Under the cockpit floor of my Nordic folkboat lurks moisture.
A pretty much standard self-draining cockpit installation; small bridgedeck over engine, deeper well with small gearbox/stuffing box access hatch.
The lazarette as seperate compartment aft.
The three floors in the keel between bilge and raked transom have blocked limber holes..so small reservoirs of water tend to accumulate between them.
The 'bulkhead' seperating the lazarette compartment has no openings large enough to allow passage of air thru the bottom of the boat.
The result is a damp environment under the cockpit, this has caused paint layers to flake from the planking, ribs etc and clog the limber holes.
With the cockpit floor removed (usual broken screws), the scraper had no trouble removing this old paint from the planking — unlike my weary bones that had no end of trouble with the contortions required to get the scraper to where it needed to go!
So now I wait for the (Mahogany ply) strakes to dry before applying Everdure prior to painting.
Also the limber holes have been cleared.
I must also give consideration to opening up the lower section of lazarette to bilge to enable good airflow thru this space (a vent on the afterdeck drawing air up thru it)
I am glad I pulled the cockpit floor! There may well have been some nasty rot/delamination issues, but no I am lucky.
Just a cautionary tale. [img]smile.gif[/img]
I would welcome any discussion about keeping a boat dry and aired.
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