Orana 44: Squeaking cabinetry

[Gerrit Coetzee]

Kindly direct me to a thread if this was posted/thrased before:

2012 Orana 44, in uneven or rougher waters, under sail or at anchor - the cabinetry in the main state room squeaks both annoyingly and infringes on good sleep.

At random places I screwed several screws through the wood trying to affix it tighter to the vessel.
There are caps between the cabin ceiling and the cabinets - I plugged various solid fillings in gaps , attempting to silence the sound through stress and tightening the fixtures.

To no avail: I was not able to even slightly reduce the squeaking sound. The noise is restricted to the main cabin.

Is this annoyance restricted to my Orana? Does someone please have advice and solutions I can implement to arrest this noise.

Thank you

[Craig Cape Town]

On the flat panels, like those under seats and bunks, I used non-skid tray or shelf liner from the dollar store or any hardware store. It's a roll of thin perforated rubber material that can be stapled in place or just left loose. not pretty, but it works well. Someday I may replace it with U-shaped rubber edging, but as it's out of sight, it's out of mind.

On the cabinetry, you can slack the screws off a bit and put a little mastic sealer in place where the wood chafes, before tightening the screws up again. Wipe off the excess mastic or trim it off with a blade when it dries.
This task is a bit like chasing a leak, but you'll find the culprits soon enough.

[Tin Tin]

Teflon tape is good, the stuff cabinet makers use for sliding drawers, also you will find it used in motor vehicles to stop squeaking.

[Gerrit Coetzee]

Originally Posted by Craig Cape Town

On the flat panels, like those under seats and bunks, I used non-skid tray or shelf liner from the dollar store or any hardware store. It's a roll of thin perforated rubber material that can be stapled in place or just left loose. not pretty, but it works well. Someday I may replace it with U-shaped rubber edging, but as it's out of sight, it's out of mind.

On the cabinetry, you can slack the screws off a bit and put a little mastic sealer in place where the wood chafes, before tightening the screws up again. Wipe off the excess mastic or trim it off with a blade when it dries.
This task is a bit like chasing a leak, but you'll find the culprits soon enough.

Thank you for the reply. (I am in Cape Town since the lock down, so good to see you are around too.)

On the flat surfaces (which only clanked when walking on), I too did silence with weather strip, but later removed the weather strip, as the doors battled to open with the raised panels.

That was not the cause of the squeaking, so back to the cabinets I went. Thank you on the advice, but I cannot see any screws. They somehow install the cabinets without any screws being visible.

Thus I cannot seem to be able to remove the cabinets without causing irreparable damage.

What is funny, from what I can see, it seems as if there is an inch's space behind the cabinets, so it is difficult to even ascertain how they are fitted, or where the touch-points could be.

[Sand crab]

Can you find the squeak by flexing the cabinets some? You can always try some hot melt glue or silicone caulk in the corner seams inside the cabinets.

[JPA Cate]

Possible outside sources for squeaks heard inside the cabin:

Gooseneck fitting, boom to mast, cured by lubricating

Capshrouds moving in spreaders, add whippings above and below, put "boot" over

Spinnaker pole on its deck fitting, whipping on the fitting cured squeak

Ann

[a64pilot]

Or the boat flexing, the structure itself.
All boats flex, some more than others.

[barnakiel]

Yes.


This is unfortunately a norm in many modern boats.


And also good older hulls tend to become somewhat bendy as they age.


Soap and dish washing liquid are your best friends.


I have also used plain wax (parafin wax) with good results.


barnakiel

[Gerrit Coetzee]

Thank you for all the advice. I trust it will be a work in progress then.

For the record, I did push and pull on various parts of the cabinetry and could not silence the noise .

The advice that it might be from an outside source I will investigate as well.

All the advice is at least pointing me in directions and avenues to investigate.

[boom23]

It's a built to a price catamaran... The hull is wide and it will flex, which will make the cabinetry make noise. Rough seas, overloading, mast/sail tension, etc. make it flex more.

You can eliminate some of the noise by adding Teflon or felt tape at some areas, but you can't eliminate the flex.

I used to have a Lagoon 450...

I'm not bashing catamarans, and I don't know if all brands are the same. Just voicing my experience. I hope it helps.