LUX is a wonderful Leopard catamaran. We rarely find things we would consider negative. Of course, all of that changes when you actually have to order parts. As you might have noticed in the blog, we tend to do both repairs and upgrades more than regularly. So, we have a lot of experience with 'authentic' parts, pieces, and units. In most cases, the parts are truly just wear related. But, sometimes you come across something that just makes you wonder. Seriously, did they make that part in that way just so you would have to replace it over and over and over....
Such is the case of the screens on LUX. The manufacturer's model is a delicate little thing with flexible plastic edges. You are supposed to just 'pop' it in. So far, I have managed to 'pop' 2 screens in...and on through into the water. No big deal, you think. Then, you find out what the replacement cost is. 😱
Yes, the cost is high enough to make you cry, "Oh No! A little screen can't cost that much!" Oh yes, it can. We have replaced a few screens, but we've also spent time thinking up easier and less expensive ideas. Luckily, we have Carol the sewist on our team! And, we had the perfect place to start. On any boat, I am willing to bet that the portal that gets opened and stays open the most would be the one in the head. That, at least, is true for LUX. And, as a result, it's the screens for the portals in the heads (yes,we do have two heads on this boat) that have most often found their way overboard.
Carol's solution is elegant in its simplicity, and it uses our favorite product- Velcro. Carol first drafted a pattern of the portal opening with the hatch fully raised. She cut plastic screening to size, and she used ribbon to bind the edges.
She applied the loop portion of the Velcro to the sides of the portal.
She applied the hook portion of the Velcro to the screen.
And, voila! A screen for the head that did not cost an arm and a leg!
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