> Okay, here's one for you to ponder. I'm not going to put a hatch in the
> foredeck of my Chesepeake 17. So, the foredeck bilge compartment will be
> completely sealed and therefore subject to expansion and contraction as
> the temperature changes unless I vent it. However, if I vent it with a
> small hole in the bulkhead, this could let water into this compartment. I
> can just envision this area puffing up like a plastic gas can sitting in
> the sun without the vent open. I've considered dozen of different
> solutions, but am not satisfied with any of them. Anyone have a solution?

As I see it, you have two addtional problems you may not have considered.The first is that mold and mildew WILL grow in these dark, damp areas, and stink. I'm not going to mention rot, delamination of the fiberglass and possibly the joints on the boat falling apart from the constant moisture. That would be too alarmist.

The second is that it is always easier for water to get in than for it to get out. You can not have a perfect oneway valve, or when the hot air is exhausted, as the boat cools if no air can be re admitted the boat will impolde. So, the vent has to work both ways. It has to let air in and out. IF it is a small hole, moist air will get in during the day, and condense at night. you would have to bake your boat to force out all the atmospheric moisture. Leaving it in the sun would just cause the trapped moisture to condense on the side of the boat that is coolest, and then run down into a little puddle in the center. Therefore, avoid small vent holes.

Trapped water adds useless weight.

A few ideas:

Of course if you had purchased and used Nick's book you would not have gotten into this situation (This is of course a blatant ad, but I doubt Nick will kick about it)

Replace the bulkhead. make another piece the same shape as the existing bulkhead, but about 1/4 inch smaller on all sides. This should fit loosely on the existing bulkhead. Take a saw, climb in the boat and cut out the center of that existing bulkhead. make a big hole in it, but leave the material 2 to 3 inches wide if you can. Fit a hatch to the replacement bulkhead, put some epoxy on it and stick it to what ever is left of the old bulkhead. Youcna stand the boat on it`s end and weight the new bulkhead with a brick until the epoxy sets.

If that is too involved, then make an ample sized drain hole, and put it in s place where the water will flow out by gravity while the boat is stored. The pointed ends of the boat would be the best sites. Stand the boat on end, or store it hull up and those points would be ideal for drain holes.

The drain holes should probably be rather large. The diameter of agarden hose would be the minimum. This still will not let a lot of air in to keep the hull dry by evaporation, but it is a start.

After you drill these 1/2 inch to 1 inch holes in the ends of your kayak you are going to want to seal them somehow.

Simplest idea is to put a cork in it. Liquor stores have the special tools used for removing corks that have been installed with excessive vigor.

More elaborate ideas are still possible, of course.

If you have been following the thread about lining holes with sections of copper, aluminum and plastic pipe you will find tips that would work here, too.

Lined or not, you can seal the hole with `Boiler plugs', expandible rubber devices that have a threaded bolt in the center. Tightening this bolt causes the rubber center to expand, plugging the hole.

You can make a similar device from a brass, bronze or stainless steel eyebolt and a few nuts and washers. Start with a 1/4 or 5/16 eyebolt that is about 4 inches long. Thread on a wingnut, a tight fitting washer, a piece of vinyl or rubber tubing that has an inside diameter that is a tight fit over the bolt threads. The thicker the wall of the tubing the better.The tubing shoudl be a bit over an inch long. After the tubing, put on another washer and a nut or two. The last two nuts should be tightened against each other so they jam tight. This will keep the other stuff from falling off the bolt. To use this as a plug, shove the end with the jammed nuts into the hole in the kayak. hold the eye of the eyebolts and spin the wing nut. As it moves it will push on the tubing and cause that to expand, filling the hole. The eyebolt can be used for attaching lines, but don't trust the expansion of the vinyl tubing to take much weight. you would not want to use this for carrying the boat on your car, for example. If you use expansion plugs, get the plug first and then drill a hole to fit it properly. Make a few tests in scrap lumber to be sure your hole is the right size before you drill into the boat.

Woodworkers Supply catalog has set of taps and dies for wood dowels. You buy or makea piece of round or dowel stock and then run it through the die to thread it. Drill a starter hole in the tip of the kayak and then rull the tap in. When you are finished you'll hve a large, neatly threaded hole, and a matching wood `bolt' that will fit in snugly. Paint the parts witha coat fo epoxy resin to seal them, then sand. Finally cover the threads with a bit of wax so the y turn smoothly when the dowel is inserted in the hole. The tap and die set is about $35. Unless you are making toys for the kids, you won't have much more use for it. The dowel that is inserted can be drilled through the diameter for a rope or metal ring. This can be used as a handle. The strength of such a threaded insert is much stronger than the expandible inserts, but I still would not trust this method for transporting my boat.

You could just as easily find a brass nut for 1/2 inch or larger threaded rod and glue that nut into a hole you enlarged with a chisel to fit. a brass or bronze cap oblt seals things while paddling. Remove the bolt, and store the kayak on end so water can drain away.

If you insert a piece of copper tubing you can plug it with a piece of brass, bronze or copper rod. Get a rod that is a loose fit, chuck it into a drill press and carefully machine in some grooves. Small O rings can be set into these grooves to form seals for this rod. Use a rod 18 inches long and you can put a flag or pennant on it. Very decorative, and it will tell you which direction the wind is blowing.

If you cant get good ventilation in those sealed areas you will want to occasionally rinse the inside of these sealed up areas with a solution of disinfectant or mold and mildew killer. A weak solution of ordinary laundry bleach should work fine. A tablespoon or two of bleach in a quart of water should do. Pour in a cup or two of the mixture, slosh it around and drian it out.

If you store your boat in the same postion that it would be paddled, you should drill small holes at the bottom of the bulkheads, about 1/4 inch above the hull so as to not drill through the hull. These holes can be expanded witha chisel, rasp and some sandpaper to make them triangular in shape. Any water that gets into the closed secton will drain out. For rough conditions you can plug these holes with a wood plug or a piece of cork whittled into a tapering, three sided peg. The hole should be smaller than a penny. Sure water can get into a hole this size, but it would take forever to fill the compartment with water, through such a small hole, particularly if there was no way for the trapped air to escape. You would retain your bouyancy.

If your only concern is distortion of the boat by expansion of heated, trapped gasses ( air and water vapor) then a imple solution is to take a nail or an awl and put a hole in the center of the bulkhead. It will be severl inches above the bilge and should not take on water if you capsize.

You can also install a single woodscrew with a round or pan head. Unscres this for venting, replace it afterward.

The best solution for airing out the boat is a large, neatly made deck hatch. I think you'll want to avoid putting in foam. Hope these ideas help. Paul Jacobson