Even though my hatch is as simple as it can be, a single piece of 3/4" plywood, waterproofed with three coats of poly mix and two coats of enamel on the inside, three outside...it is starting to get a little twist in it...from being raised and propped open for months at a time (I should latch it shut when not "working on it"!). If it was to be secured, it might've done the same twist anyhow, I don't know. Well, anyhow, whereas it once sealed perfectly all around, it is now not sealing at the bottom (the rest of the perimeter seals are fine). Until today, that is. I screwed a round tube seal (from a household door seal kit) to the bottom-lower inside edge of the hatch, and mounted a set of adjustable right-angle (corner) draw latches to pull the hatch tightly against the trailer.
- Sugatsune (LAMP stamped) sourced from Amazon
- stainless corner latch (adjustable tension).jpg (47.08 KiB) Viewed 757 times
I used scrap aluminum flat stock (leftover from other trailer projects) to align/shim, and tension the latch springs to bring the hatch fully up against the seal. If the hatch flattens out again, I can remove the shims...if it twists more, I can add more shims (and a thicker seal. I should've anticipated
some deformation, after all, the hatch is 49"x48", with no inner bracing (really didn't want more weight at the hindmost part of the trailer).
- hatch hasp, draw latch, and locks.jpg (98.45 KiB) Viewed 757 times
- new corner-mounted draw latches.jpg (53.52 KiB) Viewed 757 times
