windblown
Member III
The problem: When under power for awhile, we often find evidence of water under the sole right next to the battery box. (If you step right there, bubbles and a little bit of water may come up around the edges). When we bought the boat in 2016, it was evident that PO’s had done some repair/replacement of a section of the sole there, but we assumed the issue was resolved. Over the years, the sole began to stain there. I thought the water must be coming up from below, somewhere.
We replaced the ancient water heater.
We replaced hoses.
We greased the rudder post.
The dark spot persisted, and last season, finally started to delaminate, so I finally cut that area of sole out to address the rot, and to assess the situation.
Much to my surprise, the little pan in the TAFG was full to the brim with water! The sole and plywood were completely water logged. The pan catching the water wasn’t very deep, and it didn’t look original. It appeared to be some other kind of molded plastic, not fiberglass like the other pockets in the TAFG I was used to seeing.
It had no limber hole, so once water found it’s way in there, it couldn’t escape. On the other hand, it was clear water couldn’t get in from below. A little bit of water, over a long time, had created this situation.
We kept that spot of sole open when we launched, to wait and see. We learned that if we motored for more than an hour, behold, the little pan was sometimes amost full (it only takes a cup or so). However, if we just motored past the jetty and then set sails, it seemed stayed dry. Was it a leak from the engine block or heat exchanger. Everything felt dry.
I ran the engine at the dock, no visible water accumulated. We could not spot a rivulet of water anywhere, but it clearly was coming from above, somewhere astern of the pan. I watched as we motored, but didn’t spot anything dripping, or leaking, until this week!
The source: Ahah! The siphon hose on our dripless shaft seal! It has an intermittent leak where it attaches to the seal! it doesn’t drip (which would naturally flow into the bilge). It spurts like one of those dancing, artsy fountains. When it spurts, which seems to be on some timing of its own creation, it tosses a drop or three of water up over the fuel/water separator onto the fiberglass ”shelf” that runs (parallel to the quarter berth), downhill between the engine and the battery compartment, and then drops down to the edge of the sole. It is a veritable highway for the occasional drops, which eventually find their way below the sole, into the pan, where they are trapped. As more drops collect there, the air is forced out, making evaporation less likely. Eventually, there exists an under-sole pool that never drains, regularly topped off by a just a few more drops, that can freeze and expand, and wreak havoc on the sole.
We replaced the ancient water heater.
We replaced hoses.
We greased the rudder post.
The dark spot persisted, and last season, finally started to delaminate, so I finally cut that area of sole out to address the rot, and to assess the situation.
Much to my surprise, the little pan in the TAFG was full to the brim with water! The sole and plywood were completely water logged. The pan catching the water wasn’t very deep, and it didn’t look original. It appeared to be some other kind of molded plastic, not fiberglass like the other pockets in the TAFG I was used to seeing.
It had no limber hole, so once water found it’s way in there, it couldn’t escape. On the other hand, it was clear water couldn’t get in from below. A little bit of water, over a long time, had created this situation.
We kept that spot of sole open when we launched, to wait and see. We learned that if we motored for more than an hour, behold, the little pan was sometimes amost full (it only takes a cup or so). However, if we just motored past the jetty and then set sails, it seemed stayed dry. Was it a leak from the engine block or heat exchanger. Everything felt dry.
I ran the engine at the dock, no visible water accumulated. We could not spot a rivulet of water anywhere, but it clearly was coming from above, somewhere astern of the pan. I watched as we motored, but didn’t spot anything dripping, or leaking, until this week!
The source: Ahah! The siphon hose on our dripless shaft seal! It has an intermittent leak where it attaches to the seal! it doesn’t drip (which would naturally flow into the bilge). It spurts like one of those dancing, artsy fountains. When it spurts, which seems to be on some timing of its own creation, it tosses a drop or three of water up over the fuel/water separator onto the fiberglass ”shelf” that runs (parallel to the quarter berth), downhill between the engine and the battery compartment, and then drops down to the edge of the sole. It is a veritable highway for the occasional drops, which eventually find their way below the sole, into the pan, where they are trapped. As more drops collect there, the air is forced out, making evaporation less likely. Eventually, there exists an under-sole pool that never drains, regularly topped off by a just a few more drops, that can freeze and expand, and wreak havoc on the sole.
