The Remediation Starts with Cleaning and Sealing...
Since we could remove the foc'shole bilge cover from our Prout Escale and take it home, it was the first item to get fixed. First cleaned, then dried in the garage, it was reborn after being sealed on both sides.
The white paint blends the cover into the room and the epoxy paint is tough and watertight. We had some leftover from painting the hull (water barrier and all that) so the effective cost was zero. Once the weather got warmer, we started by removing all the sub-standard hose, fittings, etc. that Prout Catamarans had installed followed by a proper cleaning and drying of all surfaces.
These surfaces were then also covered with the same barrier coat of white epoxy paint that hopefully seals them from any future leaks. We left the pathetic access hole cut-out in the forward bilge as is because it's a low priority item to fix.
Installing the hose was very difficult due to tight bend radii and low hose flexibility, despite the balmy weather (70° F). Here Gerald is feeding the discharge hose through the floor in the bilge and the bulkhead to the toilet base. The final hose installation was quite clean and orderly. The combination of light gray hose and newly painted white bilge will make leak detection much easier.
Prepped area for toilet: Holes are sealed, new sewage hose has been run, saltwater supply also plumbed in. The bolts that hold the toilet run through the floor and into some hex nuts on the other side - not the easiest thing to reassemble - long arms are a must.
Here you can see how we refinished the floor area and the replacement hoses in place. The epoxy was put to use in the summer of 2000 when the holding tank leaked again. Luckily, I got the leak pretty early on. We should have known better: sealing the hose on the tank nipple is the only option.
We also installed a pull handle into the bilge cover near the toilet in order to facilitate its removal without the need for tools. The pull ring installation is water proof so we only expect some leakage around the perimeter when people are taking showers. Once again, having stringer holes that allow the little water that does leak in to escape is a good idea that we will retrofit.
The two revitalized covers/hatches in place.
Here is he compartment that the pull-ring hatch covers. The space under the entire bathroom is only accessible via this hatch. Three important items share the space directly underneath: The combination speedometer/depth sounder (upper left), the saltwater intake for the toilet and the holding tank discharge(right).
Both sea-cocks were frozen in place. Some PM later, they once again worked like a charm. Convincing the sewage discharge to overcome the sea-cock nipple was very difficult and involved a lot of soap, as well as boiling water (thank you Dunkin Donuts!)
The hatch to this compartment is next to the toilet and was very hard to remove. With the pull ring this has become much easier. Details like the pull-ring would have made Prout Catamarans far more appealing to cruisers who actually maintain their own stuff. Ditto for the forward hatch... too bad they didn't get it right on this boat - perhaps the newer '38, '43, and '45 have better maintainability.
Best Estimate of Time Required:
| Paint foc'shole bilge cover, install pull ring in other bilge cover | 1.5 hours |
|---|---|
| Paint all bilge surfaces with 2 layers of white epoxy paint | 1 hour |
| Re-route hose through all angles, slip over tight nipples in bilge, attach | 3 hours |
| Take apart ball valves/service/reassemble | 2 hour |
| Total | 7.5 hours |
|---|