I mentioned in a previous post that the ventilators did not fit properly in the Dorade boxes, because the threaded interior part that seals the ventilator when closed impacts on the through deck fastenings.
I could have used small wood screws to fix the external flange to the deck, but that would almost certainly not be strong enough.
I thought about making a gasket to fit over the locknuts inside the Dorade box. That would require a lot of work for something that might not work, so instead I made some small pads for the threaded seal to bear upon, preventing it from grinding on the locknuts.
Here they are. They are made from scrap 9mm plywood, sealed with epoxy resin and painted.
And here is the starboard ventilator sealing piece seen from inside the Dorade box, test fitted with three pads in place.
You can see that the seal now screws onto the three pads instead of the locknuts. It still seals the ventilator from the outside.
I was thinking of this as a temporary solution at this stage and fixed the pads in place with double sided tape so they could be easily removed at a future date.
I think I might make those gaskets after all, when the boat is complete and I have time for 'vanity projects'.
This is the starboard ventilator, test fitted.
You can just see one of the pads inside the Dorade box.
And here it is masked off with blue tape and the screws held in place with Blu Tak so I could fit the washers and locknuts from the interior.
And lastly here is the port ventilator after its final fit with sealant and locknuts.
That was a lot harder than it should have been, but we got there in the end!
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