We’ve been using the same detail for hatch storm covers for years. This includes a tight-fitting cover, some form of lip for the cover to fit over or around, and on Wind Horse, a new feature. In the photo below you will see a series of lashings over the cover itself. These are to help hold the cover in place in truly awful conditions.
Although we’ve never had problems with covers coming off in the past, this detail is more suited to the type of weather we may encounter with the new boat.
For those of you not familiar with this hatch cover design, there is a chapter on these in our Offshore Cruising Encyclopedia. The cover is designed to protect the hatch gaskets from direct wave impact, and when the boat is in storage, they help to prolong the life of the hatch lens.
These lashings are on a 36″ (900mm) square hatch. Because of the size of the hatch they are run in both directions.
With a metal boat it is easy to weld lugs to the deck where we need them. For the large hatches, as shown above, there are four sets of lines, requiring eight lugs. On medium-sized hatches (roughly 24″/600mm square), we use a pair of lines. The small hatches have a single set of lines. On fiberglass boats these welded eyes would be replaced with bolted pad eyes.
Lines are rigged with a bowline knot at one end, then run through the eye, and then back to the opposite edge.
The tie-off system on these lines is designed to be easily tensioned. The second part of the line comes back through the eye with the bowline. This segment is then “bow stringed” to tension both legs. It is secured with a series of half hitches just beyond the bowline.
Note how the half hitches are made. Rather than a single piece of line the tail is doubled up, making it easier to untie.
Posted by Steve Dashew (May 19, 2006)
