Bulwark issue on OA Mk 1

[Insequent]

During my recent haulout we made a fortuitous discovery the day before going back into the water. Just forward of midships, on both sides, the bulwark below the teak rubrail was loose. It was not obvious since the convex surface meant that it maintained correct shape and position, but when leant on it deflected inwards almost 1/2". See yellow line in pic. The rubrail screws into the deck support for the Portuguese bridge/side deck area. That the lower bulwark is able to move inwards must mean that it has nothing to butt up against on the inside, which would be a design flaw IMO.

As a short term fix we removed the old adhesive sealant and app;lied sikaflex before using temporary screws to pull it out against the bottom portion of the teak rubrail.

Next haulout I will likely do a more permanent fix. The failure has been there a long time, manifested by water ingress on the inside of the hull. This water ingress has also damaged the teak ply lining in the cabin are. I had thought the deck was leaking, now I know I was looking in the wrong place for the problem! The fix will be to remove the damaged teak ply ling, both port & starboard, to the extent internal access allows. Then put som fiberglass tape along the join area on the inside. It will be good to have a lighter coloured lining in the area, similar to what is in the forward cabin, to gewt a brighter ambiance.

I'd be curious if other OA Mk 1 owners have had a similar issue?

 

[RobertLeatch]

Where we are berthed I can only really check the Stb side but I can't see any indications of deformation or movement in that area. Seems pretty solid with me pushing on it from the dock. At one stage I had run a bead of sika along that teak strip but don't think it would be doing anything structural.

 

[Insequent]

Good news for you Robert! Peter Hayes has had water ingress in the area for a long time on Aquabelle, and once he get s mobility back I'm sure he'll check. He showed me the area internally a while back but we could not work out where the water was coming from at the time. I sus[ect we now know, but yet to be verified

 

[RobertLeatch]

Given the recent haul out, do you think there may have been an issue with the slings during the lift that could have stressed the area?

 

[Insequent]

Good point on stress from slings!

But I've also had water ingress, mostly manifested in damage to teak plywood lining (both sides) for several years. I had thought was arising from the decks even though no missing bungs and caulking a reasonably good shape. I'm starting to think it may well be because of the cumulative sling/lifting process even though I insist on double slings each end to spread load.

The last few lifts have been accompanied by a fair bit of creaking, There is definitely some movement in the structure. I really can't remember whether the lifts in my early years of ownership were like that or not.

 

[RobertLeatch]

I think any of the external teak trim is suspect for water leaks because it seems to routinely be used to cover joins.

For the lift, do they use single slings or doubles?. We've tended to ask for doubles lately (can't remember who recommended it) but it's often not their default option.

 

[Insequent]

I always have doubles these days. Back in Paul's ownership of Aquabelle singles were used to re-launch on the regular lift operator's day off. Significant damage to the rubrail occurred on the forward sling. It was similar to what happened to me on the lift onto the cargo ship in Vancouver when they used singles back in 2013.

 

[Comodave]

You can have the yard put blocks in between the hull and the slings so the inward push is on the hull and not up by the gunnels.

 

[Bmarler]

You can have the yard put blocks in between the hull and the slings so the inward push is on the hull and not up by the gunnels.

That’s what I do. Every yard should have sets of blocks for this. I have to block the lower guards in the stern and the uppers at the forward sling.

 

[JAllen]

During my recent haulout we made a fortuitous discovery the day before going back into the water. Just forward of midships, on both sides, the bulwark below the teak rubrail was loose. It was not obvious since the convex surface meant that it maintained correct shape and position, but when leant on it deflected inwards almost 1/2". See yellow line in pic. The rubrail screws into the deck support for the Portuguese bridge/side deck area. That the lower bulwark is able to move inwards must mean that it has nothing to butt up against on the inside, which would be a design flaw IMO.

As a short term fix we removed the old adhesive sealant and app;lied sikaflex before using temporary screws to pull it out against the bottom portion of the teak rubrail.

Next haulout I will likely do a more permanent fix. The failure has been there a long time, manifested by water ingress on the inside of the hull. This water ingress has also damaged the teak ply lining in the cabin are. I had thought the deck was leaking, now I know I was looking in the wrong place for the problem! The fix will be to remove the damaged teak ply ling, both port & starboard, to the extent internal access allows. Then put som fiberglass tape along the join area on the inside. It will be good to have a lighter coloured lining in the area, similar to what is in the forward cabin, to gewt a brighter ambiance.

I'd be curious if other OA Mk 1 owners have had a similar issue?

The yard pulled us once and did not use chine blocks. One part of the rail there was damaged. Ever since we have owned the boat, 5 years ago, 1980 OA Mark1, we have experienced leaks here that has damaged the main berth walls. We plan to pull the rail off this winter and fix the hull underneath. We have been told there is a hull to deck joint that needs re-caulk the joint. We do suspect that even with chine blocks the hull is stressed here during haul outs.