Retired from newspapers and television, currently sailing Thelonious II, a 1984 Ericson 381.
There are many opinions about yacht cabin curtains. I have one, too, which I will try to suppress because it is based on some indefinable irritation at the very idea of them. We do need something to keep the sun out, though. And, generally speaking, that means curtains.
UV eats interiors, even through thick acrylic and even though the safety glass that was used in the fixed lights of many cabins. We don't get sunburned through glass (it blocks UVA), but the UVB that gets through will still degrade fabrics and wood surfaces belowdecks. The V-berth upholstery of my prior boat was turned to dust simply because in its lifetime nobody had put a sun cover on the acrylic hatch. So, there's that.
Also, there are times when cruising when an afternoon nap seems appropriate, and we have all had a fiery sun rake the bunk with window-shaped arrows of radar-guided light. Often the Ericson industry standard of bleached out, rusted, rotten and moldy accordion fabric on corroded tracks fails utterly to block out a mischievous afternoon sun.
My approach, which won't get any decorators' seal of approval, is interior shades that aren't up. That is, you take them down when sailing, and put them up when napping. In the slip they block UVB, and if overnight an a guest dock they block the night view in for those who like playing scrabble in their underpants.
It's just a panel of scrap Sunbrella, easy to snap into place and easy remove for a view out the portlights.
And, as we have all noticed, Ericson curtain tracks leave six holes in the veneer when removed. The holes are not significant, but on the other hand they can't be effectively filled in or plugged. So, I put the snaps in the same holes. The threads of a standard boat snap are much too long for eighth-inch veneer, and would go right through the side of the cabin house. But if you nip them in half, sufficient holding power remains.
Film Off the Fixed Lights
The E38 had pretty funky fixed portlights, sort of what you might expect from an older boat. But I eventually realized they were covered in sun-reducing film, which over the years had scratches and flaws, and what I was looking at wasn't glass at all. The film was so skillfully applied that I wonder if the factory did it.
Getting if off wasn't as hard as expected. The usual method is heat and a plastic scraper (and maybe ammonia). When plastic didn't work I reached for a razor blade, even though I am told that steel can scratch glass. It didn't. The film came off easily enough, but not the glue. That took a long time with adhesive remover, scrapers, patience and many paper towels. But it was encouraging to see clear, undamaged glass gradually reveal itself.
And now I know why the film was there in the first place: clear glass is blinding bright. Just the way we like it on a gray or rainy day, but a real squinter any other time. Without tint, some kind of curtain is definitely required. Or no naps.
Cockpit Drain Covers by Any Other Name...
Mine were worn out after 32 years. Dented, scratched, worn by a thousand days of Topsiders grinding potato chips into them.
But I couldn't find replacements for Perko cockpit grates anywhere on line.
That's because they're called "Perko Round Locker Vent Grilles." Exact replacements. Were they always called that? Who knows. Shiny news ones are a ten minute job that perks up the cockpit floor considerably.
Why Bother with New Hinges for the Lazarette Locker Lid?
Well, like the cockpit drain covers, mine were scratched and dull. And it's the little things that make an old boat look like an old boat.
Furthermore, the lazarette lids on many of our boats are actually supported by their "short-side" hinges (so called because the lid backs up to a bulkhead and one side of the hinge is cut down to fit). When you stand on the lid, the hinges are holding your weight in a way no engineer ever approved of. They work, but I think that's why many hatch lids squeak or yield. So even if new hinges seem extravagant, periodic tightening of the small machine screws and nuts helps a lot. It's an awkward job, which is why nobody ever does it.
I can't really justify three new $20 hinges when the old ones still work.
But I was able to justify my big Home Depot wire cutters, on board in case it's necessary to cut away the rig if disaster strikes.
They'll cut off the end of a screw-in snap as easy as kiss my hand. And they cut shrouds like butter. Here's a video to prove it.
UV eats interiors, even through thick acrylic and even though the safety glass that was used in the fixed lights of many cabins. We don't get sunburned through glass (it blocks UVA), but the UVB that gets through will still degrade fabrics and wood surfaces belowdecks. The V-berth upholstery of my prior boat was turned to dust simply because in its lifetime nobody had put a sun cover on the acrylic hatch. So, there's that.
Also, there are times when cruising when an afternoon nap seems appropriate, and we have all had a fiery sun rake the bunk with window-shaped arrows of radar-guided light. Often the Ericson industry standard of bleached out, rusted, rotten and moldy accordion fabric on corroded tracks fails utterly to block out a mischievous afternoon sun.
My approach, which won't get any decorators' seal of approval, is interior shades that aren't up. That is, you take them down when sailing, and put them up when napping. In the slip they block UVB, and if overnight an a guest dock they block the night view in for those who like playing scrabble in their underpants.
It's just a panel of scrap Sunbrella, easy to snap into place and easy remove for a view out the portlights.
And, as we have all noticed, Ericson curtain tracks leave six holes in the veneer when removed. The holes are not significant, but on the other hand they can't be effectively filled in or plugged. So, I put the snaps in the same holes. The threads of a standard boat snap are much too long for eighth-inch veneer, and would go right through the side of the cabin house. But if you nip them in half, sufficient holding power remains.
Film Off the Fixed Lights
The E38 had pretty funky fixed portlights, sort of what you might expect from an older boat. But I eventually realized they were covered in sun-reducing film, which over the years had scratches and flaws, and what I was looking at wasn't glass at all. The film was so skillfully applied that I wonder if the factory did it.
Getting if off wasn't as hard as expected. The usual method is heat and a plastic scraper (and maybe ammonia). When plastic didn't work I reached for a razor blade, even though I am told that steel can scratch glass. It didn't. The film came off easily enough, but not the glue. That took a long time with adhesive remover, scrapers, patience and many paper towels. But it was encouraging to see clear, undamaged glass gradually reveal itself.
And now I know why the film was there in the first place: clear glass is blinding bright. Just the way we like it on a gray or rainy day, but a real squinter any other time. Without tint, some kind of curtain is definitely required. Or no naps.
Cockpit Drain Covers by Any Other Name...
Mine were worn out after 32 years. Dented, scratched, worn by a thousand days of Topsiders grinding potato chips into them.
But I couldn't find replacements for Perko cockpit grates anywhere on line.
That's because they're called "Perko Round Locker Vent Grilles." Exact replacements. Were they always called that? Who knows. Shiny news ones are a ten minute job that perks up the cockpit floor considerably.
Why Bother with New Hinges for the Lazarette Locker Lid?
Well, like the cockpit drain covers, mine were scratched and dull. And it's the little things that make an old boat look like an old boat.
Furthermore, the lazarette lids on many of our boats are actually supported by their "short-side" hinges (so called because the lid backs up to a bulkhead and one side of the hinge is cut down to fit). When you stand on the lid, the hinges are holding your weight in a way no engineer ever approved of. They work, but I think that's why many hatch lids squeak or yield. So even if new hinges seem extravagant, periodic tightening of the small machine screws and nuts helps a lot. It's an awkward job, which is why nobody ever does it.
I can't really justify three new $20 hinges when the old ones still work.
But I was able to justify my big Home Depot wire cutters, on board in case it's necessary to cut away the rig if disaster strikes.
They'll cut off the end of a screw-in snap as easy as kiss my hand. And they cut shrouds like butter. Here's a video to prove it.
