Can't decide washboards or doors?

[jollysailor17]

I am replacing the hatchway on the boat as the wood is rotten in places. I am taking advantage of this to fit a slightly raised hatch and garage to increase headroom in way of the galley and chart table. I will have to replace the existing tired washboards and have wondered about a pair of hinged doors into the cabin instead. I was wondering what you thought, wash boards or doors for blue water sailing?

 

[dmmbruce]

I fitted one big polycarbonate drop-in into the washboard slots. Worked well. Secure. Very strong. Let light in which was good on rainy days. But it was heavy.

Mike

 

[Elessar]

I am replacing the hatchway on the boat as the wood is rotten in places. I am taking advantage of this to fit a slightly raised hatch and garage to increase headroom in way of the galley and chart table. I will have to replace the existing tired washboards and have wondered about a pair of hinged doors into the cabin instead. I was wondering what you thought, wash boards or doors for blue water sailing?

Doors for ease of use 99.9% of the time with a slot for a chunky washboard for peace of mind in extremis. I hate washboards!

 

[Salty John]

+1

 

[Tranona]

Problem with doors is making them watertight and what to do with them when they are open - that is they need to lie back against the bulkhead when open.

Two piece washboards are much more flexible in use and easier to seal. Acrylic is in many ways better than wood as it lets light in and does not rot. Not difficult to devise ways of locking them down for security in bad weather.

 

[alan_d]

Acrylic is in many ways better than wood as it lets light in and does not rot.

... But does not float (if you are clumsy enough to drop one overboard).

 

[LittleSister]

We have doors on our current boat (previous boats always washboards). The doors are much more user friendly in harbour, and indeed most of the rest of time, and we really like the look of ours.

The downsides for us are (1) on our boat they obscure the compass and echo-sounder when open (many is the time I've departed from a mooring, or approached the shore, then too late realised I can't urgently check the depth or compass direction; (2) the doors have to be pinned either open or pinned closed in all but calm conditions, or they bang about like hell in the swell or the wake of passing mobos (we have simple hook/eye arrangements for this); (3) sometimes in harbour it would be nice to be able to put in a bottom washboard for some privacy, but still have plenty of light and air (we can close doors and leave hatch open, but there's no half-way house - I'd have rigged a removable half-height curtain rail by now if it was that much of a problem).

The boat of my dreams will have doors, but with (a) instruments positioned other than on the bulkhead behind the open doors (or visible through windows in the doors); (b) some sort of faster/easier catch to hold them open and shut unless deliberately closed/opened; and (c) slots behind the doors for washboards for occasional semi-privacy, and for the 'ultimate storm'.

 

[William_H]

Wash boards

The tedious part about wash boards is where to store them. Doors are self soring.
However my experience is that you need robust looking doors or wash boards as thieves/vandals will try to kick in wash boards or doors. I have aluminium wash boards after plywood wash boards were kicked in. No problems since. I do tend to leave the wash boards in the dinghy when I go sailing as they are heavy and awkward. olewill

 

[PeterGibbs]

I am replacing the hatchway on the boat as the wood is rotten in places. I am taking advantage of this to fit a slightly raised hatch and garage to increase headroom in way of the galley and chart table. I will have to replace the existing tired washboards and have wondered about a pair of hinged doors into the cabin instead. I was wondering what you thought, wash boards or doors for blue water sailing?

It's not the blue water nirvana conditions that require a tight closure to the hatch methinks. It's the heavy rain and shipping water conditions where the traditional hatch is a barrier to swamping below - no?

Nice louvre doors are not really in the same class and don't prevent mossies and noseeums from spoiling those idyllic evenings in the mangrove swamps....(the other side of blue water sailing that no one wants to talk about!)

Besides the fact that wshboards are a far better deterrant to univited guests of the two legged variety, and when made of perspex let in nice light.....convinced?

PWG

 

[bromleybysea]

Washboards v. doors

I have a beautiful pair of doors on my Rustler complete with lovres but there is also a slot for washboards as well behind them in the frame. It is not possible to ship the washboards at the same time as the doors, but as the latter have lift-off hinges it is very easy to swap over. If you are starting from scratch, I would have thought that you could incorporate a similar arrangement. Having said that, I have only shipped the washboards "in anger" a couple of times in 20 years, including a couple of ocean passages. I must say that doors are so much more convenient in port.

 

[Conachair]

It's not the blue water nirvana conditions that require a tight closure to the hatch methinks. It's the heavy rain and shipping water conditions where the traditional hatch is a barrier to swamping below - no?

Nice louvre doors are not really in the same class and don't prevent mossies and noseeums from spoiling those idyllic evenings in the mangrove swamps....(the other side of blue water sailing that no one wants to talk about!)

Besides the fact that wshboards are a far better deterrant to univited guests of the two legged variety, and when made of perspex let in nice light.....convinced?

PWG

Nope. Not convinced. Not in my experience anyway. Heavy rain or fast downwind was never a problem, bit damp round the joins maybe but no water coming through. One of these years I might get round to adding a bar to give a bit more support to the top.
Mozzies? hatch will always be open with mozzie net to let air in.
And I can't back it up cos no one I know was broken into, but if someone wants to get into your boat they get in. Thefts tend to be from the decks or an outboard not locked.

Doors every time! Mine bungie open and 99% of the time stay open. In the nice warm tropics anyway. If there isn't room from them to stay open then the arguments of ease of use fall apart a bit, possibly not much between them.

 

[Poignard]

I have the best (or worst) of both worlds on my 28' Twister.

Two vertically hinged wooden doors occupy the top 2/3 of the companionway opening and the lower 1/3 has a horizontally hinged flap. This flap hinges outwards so that any weight of water against it would tend to hold it shut. It acts like a hinged washboard.

The boat has lasted 44 years with this arrangement and has been to the Azores and back. If I ever felt it needed beefing up all it would need was a removable strongback fitting across the door opening.

I have sailed on boats with removable washboards and they are a nuisance, especially if you want to go discreetly on deck at night for a smoke or a pee, (or to jump ship). Doors can be opened quietly without waking everybody up.

Regarding instruments on the bulkhead being obscured by the doors, I don't have any but the previous owner had one there and fitted a small perspex window into the door so that it could be seen when the doors were hooked open.