So this morning i recieved a call from the marina where our boat is stored, they said that this morning when they came in they noticed that my boat had sank.....they say it was there last night and must have sank some how during the night. It had been about two weeks since we had been on the boat. When we left it the batteries where charged and nothing was leaking. So some how it magically got on the bottom. So my question is has anyone had any experiance with this? And what should i expect from the insurance company, boat u.s.? So far the insurance company has contacted tow boat u.s. to salvage the boat which is sitting in 45 feet of water with just the top of the mast sticking out of the water. Any input would be appreciated.
My boat sank today
- Thread starter stiggy456
- Start date
Sorry to hear that. Once floated, you can expect your underwriter to inspect the boat to determine cause. As with all insurance, they will try to verify it was not a deteriorated part.
We just had it surveyed in june and repaired all items found by the surveyor...which included replaceing one of the two thruhulls that were below the water line.
I would work with Boat US as well as you can, they were stellar when my boat sank at the dock a few years back. They will try to assess what happened to cause the event, and then act accordingly.
A lot depends on what policy you purchased as to what they will do, in the event it is a total and constructive loss. They may require an over look of the surveyors report and the salvage reports. You MAY be able to remove some items, again depends on your policy, and in other cases - not a thing.
Be careful if you choose to "buy it back"....if that is something to do. It is (or can be) a mixed bag and you may end up with a boat, no one will insure or buy - when you get it repaired. Salvage title, survey, etc, etc.
Best of luck
From one Michigander to another----this sucks. Sorry to hear this. It truly is one of my biggest fears only due to having 3 thru hulls. I am just curious, did you change the thru hulls or have somebody else do it? How were they installed, true seacock or a flange adaptor? Just curious because next week I am on vacation and replacing all 3 of mine with Groco back plates, flange adaptor, ball cock valves and Apollo 90 barbed fittings.
Oh and what make of head do you have and do you close your thru hulls when leaving the boat?
Oh and what make of head do you have and do you close your thru hulls when leaving the boat?
The thruhull for the head i believe is what you are calling a flanged adapter it is not a true seacock...the valve was closed when we left the boat....the other thruhull that was below the water line was the water intake for the engine, it was just replaced in late june early july by staff at the marina where we purchased the boat....we have a manual flush jabsco head.
I have to ask... Several of you have posted that your boats sank in their slips. How many of you close ALL your seacocks when leaving the boat? How many of those who boats sank had left any open...if so, which ones?
We had a close call once
Really sorry to hear about her sinking.
When we spent our first night on board our new to us h30, the head back filled and flooded the bilge. I may have set the switch back to fill after emptying the bowl to have the head set for the next nighttime use. This was our first sailboat (and marine head). The bilge pump went off, which I could hear, and alerted us to the problem. In '91 they apparently did not put in a siphon break on the line between the manual pump and bowl. I then realized the boat would have sunk (sank?) had we left the head seacock open and wasn't on board. That early lesson got us in the habit of closing all through hulls when ever we are not on the boat... That's a reason I don't leave the air conditioner on when not at the boat... an open through hull.
Really sorry to hear about her sinking.
When we spent our first night on board our new to us h30, the head back filled and flooded the bilge. I may have set the switch back to fill after emptying the bowl to have the head set for the next nighttime use. This was our first sailboat (and marine head). The bilge pump went off, which I could hear, and alerted us to the problem. In '91 they apparently did not put in a siphon break on the line between the manual pump and bowl. I then realized the boat would have sunk (sank?) had we left the head seacock open and wasn't on board. That early lesson got us in the habit of closing all through hulls when ever we are not on the boat... That's a reason I don't leave the air conditioner on when not at the boat... an open through hull.
Sorry for what happened and what you now have to endure. The only thing I would say now is that, when inspecting the boat for the causation of the sinking, it is critically important to document independently and clearly the nature of the failure and to ensure the evidence is maintained in a secure place just in case there is a responsible party. Be sure to ask about these details with the surveyor and/or the insurance adjuster.
Oh geez. I don't like these stories. Every sailor is sorry for your grief.
We'll be very curious as to the cause, so as to prevent others. This is a rare occurrence. Boats don't just up and sink in above freezing temps with all the seacocks closed, at a dock or mooring with no weather, and an attentive owner who had recently inspected it.
Something changed.
Did you lock the rudder? The only things I can think of is a bad repair on the seacock mentioned, or one of the stuffing boxes coming open. If the shaft was not leaking, it would be unlikely to start just sitting there. However, if the rudder was banking in wakes, an old rudder box could have let loose.
Or somebody hit the boat.
We'll be very curious as to the cause, so as to prevent others. This is a rare occurrence. Boats don't just up and sink in above freezing temps with all the seacocks closed, at a dock or mooring with no weather, and an attentive owner who had recently inspected it.
Something changed.
Did you lock the rudder? The only things I can think of is a bad repair on the seacock mentioned, or one of the stuffing boxes coming open. If the shaft was not leaking, it would be unlikely to start just sitting there. However, if the rudder was banking in wakes, an old rudder box could have let loose.
Or somebody hit the boat.
In '91 they apparently did not put in a siphon break on the line between the manual pump and bowl. I then realized the boat would have sunk (sank?) had we left the head seacock open and wasn't on board.
Toilet mfrs still don't and never will...and only very rarely do boat builders install them either. It's up to the OWNER to read the owners manuals for ALL equipment to find out how the stuff works before trying to use it and make any necessary mods/additions to the OEM installations. If the previous owner wasn't smart enough to keep the manuals, get 'em off the mfrs' websites...and READ 'em!
I also sympathize with anyone who's lost a boat, especially through no fault of your own. And I DO want to know what failed!
Toilet mfrs still don't and never will...and only very rarely do boat builders install them either. It's up to the OWNER to read the owners manuals for ALL equipment to find out how the stuff works before trying to use it and make any necessary mods/additions to the OEM installations. If the previous owner wasn't smart enough to keep the manuals, get 'em off the mfrs' websites...and READ 'em!
I also sympathize with anyone who's lost a boat, especially through no fault of your own. And I DO want to know what failed!
I'd like to see a picture of that "flanged adapter." Both the intake and any discharge thru-hull for the toilet--in fact EVERY below waterline hole in the boat--should have a "true" seacock on it. The make/model of the toilet has nothing to do with that.
Sorry to hear Stiggy! :O(
Where in Muskegon are you? We are near the big stack: Muskegon Conservation Club. We have a few S2's in our marina, including center cockpit 8.0! But that is certainly not in 45ft of water.
Keep us updated on the findings, and good luck to you.
Where in Muskegon are you? We are near the big stack: Muskegon Conservation Club. We have a few S2's in our marina, including center cockpit 8.0! But that is certainly not in 45ft of water.
Keep us updated on the findings, and good luck to you.
We are at blufton moorings in front of torresen marina....apprently ours is the third boat in three years to sink in the mooring field
Sorry about your loss.:cry:
Do not buy the boat back from the insurance company, you will NEVER get the core dry..
The options for sinking are really only a few:
#1 You were hit by lightning
#2 Seacock or hose failure (leaving a seacock open is part of "failure")
#3 Rudder packing gland (if gland below static water)
#4 Your boat got hit by another boat
#5 No high vented loop in bilge hose and it somehow dipped below water and back siphoned.
#6 Shaft seal failure.
That sounds suspicious...
Could some nefarious character have boarded and scuttled the boat? Three in the same mooring field seems unlikely to be a coincidence even over a three year span.
Sorry for your loss.
I had a total loss with U.S. boat last year. They were great working with me to get things resolved. The trouble I had was with the yard being slow to respond.
As mentioned above and in my case I was told I was allow to take and duplicate gear off the boat before the savager took it. e.g. I was allowed to take my furling system and extra head sails as long as I left the forestay and hank on jib. There words were, "The boat needs to have everything it needs to sail."
I had a total loss with U.S. boat last year. They were great working with me to get things resolved. The trouble I had was with the yard being slow to respond.
As mentioned above and in my case I was told I was allow to take and duplicate gear off the boat before the savager took it. e.g. I was allowed to take my furling system and extra head sails as long as I left the forestay and hank on jib. There words were, "The boat needs to have everything it needs to sail."
So sorry to hear of your boat sinking.
Hopefully you can get her refloated without complication and get things sorted out with the insurance successfully.
We had an older boat recently sink on our dock this summer. It was amazing how quickly they got it refloated using air bags & pumps. Cause was a galley sink hose that was rotted and burst ( 1 1/2" diameter). Apparently the thru hull valve was left open.
Hopefully you can get her refloated without complication and get things sorted out with the insurance successfully.
We had an older boat recently sink on our dock this summer. It was amazing how quickly they got it refloated using air bags & pumps. Cause was a galley sink hose that was rotted and burst ( 1 1/2" diameter). Apparently the thru hull valve was left open.
number 3 is at or below the water line .....the core is only on the decks ..but the boat sunk in fresh water i assume and that is going to cause all the laminated wood products of the interior to rot and eventually come unglued......but the rudder is salvageable along with the mast and boom and all the ss items stanchions,deck plates,pushpit and pulpit along with all the hard parts and if you pickle the engine when it is brought up it may also be salvageable but everything else will be toast ....it makes me sad to hear this...i am glad you had insurance.....i am just hope that you will keep on sailing when all the dust settles from this misfortune......good luck on what comes next....