Article by Steve Ladd
In my long, slow build of a tacking proa out of foam-core fiberglass, I was about to bond the deck on when I realized there was something yet again that I must do first: create structural linkages (extra build-ups and brackets) between the frames and wherever the hatch hinges and latches will be bolted, because the deck alone is not strong enough to bolt to. This brought to mind the important role of the humble hatch in a small boat. Here are my thoughts on the subject.
Size
All but the smallest and most open boats have interior spaces for storage or crew accommodation. Hatches are the openings into these spaces. Hatch covers are their means of closing. The closures must be strong and watertight.
Openings in a panel weaken it. We compensate by installing extra framing. The smallest hatch is just big enough to reach your hand in and pull out something small, like a pair of binoculars. A spare sail requires something bigger. At some point a hatch is large enough to bodily enter for emergency purposes, like patching a hole in the bottom.
Designing a hatch for crew accommodation requires us to imagine the motions by which someone will enter. If the hatch is straight down into a cabin with less than head room, an opening about twenty inches wide and thirty inches long may work. You would support yourself on to the edges of the opening, then drop your legs in, then stoop or duck.
But many boats are too small for this arrangement, and there is good reason to avoid it anyway: it’s not watertight.
