HOME
DEPOT PVC DECK PIPE
©
2013 Tor Pinney - All Rights Reserved
I needed a deck pipe for
Silverheels' stern anchor rode. Could have bought a
stainless steel fitting for a hundred bucks, but I chose to make
one for a few dollars-worth of PVC instead. It was a fun little
project that just seemed to flow, and it turned out well. After
7 years in the tropics, it's still like new.
I already had a 4" hole in
the aft cockpit combing, left over from an old bilge blower fan
I had removed, and it was right where I wanted my stern anchor
rode to pass through. Now to turn it into a proper deck pipe.
|
A rummage through Home
Depot's PVC section produced a closet flange, a sturdy base
ring with a collar that happened to fit the 4" whole
perfectly. I bolted this piece to the underside of the deck,
the collar passing through the 4" hole and protruding about
3/8" above the deck. Then I sealed that seam with a bead of
5200.
The domed PVC pipe cap
was another piece straight off the shelf at Home Depot. It
fit snugly into the base ring collar forming a watertight
top. I cut matching notches in the cap and deck pipe collar
so the anchor chain could lay through with the cap in place.
Lastly, a small block of wood with an eye ring in it, glued
to the underside of the cap, provided an attachment point
for a short lanyard to keep the cap from falling overboard
when open. |
click to enlarge
|
Among the many improvements
large and small that
I've made to this good old ketch, my Home Depot
PVC Deck Pipe is one of the most gratifying.
J
~
End ~
Back to Cruising Tips
