My old boat, SeaHorse II, had a Tuna door that opened out and I almost fell over board several times.(The latch didn't work properly and the door would swing open when underway) My preent boat's Tuna door opens in and it's much safer.
Falling out is a concern. Thanks.
Opening out and hooking in the open position saves space.
Do you significantly weaken the back of your boat by cutting a piece out of the transom? Did your mfg ever offer this option? There are doubtless ways to stiffen the opening. Probably been done before - don't reinvent the wheel.
The hull strength is a concern. A friend has cut a full size tuna door in the back of his 40' Schucker. He mentioned reinforcing and that it was a relatively easy project.
That man is skilled though!
His opening is wider and taller than mine will be.
There was no tuna door option in any of the Schuckers though many now have them.
Ours opens inward.
Since we carry our dinghy on a davit system mounted on the swim platform... an outward-opening transom door could have become an issue for us.
That is another concern. Thanks Chris.
Make sure you have references from the guy who will be doing the job. You will want to know how many he has done and what he recommends for your situation.
Good luck! I hate hiring out. Gives me loads of stress!! LOL!
I'm fortunate there Donna. He's busy, which is a good sigh.
And he has a reciprocating saw and is not afraid to use it.
Best of all, while chatting he'd mentioned that the previous weekend he'd had to repair the transom of his son's outboard fishing boat. He talked about "removing rotting core" and "strengthening the transom" and how the boat was now better than when new.
The next door neighbor has known Chris for decades and trusts him.
But Chris is busy.
Therein lies the problem. I have hopes. First though another neighbor has a job that is line before mine.
I do have high hopes though Donna. This has literally been on my list almost since I bought Seaweed nine years ago. It's the next-to-last safety feature I want. An autopilot will have to wait because this is more important in my view. At least for another year or two.
Ours opens out also. A few years ago we had some stress cracks at the transom and the door itself at the hinges. We removed the hinges to reenforced the attachment points.
The fellow Schucker owner (Seaweed is a Schucker) did talk about reinforcing the opening. I'll keep that in mind. Thanks!
I decided to add the lower stern cleat to allow crossing my stern lines and not block the door swing - or being a tripping hazard when boarding.
I also wanted to add Weaver davits for my inflatable which I place to port - works well as it still leaves room to board with the dingy on place and raised.
Moving a cleat is a great idea. I'd not thought of that. Thanks!!!
And being able to lift Algae is also a consideration though I don't leave her on the swim platform. It's more important to be able to board Seaweed from the water. Too many boats have no way to get back aboard.
On some boats, the transom provides structural rigidity to the hull. You may want to confirm that your transom door won't impair that rigidity.
Noted. That is important MYTraveler. I'll keep that in mind.
The thinking is that rather than have one that is full height I'll go with 18". That way it won't be so large. The opening will not be so close to the water. I can step over a shorter bulkhead.
A straight walk through (level with the cockpit) is too low in my opinion. I want to step over.
Greetings,
I agree that a properly engineered door that opens outward would not be forced open if slammed by a big wave BUT Ms. J shouldn't be out in conditions that would allow that to occur. So, my vote would be inward opening with two sturdy latches
Thanks RT... Although initially I was leaning outbound opening, I am back to inward. It just seems simpler. Angles so the door will open will also prevent water from coming in.
Our transom was already cut out and there was a makeshift door in the opening so I didn't have the cut out from the transom . The door I made is in two pieces with the caprail section that hinges on top of the caprail and straddles the door that opens to the inside . It's a funky design but it's all I could come up with . The door center panel is a piece of 1/2 " starboard.
This is ABSOLUTELY what I want. Thank you so much Pack Mule for the great idea. I'd not considered having a caprail AND a tuna door. This just makes so much sense.
Thank you for showing me what I did not know I needed.
