Boating – June 2019

BOATINGMAG.COM | JUNE 2019 | 47

INSTALLING THE DOOR Once

you receive the door, dry-fi t the

frame to ensure it fi ts and the

swing is correct. Use the pre-

drilled holes as a guide to drill the

mounting holes (after checking

behind for interference). Bed the

frame with marine sealant such

as 3M Marine Grade Silicone (not

necessary on doors for wet lock-

ers). Use No. 8 oval- or fl at-head

self-tapping screws or machine

screws with backing washers and

nyloc nuts (hardware not includ-

ed) to secure the frame, bedding

each mounting hole with a dab of

sealant. To prevent the Starboard

frame from cracking, do not over-

tighten the screws.

MEASURE CAREFULLY Start by

removing the old door and frame,

then carefully measure the hole

cutout height and width to within

(^1) / 16 th of an inch. Double-check to
make sure the dimensions are
correct, then input these mea-
surements into the Boat Outfi tters
online order form. The form will
then automatically calculate the
outside dimensions of the frame,
as well as the height and width
of the frame’s pass-through. With
these dimensions in hand, recheck
the installation area to ensure that
the overall size will fi t the mount-
ing surface and that the opening of
the pass-through in the frame will
meet your needs.
SEAL AND LOUVER OPTIONS
The standard door frames do not
include any kind of weather-tight
seal, but you can add an optional
bulb seal ($25 upgrade) to help
prevent water intrusion. This
would be helpful for a compart-
ment designed for the dry stow-
age of items such as life jackets or
fi shing tackle. On the other end of
the spectrum, you can add option-
al vented louvers ($25 upcharge)
to the doors to help circulate air
and prevent mold and mildew in
a confi ned area. This would be
helpful on a compartment door
on an anchor locker, or on a wet
stowage compartment such as a
ski locker.
HINGES AND LATCHES Each
outward-opening door comes with
a pre-installed stainless-steel pi-
ano hinge. You will need to specify
the swing—hinging right or left,
or hinging down or up. This will
determine along which edge Boat
Outfi tters installs the hinge, as
well as where the latch is posi-
tioned. Each door is equipped with
a slam latch, but the online form
asks you to specify between a
base plastic (black or white) latch
or stainless-steel latch upgrade
($22). The base latches are non-
locking, but you can also upgrade
to key-locking latches in plastic
($5) or a locking stainless-steel
ILL latch ($25).
US
TR
AT
ION
S:^ T
IM
BA
RK
ER
Despite the maintenance
factor, some boaters still
prefer the warmth of teak
doors versus King Starboard
doors. Boat Outfi tters ac-
commodates traditionalists
by offering build-your-own
teak doors too. The ordering
process is similar, and the
doors and frames are shipped
unfi nished, ready to be oiled,
varnished or stained. The
frames do not include pre-
drilled mounting holes, as do
the King Starboard versions.
Prices are about two times
higher than for the compara-
ble Starboard versions.

• TEAK
  REPLACEMENT
  DOORS
  The online order form will also ask
  you to select a color from among
  white/white, arctic white, seafoam,
  dolphin gray or black. You can also
  special-order colors such as fi sh
  white and glacier gray.
  TIP