I need some suggestions for replacing the entry bulkhead

On my boat, the entry was made up of multiple pieces of teak, fitted together, tongue and groove, with with ply fillers and large glass windows set into RTV, and held together with a few screws. Few being the really important word there. Due to the design which inclines from bottom to top 10 inches on a 60 inch rise, water rains directly onto it and drainage from the flybridge also washes over it. Over the years the door warped, and started to work the framing . As well the wet and dry cycles also opened everything up. No amount of caulk would help. After 2 years of being covered the wood shrank and gaps in the joints really opened up. I decided to rebuild this while I'm doing everything else.


My intention is to replace the framing, center the door and install 2 smaller sliders instead of the fixed large glass panes.I would like the weather surface to be a single sheet surface, to eliminate water ingress. I think a sheet of marine ply would be quite heavy. The area covered is 64 x 96. Plainly weather resistance is a key requirement, as is cost. It certainly needs to be under a 1K, preferably half that. Also I can't find any suppliers of doors, in the size range, 24x60. I thought of fiberglass storm doors, but none are that small or are reducible due to form. Although I could make a new wood door, that runs counter to my goal of eliminating exposed wood.

Entry bulkhead as original built.


Removal of bulkhead


Ideas would be appreciated!

 

Have you considered a metal sliding glass door? A 2 panel or even a 3 panel. You can also get a wood one with steel or aluminum cladding on the outside. A 3 panel would leave the opening part centered.
Also the cladding can be finished to look like wood at the factory. A lockable door from the outside. Double pane with safety glass tinted or not, all sorts of choices.
These doors are a godsend if you have door swing problems.

 

While it is one option, it's heavy, and I'd like to cut down on the glass. I have huge glass windows all the way around the cabin. It's like a solar furnace in the sun.

 

Probably because someone fitted normal glass, not a type to resist solar gain. Most vehicles have some screening in their glass to resist this, so do trains, coaches, buses etc.

 

3 M company makes film in many colors that you can put on windows that reflects 96% to 98% of the heat generated by direct sunlight on windows back the way it came.
Great product. Just Google 3-M. Problem solved.............

 

Think carefully about shifting the door and what your final 'floor plan' will be for the salon. A door in the wrong place combined with traffic patterns into the forward parts of the boat can cut the space up to where there is no suitable spaces for larger 'furniture' or functionality.

Usually the flybridge deck extends a bit aft to form an 'eave' over that wall and keeps the majority of water off of it.

 

"Usually the flybridge deck extends a bit aft to form an 'eave' over that wall and keeps the majority of water off of it."

Unfortunately not on this one. I will be making a an overhang to help, but space is limited on the back deck, only 4 ft. Canvas or hardtop is in the future plans