In late 2018, one of our Fountaine Pajot Helia 44 owners alerted us that the 49.42 Goiot escape hatches, used on the Helia 44 specifically (but possibly other models), are defective and should be repaired. Following the loss of a boat from an escape hatch failure, we are concerned that this issue has been communicated to all owners, so we decided to put this alert out. Please be so kind and pass this on to fellow boat owners!
2020 UPDATE: Added information from Goiot and affected manufacturers, Bali, FP, Lagoon, and Nautitech with remedies, keep reading.
Affected catamaran brand owners should take precautions to identify and make reparations if your boat is outfitted with a Goiot escape hatch 49.42. The issue is with the acrylic lens popping out, leaving a hole in your vessel near the waterline.
Discussions on sailing forums indicate the culprit is the silicone used to install the hatch. The silicone does not adhere well to the lens and it eventually pops out.
We reported this escape hatch failure in 2018, more than a year before Goiot and the manufacturers could complete their investigation and set up remedy processes. So we are now in early 2020 updating this article with the new information.
On February 6, 2020, Goiot published a press release indicating it had coordinated with the catamaran manufacturers to communicate and offer remedies to their owners. The following resources are available to catamaran owners by brand:
- Bali: https://www.bali-catamarans.com/en/blog/alerte-de-notre-fournisseur-goiot-systems/
- Nautitech: https://www.nautitechcatamarans.com/en/recall-goiot-escape-hatches.html
- FP: (LINK NO LONGER WORKS (as of April 2023, contact FP at https://www.fountaine-pajot.com/en/contact-2/) OLD LINK – http://www.fountaine-pajot-goiotescapehatch.com/en/index.html
- Lagoon: https://www.cata-lagoon.com/en/news/510/recall-of-goiot-brand-escape-hatches
Our Original 2018 Article with DIY Solutions
As far as we know, Fountaine Pajot has been contacting owners of their vessels equipped with the Goiot 49.42 escape hatches, but we urge owners to evaluate your hatch’s safety even if you were not contacted. Here is the procedure you can use to verify if your Goiot 49.42 escape hatch is a leak risk. If you find that you have a problem, contact Fountaine Pajot Customer Service who will provide you with the appropriate remedy recommended by Goiot.
A couple of Cruiser’s Forum threads offer fairly simple DIY fixes to prevent the lens from exiting including one solution from FP’s Customer Service Manager. See:
- 49.42 Escape Hatch Recall Discussion with FP DIY solution
- 49.42 Escape Hatch Recall Discussion with Another DIY Solution
