Can I cut a hatch into my boat?

[patagoniapete]

I recently purchased a 1974 Starcraft open bow American 16'. It is in really great shape and seems structurally sound. There is no hatch in the floor of the boat and I would like to install one. It seems like the install itself would be a simple one, but I have a couple of questions: 1) Would cutting a hatch in the floor of my boat compromise its structural integrity? and 2) Is there a preferred location (toward the front between the seats or toward the rear)?
I have seen quite a few of these old open bows with hatch's built in. I would like to be able to perform periodic inspections and it would also give me some great storage space. Any thoughts on this?

 

[jigngrub]

This is a fiberglass StarCraft, right?

 

[Woodonglass]

Only Problems are, Stringers, Bulkheads, and Possible Foam!!! Doesn't really matter if it's Glass or Tin!!!

 

[jigngrub]

... btw, post some pics of your boat and especially the bow area so we can see what you have to work with.

 

[patagoniapete]

Wow! I can't believe how quickly you guys responded. Thanks.
Yes, it's fiberglass. I have attached a few pictures. I'm at work so I had to use pictures that are already on my phone. These are the only angles I have right now.
What I was thinking, based on what I have seen on some similar boats, was to put it between the seats. My concern is that there is some special bracing that spans the width of the floor under the seats (sorry I don't know the correct boating terms). I was hoping it would be as simple as cutting a hole and screwing on a cover, but I want to make sure I do it right. I am very handy and can add additional bracing and glass if needed.
What do you think?

 

[Woodonglass]

This drawing may be of some help.



If your boats substructure (made up of Stringers, Bulkheads and possibly foam) is like the drawing on the left...Your pretty much S.O.L. trying to put in a Center hatched compartment. If it's like the one on the left then if You can locate the bulkhead (if it even has one..Some don't) then If it has foam (some don't) you would just dig out the foam frame up the compartment, fabricate or buy the lid/hatch, attach it to the deck, finish it off and VOILA' you're all set! Course there is the matter of not having a drain and water will get down there! Mold and mildew too! When the factory does em, they make drains that go back to the bilge etc... Lot's to think about!!!!

 

[patagoniapete]

That's great feedback, and you're right, you have given me a lot to think about.
So if I was looking at my boat from the front, I would assume that the stringers lie under the bulkheads - like the stringers are the beams on a house and the bulkheads are the rafters. Is that right?
I would also assume that the only way to find out the layout of my boat is to pick a spot, drill a hole and take a look?

 

[Woodonglass]

Actually the bulkheads sit over the top of the Stringers and at the same level with them, and yep exploratory holes is about the only way.

 

[jigngrub]

Before you go drilling any holes in your deck, let me ask you a question. What kind of drainage system does your boat have?

There are 2 common types:
1. A deck drain... this will be a lowered box in the back of your boat at the transom with the drain hole through the transom visible from inside the boat and allows all the water that gets on the deck to drain to the back of the boat and fills the box to be pumped out by the bilge pump or released when the plug is pulled. This style only drains the water that gets on your deck and not any of the water below deck.

2. A bilge drain... this will be a hole in your transom very close to the keel, the hole usually won't be visible from inside the boat. For this style you'll usually have a hole in the deck that lets water that gets on the deck drain down into the bilge below deck to be pumped out or drained when the plug is pulled.

If you have the first system, the deck drain... any holes through the decking are ill advised, no holes or hatches or any penetrations! This is because you don't have any way to drain any water that gets below the deck.

 

[Rickmerrill]

Just to keep our response time up... The stringers and bulkheads are at the same level just like the walls of a house, bad example. I'd guess your fuel tank is in the center towards the stern but who knows. You might be able to drill a small hole and use a coat hanger but if it has foam it is probably filled to the top so that might not work unless you could force it horizontally through the foam. I'm not sure I even like that idea!

 

[patagoniapete]

jigngrub, from your description it sounds like I have a bilge drain. I have a dash-switch operated bilge pump that I can't see and the drain hole is at the very bottom in the back of the boat (aft?). The plug has to be inserted and removed from outside the boat, under the motor, because I can't access it from the inside.
I'm not concerned about a gas tank under the deck because it's an outboard with a tank on the deck, under the very rear seat.
I actually looked at some pictures of stringers and bulkheads and I can see that my vision of this system was probably off. I had pictured something like 2x4's for these systems with space underneath, but from what I can tell it's more like plywood that spans all the way from the underside of the deck to the keel. Is that more accurate?

 

[Rickmerrill]

Correct.

 

[patagoniapete]

Thank you everybody for your help. I have been reading the posts on these forums for a couple of months now and decided to join today to tap into the expertise. You guys did not disappoint.
I will see if I can't get some information from Starcraft (now Smoker Craft I guess) on the location of my bulkheads and stringers. I may just decide to scrap the project all-together.