year: 1978 C22

Hull No. 7842

Hailing Port: Lake Norman NC
01/08/2005 11:03 AM Pacific Time

Sorry I haven't answered sooner. I bought the cork gasket material in a roll from an auto supply place. The roll is not long enough to cover the entire length of the slide, but two pieces work well. Just cut to width and length and hold in place with 3M spray adhesive on the bottom of the slides. Reinsert the slides, but according to CD without any sealant as the cork seals naturally. Been in place about a year and half -no problem so far. Tim Tucker-Leikela#7842
Nancy Varvil
Fayetteville, Arkansas

Boat Name: Cha-Ching

Model/Year: 1981

Hull No. 10448

Hailing Port: Beaver Lake, Arkansas
01/21/2005 8:19 AM Pacific Time

Hey,

Maybe there's a better way! I used fiberglass cloth and resin, several applications, to build up the worn down grove on the inside of rails. I also reinforced/built up the flanges on the sides of the hatch itself. But there was still a little screeching.

A friend noticed that the screeching comes from the rear lip of the hatch and suggested that I sand that down where it screeched. I did and now there is no screeching. I wonder if sanding that down would have done the trick from the beginning! Much easier that all that other work.
Jim Witt
Winters, CA

Boat Name: Sea Ya

Model/Year: Cat 22 ' 1974

Hull No.

Hailing Port: Lake Berryessa
07/13/2005 12:22 AM Pacific Time

The solution is very simple. As previously noted, the screech most likely comes from the hatch cover "lip" contacting the deck of the boat when it is slid open or closed. The "lip" of the hatch extends down to the deck of the boat far enough so you can carefully cut away about 1/8" of the lip the entire width of the hatch cover with a high speed fine cut saw. Draw a "cut" line on teh hatch cover first as your guide! Removing more than that may cause the hatch to leak. If you are concerned about a leak, glue in a 1/2" weather strip along the lip of the hatch so that when it is closed, the weather strip helps prevent leaking. Solved my screech and fro the first time, I don't cringe when opening the hatch!!
 
 
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