Anybody Need Leaky Malibu Hatch Advice?

[Sam138]

I picked 2 Stealth blems that had hatches that freely flowed water. I went and looked at some new non blem Stealths and the hatches looked to be about the same as mine, so I decided to figure out a solution. In the end I managed to seal them up pretty well and was wondering if there was any interest out there for me to do a write up on the process. My kayaks are still not water tight, but they are significantly dryer and the hinges are under much less stress than they were. So... Does anybody need me to share what I came up with, or has everyone already solved this problem on there own?

[makobob]

So what did you do to fix them?

[ful-rac]

Just post it already...! Lets see what you got.

All you need to do is pull the bungees on the front hatch over the posts drilled in on the sides, unless that was still causing an issue

[rogersmith]

one of my side hatches was leaky on my S-14. I removed the loose liner and epoxied it back with marine goop. Good to go.

[alanw]

My side hatches freely leaked water as well. I removed the hatch frames and sealed them where they mount to the kayak. Much less water leaking now, but still some from around the lid seal area. Like you said, stress on the hinges is obvious from that seal being too tall and/or too hard, and the lid itself just isn't stiff enough to seal in the middle of the lid between the latches. I need a better lid seal, was going to fix it eventually as the leakage isn't so bad anymore.

[Fish Taco]

I for one would like to hear what solutions you came up with. I have a 2011 Stealth 14 that definitely has a hatch leaking problem... and I still need to address it.

I love this boat, except for this.

I wish the folks at Malibu would find a solution once and for all about this leaking hatch issue with their kayaks. It's a shame because otherwise I find it is a great kayak for fishing.

Let's hear what you did?

PS - Anyone else have an issue with their angled hatch behind their seat leaking water into the hull? I'm sure there must be some issues as Malibu raised the hatch to flat instead of angled on their new Stealths.

- Ken