E32 Water Tank Lid
Date: March 23, 2001 I have a 1978 E32 with a leaking Fresh water tank. It is Build directly into the boat in the bow. After removing the lid, It is easy to see it is the lid that is leaking when I fill the tank. I must replace the lid. It is soft and saggy at the bow. Has anyone had experience in fixing this thing? I must cut it into pieces to get it out of the boat. This implies that any new lid I build must be in pieces to bring it into the boat. My guess is to cut two triangles off the stern end of the new lid so it will fit through the companion way. Will this weeken the lid two much? Any Ideas would be appreciated! Date: March 31, 2001 i replaced the lid on my 76. it had to be made in two pieces. i used 3/4 fir plywood that i covered with formica on both sides. i used a shiplap joint with west system epoxy to join the two pieces I sealed the edges with epoxy ,also where the inspection plate is. any questions you can e-mail me direct Date: May 2, 2001 My 1978 Endeavour 32 was leaking heavily right at the forward most part of the tank in the bow. The water when filling would run out and into the berth! Removing the lid. Sucks. After removing all 42 of the Philips screws from the lid, I found that the thing was permanently glued down. With much gentle prying with screw drivers and putty knives. I was able to pull the wood from the bottom layer of laminent. Extreme caution was used to prevent chipping the fiberglass. After the wood was removed I was left with a piece of laminent glued to the top of the tank with what I assume to be 5200. It was relatively easy to remove the majority of the laminent by simply tearing it to pieces. This left a perimeter of several inches bonded to the glass. Removing this perimeter laminent was by far the worst of the entire project. I tried scraping, pulling, tugging and swearing but nothing would come loose. After suggestions from the Endeavour forum I tried a heat gun. Well, I can't say the removal was easy, but it was at least do-able! After carefully heating 3-4 inches at a time, the 1.5 inch putty knife would slip under the 5200!! Four or five hours later it was all off! I used paint thinner to loosen the rest of the 5200 and was able to clean the lip! I used a "Saws-All" to cut the original lid port to starboard to get it through the companion way. I scrubbed the entire tank with soft scrub to remove old mold and mildew and a shop vac to empty the water. I also plugged the holes with rags to prevent dirty water or junk from exiting the tank into the rest of the water system New lid! Installation. After setting it into place we used counter sunk joint bolts to pull the two lid halves together. Next we finished predrilling the holes into the glass. In went the rest of the screws! Last step: I put a bead of 5200 on the new I am now waiting the appropriate 72 hours to pass before I fill the tank for first time! I'll probably wait a week. Wish me luck!! I'm hoping to have a leakless water tank with two new access ports with clear plastic lids. I can now quickly lift the cushion and pear into the water tank to see if it is empty or dirty!!! I have several digital pictures of the process that I will share with anyone interested. Thanks for the suggestions from all the folks on the forum. I'd love to thank you individually put I received a lot of replys to my questions and would feel terrible if i missed any of you!
From: Scott Ziegler scott.ziegler@attws.com
From: Albert Augustine ABig2guy@aol.com
From: Scott Ziegler scott.ziegler@attws.com
Using the old lid as a template, a neighbor/ professional wood worker created a new lid. The new lid was laminated, edged to 45 degrees, and split into two pieces port to starboard in that order. I had him add two access ports instead of the original one access port. Prior to taking the new lid to the boat, I covered all bare surfaces with West Systems epoxy. I also coated the laminated side towards the interior of the tank with epoxy. THANKS DOUG!!! He charged me $44 bucks in parts. No labor!!
We pre drilled the 42 holes for the screws slightly offset from the previous holes.
Then we counter sank the holes so the screw heads would be flush. Using 5200, I put a thick bead of sealant on the fiberglass lip on the boat. I also filled the old holes with 5200 at the same time. We set the stern half of the new lid in place and used body weight to press it down. We next predrilled the rest of the holes into the glass. We carefully screwed the screw into the new holes being careful not to strip the threads. The second piece/forward had wood biscuits put into place and a bead of 5200 was added to the seam on the lid.
5.25 inch flush mount access plates with CLEAR lids and set them in place. I pre drilled the screw holes and screwed them down!
