February 24, 2021
Skeedeen Phase 6-39
Wednesday
To replace the broken and cheesy plastic engine room vents that I’d removed early in the project, the owner had had some new bronze vents made, and now that the boat was temporarily indoors at another shop where the engine was being installed, it was a good time to go install the new vents.
The new vents were different than the old, but had used the originals as a guide for the bolting pattern and to fit properly over the openings in the hull. Installation was a relatively straightforward process since I’d prepared the openings and hole locations with solid epoxy during the hull project earlier. For each of the two vents, I followed this process: Lay out the plate on the hull; drill and tap eight screw holes for 5/16″ machine screws (larger than needed but that’s how the fabricator made the vents); mill small countersinks at the top of each hole in the hull; install sealant; install vent with eight screws and clean up.
When I finished installing the vents, I realized that I’d installed the backwards, so I had to remove both, flip then so the slots faced aft, and reinstall. The correct orientation is shown in the final two photos of this series.
Total time billed on this job today: 2 hours
0600 Weather Observation: 32°, mostly clear. Forecast for the day: Increasing clouds, 46°