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Old 17-01-2008, 10:11   #1
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Dumb Cat Question #2

Does anyone know why I don't see cats with cockpit enclosures like monos have?

Why don't cat owners do that?
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Old 17-01-2008, 11:44   #2
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Probably because they don't come cheap, what with their large square footage to enclose. Of course, then again, you could just get a Mainecat
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Old 17-01-2008, 11:45   #3
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In the Caribbean I have seen quite a few cats with cockpit screens and extended sunshades. I have never seen one with a plastic window enclosure deployed, but you wouldn’t have much use for that in the Caribbean anyway.

In the UK, things are different:

Catamaran Enclosures

And, it looks like Gemini offers one as an option:

Fairwindsyachts,inc in Stuart,Fl -Gemini Catamarans, Telsta Trimarans,Porta-bote
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Old 17-01-2008, 16:07   #4
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We are in Emerald Bay, Exuma now and the cat in front of us, a fairly large Dean, has a zip closed enclosure. So, there are some out there. Just ask your canvas guy to make it and write the check.

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Old 17-01-2008, 16:14   #5
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I thought it was a dumb question.

It seems like you could make a nice enclosure for the cockpit in most. I thought I was missing something about visibility or rigging (running) or something like that.

Thanks for the answers.
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Old 17-01-2008, 18:43   #6
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strictly a matter of economics
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Old 17-01-2008, 19:02   #7
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I imagine some of it has to do with how nicely connected the saloon and cockpit is on most cats too - we open our saloon doors and it's almost an extension of the cockpit, rather than a deep dark hole like a monohull. We do have a bimini top for shade, and that helps connect it even more by making a good portion of the cockpit pretty well protected. Just my random guess though...
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Old 17-01-2008, 19:08   #8
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We enclosed our cockpit with canvas and izing glass, and most of the time we had our cockpit buttoned up when we were underway. When we were at anchor we could occasionally roll up a side of our enclosure or remove the izing glass on the front of the cockpit for better ventilation. But overall, we had the cockpit fully enclosed 95 percent of the time. That made the cockpit into a sheltered living space on our catamaran. It was like we had another room on board.
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Old 17-01-2008, 19:30   #9
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Cockpit enclosures on cats- you mean like this one?

See 65 Foot Sailing Catamaran Design by Tim Dunn
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Old 20-01-2008, 13:42   #10
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We enclosed our cockpit with canvas and izing glass, and most of the time we had our cockpit buttoned up when we were underway. When we were at anchor we could occasionally roll up a side of our enclosure or remove the izing glass on the front of the cockpit for better ventilation. But overall, we had the cockpit fully enclosed 95 percent of the time. That made the cockpit into a sheltered living space on our catamaran. It was like we had another room on board.
Dave, you didn't find it too hot to be enclosed all of the time? I need new canvas for our cockpit and am considering having a full enclosure made. But I also thought I wouldn't have a need for it if we headed to warmer climes.

Mark
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Old 20-01-2008, 13:49   #11
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Opening the helmsman's enclosure

The 'cool' thing about having your helm station well aft of a deck house is that your enclosure can be closed or opened on the bottom, underneath the windshield. Also, you can use plexiglass or lexan for your back window, and simply raise or lower it inside a sliding frame, using a simple barrel bolt lock type system to hold up your window up when it is closed. The windshield, of course, can be mounted on hinges. I, personally, don't care for the flexible stuff used on dodgers, which is expensive and hard to see through. The inevitable optical distortion drives me crazy.

"too hot to be enclosed all of the time?"
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Old 20-01-2008, 13:56   #12
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One of the advantages of the multi is that you draw less so can get into shallow water. The downside is you will get no-see-ums since you are closer to shore. Screens would make sense I would think?
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Old 20-01-2008, 19:04   #13
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Dave, you didn't find it too hot to be enclosed all of the time? I need new canvas for our cockpit and am considering having a full enclosure made. But I also thought I wouldn't have a need for it if we headed to warmer climes.

Mark
Most of the time we had our cockpit buttoned up, and we did fine without getting overheated. The reason is simple. We were at anchor the majority of the time and lying to the wind. In a marina where there was little wind and little flow through ventilation, we might raise one side of the enclosure to let some air in.

Our Privilege 39 had eight deck and salon hatches that caught wind and funneled it through the boat when we were at anchor in the trade winds. All of that wind funneled right through the cockpit to provide a lot of ventilation and keep us cool.

If we were sitting at anchor and there was no wind, sometimes we might roll up the sides to eliminate the greenhouse effect of the izing glass on the sides of the enclosure.

Our circumnavigation was downwind in the trades the majority of the trip, and so there was usually a good breeze blowing into the cockpits coming from behind the yacht, and so the full enclosure kept us dry and cool from the tropical sun, while the winds coming from behind ventilated our cockpit nicely. If there were no trades, and we had to motor, then we would roll up the sides for better ventilation.

The only times we would roll up the sides and remove the front izing glass was when we were becalmed without wind. Then even the tiniest breeze was a help, and rolling up the sides and front kept the heat from building up in the cockpit.

So the answer for us was to have a flexible enclosure that we could use according to whether we were anchored, sailing downwind in the trades, tied to a dock in a marina, or whether it was raining.

You shouldn't overlook the importance of the cockpit as protection from the sun. If you have two peeling sun burns before you are twenty years old, you will start having skin cancers when you are between fifty and sixty years old. Peeling sunburns start the skin cancer clock, and a flexible awning arrangement that keeps you out of the sun is a good investment in protecting your face, arms, and torso from skin cancer.
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Old 05-02-2008, 17:04   #14
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We will absolutely build an enclosure around our cockpit. The problem today is that we have a collapsable bimini that only partially encloses the area. We want to make a new bimini that extends further out and will allow us to enclose most of the back area. This has the advantage of being able to sit out while it is raining and not get splashed.
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