accessing space between hull and liner, C36 MKII

[jed]

I have a 2005 C36 MKII. Because of the similarities betweeb C34's and C36's, I decided to join and ask this question:

Does anyone know how to access the space directly below the electrical panel between the hull and the liner? I currently have a small (maybe 5") diameter access hole but I need to run some wires in the area between the liner and the hull past the two seats on the starboard side and above the two little storage holes. There are conduits built in but they are full but even if they were not completely full, access below the electrical panel to those conduits is close to impossible. It seems like I would have to remove all the cabinets along the side of the hull or something equally silly and I am hoping for something easier. If I can get full access to the space below the electrical panel I can possibly fish a wire through. My attempt of doing that from the other end of the conduits and towards the electrical panel failed.
Has anybody gone through this exercise? If so, any words of wisdom ?

[DaveM]

Not the same boat or make but this is what I did to get wires from on end to the other through this space.  Push a fish tape from one end of the space to the other.  Then feed flexible plastic conduit, Lowes, onto the fish tape.  Pull the wires through the conduit with gel lubricant, Lowes.  Rewired the all of an O'Day 35 this way.

Hope this helps.

Good Winds
DaveM

[Stu Jackson]

Welcome, Jed,

The "redesign" of the electrical panels on the Mark II boats, I feel, was a big mistake.  On our C34s, they moved the panel up vertically from the level of the nav station opening top to where the smaller black sliding doors used to be on the Mark Is (and eliminated that storage space).  Accordingly, it made access below incredibly difficult, exacerbated by the flat Formica with limited holes and conduit below it.  When I was helping a friend with a Mark II install his inverter and source switch, it was a real bear.

What we did was to cut a few more HUGE holes in that Formica to run wiring.  Eventually that skipper also chose to cut out the vertical Formica below the electrical panel and replace it with a piece of easily removable starboard.

It's simply an access issue that you may need to become creative to address.

[jed]

Not the same boat or make but this is what I did to get wires from on end to the other through this space.  Push a fish tape from one end of the space to the other.  Then feed flexible plastic conduit, Lowes, onto the fish tape.  Pull the wires through the conduit with gel lubricant, Lowes.  Rewired the all of an O'Day 35 this way.

Thanks Dave. The fish tape was my plan 'A' ... alas, it did not work.
I am heading back this morning and giving it another go though as it appears that the only alternative is to take apart half the boat

[Ron Hill]

jed : There are some similarities between C34s and C36s, but I'd pose your question to the C36 form for an answer. 
The liners, I'm sure are not similar and probably have different spacing from the hull!!

A thought

[jed]

jed : There are some similarities between C34s and C36s, but I'd pose your question to the C36 form for an answer. 
The liners, I'm sure are not similar and probably have different spacing from the hull!!

A thought

Thanks, posted there before I posted here - doesn't seem like much is happening over there.

[Ken Krawford]

My favorite fish tape is a 10 ft length of 1/4" pex tubing.  With a bit of patience I've been able to push or pull just about anything on my C350.  It's rigid enough to pass through narrow spaces but flexible enough to get around corners or curves.

[jed]

Just a quick follow-up ...
I was able to use one of the existing conduits after removing some oversized split loom that was hogging the conduit. I am quite pleased with the outcome even though there is still a lot of work to do on the project.

[John Langford]

I bought a rectangular access hatch to install on the flat vertical surface of the liner below the chart table but I haven't had the courage or need to install it yet. My concern is damaging the extensive wiring which runs down from the electrical panel while making the required cut out. If anyone has done this successfully I would be interested in hearing about it.

[jed]

<chuckle> .... I HATE making holes in my baby! I would be more concerned about messing up the hole somehow.
As far as not destroying the wiring (which is a real rats nest in my case), I would take some stiff cardboard and jam it through the existing access hole and wedge it between the liner and the wiring. This should keep the wiring safe while you use a jigsaw for the hole.

Alternatively, somehow attach a wood block to the jigsaw shoe to reduce the penetration of the jigsaw blade to a minimum.

Full disclosure: no, I haven't done it yet :)

[Roc]

John,
With this type of cutting tool, you can work slow and gauge the amount of penetration easily. 

http://www.harborfreight.com/oscillating-multifunction-power-tool-68861-8493.html