Underside of Engine Hatch
 

I need to redo the underside of my engine hatch. It has gelcoat peeling away from the 'glass. Is it safe to cover the underside of the hatch with marine carpet? I have thought about this all day... thinking about pros and cons. Anybody got any info or experiences with this matter?

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

I don't think I would use carpet. I'm using mirrored plexiglass. It's not very expensive and looks great.

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

I've got 3 structural braces going across the bottom of my hatch... unless I pull it off , sand(or grind) it down and re-gelcoat it... I'm looking for a little easier option. Although... I have thought about the carpet with mirror in between the braces.???????

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

heres a few shots...

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

carpet is very common on west coast lake boats like the smaller eliminators, coles, and ultras. looks ok but not as nice as gel and mirror, never seen carpet and mirror might look cool post pics if you do it.

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

I'm just worried about the saftey factor. Too much heat, enclosed area??

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

That gay mirror must weight a ton and slow you a few mph!

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

That was FIRST THOUGHT... But all the peeling gelcoat/paint?! Other things have a higher priority. Looking for a quick fix for a season or two

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

I agree with my pal stecz:D, I wouldnt carpet it for the simple fire hazard. You would have to use a contact cement which is highly flammable even in its dry form, and the material that carpet fibers are made from just turn to goo when flame hits them. Not to mention, you would have to have the edges bound to stop them from fraying, so you would have tu premold the carpet using a steamer, then go back to install. using contact cement you one shot with it, or you peel it all off and start over. just my .02 but, regel it paint it and have a nice day...Rob

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

quiet old man, you know you like my mirror...

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

Its the disco ball he has that slows him down :D your pal...Rob

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

Take it off, flip it over, tear out the loose stuff, lay some glass over the broken areas, fill the gaps with bondo, sand, paint. Good as new in weekend.

Working with glass is easy and fun...... Give it a shot.

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

Wellby,
Once the hatch is removed and you have scraped away the peeling portions, the fastest way to clean and prep without having to use a grinder would be to sand blast it. This will get into all the small areas that the grinder would not without having to grind it down flat. Wipe it down with some acetone and you're good to go to roll, brush or spray gelcoat on...
By all means, no carpet in the engine compartment. :eek:

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

Do the mirror thing!! Easy and cheap!!

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

My west coast boat has carpet.
Looks decent.
I like it better then bare gelcoat.
The glassing looks awesome, but with a finished product.
Only problem I have encountered in 5 years is once when and exhaust blew a hole the heat and water scortched the carpet. Kinda just melted it.
All I did was cut the bad area out, and glue in a new peice. Cannot tell it was missing at all :)

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

That looks really nice :drink:

Re: Underside of Engine Hatch
 

Decisions, Decisions... Thanks guys for the input.