Engine room wall thicknesses - 360 EC

echandler1971

I will be taking ownership of an 05 360 Fiesta Vee and will be installing a bunch of upgrades in the engine room myself. My worry is, especially with the transom and floor, is how deep screws can go before they become a danger to penetrating the outside hull. None of the stuff I’m screwing in is all that heavy - mostly N2K senders and cable hangers. I will also be attaching things to the other 3 walls, floor and for lighting, the ceiling (perhaps epoxy instead there?) Tips? Tricks? Warnings?

LaRea

Find the parts that have plywood glassed in on the inside!  On the plywood, you can run 3/4" screws at will.  

On my '07 370, the hull is 3/4" solid glass.  Where there's no plywood, you can CAREFULLY pre-drill and sink a screw 1/4", maybe 3/8".  Beyond that, you run the risk of cracking the gelcoat on the outside. 

Don't do what I did!  While attaching a 1/2" plywood mounting panel, I accidentally grabbed a 1" screw that had fallen into my bin of 3/4" screws.  NOT a nice surprise.  

LaRea

I hope you'll share pix of your upgrades.  Maybe you saw my thread on the ER reno I did this year.  

LaRea

The plywood is covered by a thin layer of fiberglass, maybe 1/16" or 1/8" thick.  If you drill a test hole with a 1/16" bit, you'll feel it suddenly get easier when the bit breaks through the glass into the plywood.  If you don't feel that change, it's probably solid glass.  

echandler1971

Thanks LaRea! That's just the info I needed! My mini-reno won't pale in comparison to the engine room/surgical suite you created. I watched your project from afar and am awestruck. We close this week. I'll post a hello pic and whatnot when we officially have her. I have the electronics pre-bought and a lot of the cabling/routing already figured out, including starboard with electronics mounted on it already. Starting with ER lighting, security/monitor/tracker, gas vapor detector, NMEA2k (senders galore), then VHF/AIS upgrade.

LaRea

Oooooh yeah - another gadget geek entering the forum!  I look forward to hearing the details.

Good luck with closing!

echandler1971

I'm more of a gadget geek because I'm new to powerboating (yes, this is a ridiculously-large boat for a first one) and I want as much monitoring as I can get to tell me when things are going south so I can address issues before they become serious - especially the engines. I also will be parking her in an area that has good and bad stuff going on, so security is something I feel I need to add to her.
Also, being that I'm new to boating, have no fear. I will not take the helm until I've had plenty of hours with a licensed captain working with me on my boat. I've watched countless hours of videos on how to drive a twin-IO and all the tricks about docking. She has a bow thruster too, but hands on is a must and I don't have that experience yet.

I've also learned about pretty much every mechanical piece on her. I can probably assemble a VaccuFlush Accumulator blindfolded having never touched one and I can plug a puncture in the hull to limp home on, but nothing matches actual hands-on experience and I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty. In the end, I've spent a good penny on her and I don't want to blow all of that by doing something stupid or cutting corners with preparedness or safety.

echandler1971

Followed LaRea’s lead and added ER lighting. Used marine epoxy to hold them to ceiling due to risk of screwing through

LaRea

Great idea on the epoxy.  Did you use tape to hold it in place for the epoxy to cure?

echandler1971

Straight epoxy and holding them to the ceiling for a long time. The lights weigh nothing.