Bulkhead issues

[Samoerai]

The collision bulkhead on my B34 from 1999 looks like it has seen too much water.
I suspect a leaking cleat, or maybe the anchor locker or maybe the hatch?

As I'm unable to remove the shells, how could I repair this?

[Happysailor]

Ok, First of all you will need to find the leak what caused the wateringress to start the degradation.

I would propose to remove all damaged and soft wood. See what is left, but by the looks of it not a lot and it must be smelly too.

I think the best option would be to make the bulkhead out of one piece and tilt it in place, position top and slide bottom into place. Due to triangle waffle sizing and shape this could work and could be the best option as it would be out of 1 piece to give the best strength. Laminate the sides to connect the bulkhead with the hull again.

If this cannot work you will need to make a split or make a less tight fit.
Make a new bulkhead in two parts, a PS and SB side part/ top and bottom part. Position them, laminate and close the seam bij doubling and screwing with a strip with sufficient overlap.
Last least elegant solution would be to build a webframe and laminate this to the hull, take sufficient thickness as next you will need to mount a complete bulkhead to it, with tolerances just enough to get it in, using sealant and screws to hold it. It needs to become really rigid so there will need to be sufficient screws and not only in the corners as it will need to take the strenght again..

I would first really try to make a new bulkhead out of 1 piece and get it in.

Any other thoughts?

[Samoerai]

Hi,

thanks for your help! We do have a suspect for the leak. When we throw water in the chain locker exactly on the cables, we immediately see water. The thing is, the cables are in the right top, so we are not super clear how the water gets there in the first place. Maybe there is leakage via the pulpit that sticks to the underside of the deck and find it's way to the cables?

We've thrown buckets and buckets of water on every part of the bow and this seems to be the only leakage.


The shelfs are only like 1cm from the bulkhead. I'm afraid that's not enough to get one piece in. We've also found the bulkhead is not attached to the deck and is not below the bed. As it is only connected to the sides, my thought are a horizontal split would be best?

Does anyone know if the bulkhead is laminated to the anchor locker?

[Happysailor]

On our previous Bavaria 300 I have redone the upholstry of the cabins and removed the shelves. In the 1990 edition these were screwed in and not laminated. Have a look into how you can remove these to make the best solution..

If that cant be done, a horizontal split seems best, as the biggest forces are abeam and the wedge shape will carry the vertical forces

[Yngmar]

If the water can't leave and the bulkhead can't dry, it doesn't take a big leak to rot it, just a long time. The shelves will have to come off for a proper repair and then the bulkhead can be replaced. You can drill a few holes to probe how far the rot really goes, some may just be surface mould but it doesn't look good.

I don't know what rail your boat has, but leaks can be from any fitting through the rail and from the deck/hull joint itself, which was poorly caulked on some boats of that era or may have shrunk with age.

[SYJetzt]

I would suggest an inspection of the anchor locker. All drain holes open? No cracks in laminate? If the water can't drain fully and remains in the locker, the smallest crack in the laminate will soak the bulkhead over the time ...