Dorades in Capsizing

[Cyrus Safdari]

In the process of capsize-proofing a sailboat (latches on floorboards, lockers, nets over loose items on galley and head shelves, velcroed cushions, fastened down tanks batteries anchors etc. etc.) but what to do about dorade vents? The vents should of course be closed and the cowls stored in heavy weather but what to do in an emergency? Those are BIG holes if knocked over!

[delmarrey]

Dorades boxes should have a baffle in them to prevent droplets of water from going down. As well, they should be able to prevent large amounts of water passing through easily in the event of a rollover.

Also they should be secured to deck strong enough to take hits from the sea. The cowls I like are made of plastic and can be removed and the box capped.

Dorade box - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[dana-tenacity]

In really bad conditions the cowls should be removed and capped. But that made the interior of the boat almost uninhabitable and we went back to having the cowls on , facing away from the wind, not a drop till the capsize then they were like fire hoses.
Would I do the same again - yes. The danger from seasick crew being unable to function is/was greater than the possibility of capsize. Plus we were upside down for only a few seconds, yes a lot of water came in, but it takes a hell of a lot of water to sink a boat , at an estimate you would need to be upside down for 60 secs or more, if that's a possibility you might be in the wrong boat.

[barnakiel]

Ours close (screw in) from the inside. From the outside we can stuff them with plastic bags and that's it.

We were knocked down once and no water came in through the dorades. Some came in through our 'watertight' washboards though. So I think a truly bomb proof washboard system (preferably just a big hatch) is the way to keep the boat watertight in this respect.

Why do you make the boat capsize-proof? Going somewhere?

b.

[Cyrus Safdari]

There's gotta be a way for the dorade vents to self-close in a capsize. Even the plastic covers seem inadequate -- imagine the tons of water pressure on them if a boat turtles.

It is my new philosophy of sailboats that

"Everything has its place, and there's place for everything"

The corollary is that everything should be left where it was if ever the boat is tossed around or knocked over.

Needless to say tons of water gushing in through various holes in the hull violate Rule 2

I'm not happy with many design elements of regular sailaboats ie: Small scuppers in large cockpits; or the the enormous portlights in many boats either, especially when they open IN rather than OUT. Who on earth thought of that?

[Hydra]

Cyrus,
You might be interested in Plastimo "Cool'n Dry" dorade boxes: they have an internal valve designed to stop water ingress. They are on my shopping list but I don't have any experience with them yet.

http://www.plastimo.com/catalogue/1/8350001.html

Alain

[Cyrus Safdari]

Thank you. It would be nice to hear from people who have used this -- I can't say I like the looks of it, seems to block the air but then again regular dorades do too...

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by Cyrus Safdari

I'm not happy with many design elements of regular sailaboats ie: Small scuppers in large cockpits; or the the enormous portlights in many boats either, especially when they open IN rather than OUT. Who on earth thought of that?

How many of them go seriously offshore do you think? 1% ?

This would be a bad thing indeed if the ocean-going design disappeared because of toys with big windows and small scuppers. But as long as we have all kinds about I would say there is a tool for every job. Just pick up yours wisely.

b.

[Doodles]

Our boat is a Wauquiez Pretorian 35, formerly owned by the late Hal Roth (Whisper), and his solution was to remove the dorades and glass over the holes. Maybe an extreme approach but I have to say a lot of the modifications he made to the boat really make sense, and it is by far the driest boat I have ever been on. We have lived aboard it for over 6 months now and I have yet to find any leaks, current or past.