I have CD Squalls and Storms and as we all know if a hatch cover isn't round it probably isn't water tight. Just curious as to what solutions people have used to improve neoprene and hard plastic combination hatch covers. I find I get a bit of water in when playing in the surf, when doing rolling practice, when paddling in heavy chop and when doing re-entries. I am thinking about putting a sheet of heavy plastic under the neoprene and holding it in place with small diameter rope around the lip of the hatch or putting a soft foam around the inside edges of the hard plastic hatch cover to see if it will create a better seal and or stop water from being driven up and under the hard plastic cover and on the neoprene where it can soak through. Are there any products you can treat your neoprene with to make it more water proof, some sort of scotch guard for neoprene. Might have to email 3M with that idea.... thanks in Advance Phil MacDonnell -- _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ "BAY AND BEYOND SEA KAYAK TOURS" 38 Lakeside Dr., South Durras, NSW, 2536 Ph: (02) 4478-7777 Webpage: http://www.naturecoast-tourism.com.au/bayandbeyond ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
I have thought about but never tried gluing a thin stip of minicell around the rim or a thin patch of minicell on the underside of the patch, as a kind of gasket. Tom Joyce *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
>> Just curious as to what solutions people have used to improve neoprene and hard plastic combination hatch covers.<< The Neoprene and hard shell covers on my Arluk 1.8 leaked slightly until I replaced the Neoprene with a thinner variety. I went to a local wetsuit manufacturer and bought some off-cuts. Unsure of the thickness, but probably about 2mm, and it was shiny on the inside, which sticks like you-know-what. It grips tightly on to the glass rim and seals much better. I have heard the his of escaping air when removing after a days paddling. I used the old covers as a pattern, used thinner shock cord, and no more leaks. John Kirk-Anderson Banks Peninsula New Zealand *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Bay and Beyond Sea Kayak Tours wrote: > > I am thinking about putting a sheet of heavy plastic under the > neoprene and holding it in place with small diameter rope around the > lip of the hatch or putting a soft foam around the inside edges of > the hard plastic hatch cover to see if it will create a better seal > and or stop water from being driven up and under the hard plastic > cover and on the neoprene where it can soak through. > > Are there any products you can treat your neoprene with to make it > more water proof, some sort of scotch guard for neoprene. Might have > to email 3M with that idea.... > I'm afraid you're on the wrong track here. If there's anything in this world that is waterproof, it's neoprene. If it weren't, you would surely notice that your wetsuit would weight a ton after use. Even under high pressure (when worn by a diver) the closed cell foam will not absorb any water: That's the whole fun of closed cell foam. Your hatchcovers will only leak if there are holes through the material. So, that clearly establishes what is NOT leaking. Finding out where the water is coming from might be more difficult. It might be the between the deck and the neoprene: The nylon fabric on top of the neoprene does absorb water, and can transport it sideways. On the covers of my Prijon Seayak that's not the case: The covers have no nylon on the inside. On the inside it's smooth rubber. Probably that's the same on your covers, if not, you might want to replace them. It's also possible that the hatch is not responsible for the leak at all: The bulkheads in plastic boats, foam or plastic, are glued in place. There is no glue in the world that really works on PE, so you might have a problem there. Also check the mount for your rudder (if you have one), the mountings of your decklines, rudderlines... I hate to tell you this, but you might be fighting a loosing battle. Typically the temperature under your hatches is not constant: When out of the water, the temperature will adjust to the outside temperature, or much higher when the sun is shining. When you put the kayak in the water it will adjust to the watertemperature, typically lower, causing the pressure under your hatches to drop. If you start splashing, rolling or that sort of thing, vaporizing water from your deck will lower the temperature even more. The pressure will drop below the outside pressure, causing any small leak to start sucking air or water for all it's worth. Some people make a little (needlepoint) hole in the middle of their bulkheads, to give it some way of sucking air from a harmless place. Personally, I've given up on that battle. I just make sure my clothes and sleeping bag are stored in drybags. The rest of the equipment can stand a little moisture. By the way: On my rear hatch cover, I abandoned the neoprene cover. I found out the space between the coaming and the hard plastic cover varies between 0.9 and 1.2 centimeters, so I could find a sealing of a cardoor and put it on the coaming. It fits almost watertight against the plastic cover. It doesn't seal better then the neoprene, but makes it much easier to open and close the hatch. Cheers, Niels. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
From: <tfj4_at_attbi.com> > I have thought about but never tried gluing a thin stip of minicell around > the rim or a thin patch of minicell on the underside of the patch, as a kind > of gasket. I did something like this on my Solstice rear hatch. There was a bit of leakage, so I bought some neoprene weather stipping from a hardware store. It was 1/8 inch thick and about 3/4 inch wide. I put it on the bottom of the groove where the hatch seal sits. This has proved to be quite successful. I would suggest trying a similar approach with the soft cover, but place the neoprene strip along the underside and side of the hatch rim on the plastic kayak. A fiberglass kayak would be trickier due to the fine edge on the hatch rim - I'd imaging that there'd be more wear on the neoprene strip. I put a drawing of my kayak's rear hatch and a proposed positioning of a neoprene strip on a plastic kayak here: http://members.rogers.com/michaeldaly2/hatchFix.htm Mike *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
If there is some doubt about the source of hatch moisture, don't discount the possibility of condensation, particularly if your hatch covers seem very tight. My Greenlander seems to collect a little condensation in the fron hatch, e.g., after launching on a nice warm day into Lake Superior and paddling for a few hours, the hatch air may be filled with relatively humid air at 60 degrees or warmer (from the black hatch covers), while the water temp is in the upper 30's. Just enough water collects to be annoying, if you haven't sealed your cargo. I don't know of any way around this problem if you go into cold water. TFJ > I hate to tell you this, but you might be fighting a loosing battle. > Typically the temperature under your hatches is not constant: *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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