O'day 22 bilge questions

[bdeakin]

Hi everybody --

Hope spring boat prep is going well for everyone. I'm a first timer working through a few issues, thought I might be able to get a little help.

I have an O'Day 22 (shoal draft 600 lb keel version) and I noticed when I got the boat that there was some standing water in the starboard lazarette near the battery. I pumped a lot of the water out, but as I pump more and more water out I'm finding that more runs in from forward (beneath the battery compartment). The level of the water is pretty low at this point.

What's odd is that if I look beneath the quarter berths or in the keel envelope, I don't see any water down there (or any evidence of water). I had a surveyor come check the boat out yesterday and he recommended drilling a small hole through the stringer into the main bilge area beneath the cockpit standing area. Anyone else think this is a good idea?

The other thing I'm curious about is this -- there's no bilge pump in the boat. Is there a particular reason for this? It was recommended to me that I install a centrifugal (500 GPh) in the keel envelope and run the hose back through the starboard lazarette and out the transom (far above the waterline, obviously).

Does anyone sail an O'Day 22 without a bilge pump? Does the stock version not include one?

Thanks for any help you can provide.

 

[Joe11688]

Hi everybody --

Hope spring boat prep is going well for everyone. I'm a first timer working through a few issues, thought I might be able to get a little help.

I have an O'Day 22 (shoal draft 600 lb keel version) and I noticed when I got the boat that there was some standing water in the starboard lazarette near the battery. I pumped a lot of the water out, but as I pump more and more water out I'm finding that more runs in from forward (beneath the battery compartment). The level of the water is pretty low at this point.

What's odd is that if I look beneath the quarter berths or in the keel envelope, I don't see any water down there (or any evidence of water). I had a surveyor come check the boat out yesterday and he recommended drilling a small hole through the stringer into the main bilge area beneath the cockpit standing area. Anyone else think this is a good idea?

The other thing I'm curious about is this -- there's no bilge pump in the boat. Is there a particular reason for this? It was recommended to me that I install a centrifugal (500 GPh) in the keel envelope and run the hose back through the starboard lazarette and out the transom (far above the waterline, obviously).

Does anyone sail an O'Day 22 without a bilge pump? Does the stock version not include one?

Thanks for any help you can provide.

I would check out the cockpit self bailing cockpit hose. My O'Day 222 never came through with a bilge pump. I installed a manual bilge pump in the cabin of my boat that can be operated from in the cockpit. I've never had to use it. Your boat shouldn't leak a drop. After you get all the water out, run a garden hose in the cockpit and check the area where the water seems to appear. If no water is present in that area, go below in the closed up cabin and have someone hose off the deck. Look and feel for moisture. Look for water marks. If no water appears in the area, have someone hose off the cabin top. Take it in stages. You may need to install deck plates on your boat to be able to check these areas. For instance, I installed a deck plate in the center of my inside transom to be able to get at my self bailing cockpit hose, outboard charging wire, stern light wire, and the gudgeons for my rudder. Your self bailing cockpit hose may be different than mine though. Make this an important mission to find these leaks and put an end to the leaks. Gunwale moldings are always a prime suspect. At least, that's where I found my leaks on my boat. The caulking under this molding is only good for about ten years and it can be much shorter if you use certain deck cleaners that can literally eat out the caulking. I found that out the hard way. Good luck.
Joe

 

[Dave K]

I have seen lightning damage cause leaks like this it causes very slow leakage usually multiple pin holes in the hull they are very difficlult to track down the easiest fix is coating the inside of the hull with something like Glove it or other epoxy sealer in the effected area. some times the damage is easyest to track down by checking the outside hull in the effected areas because of the surface is cratered Where the pin holes exit the gel coat

 

[spd2918]

I am in the process of getting water out of rear, too. Mine is from the outboard controls.

I found the plywood bulkhead in the battery compartment (running fore and aft nearest the centerline) was rotten from standing water. I pulled the wall out and found enough water to saturate some of the floatation. I wonder, too, if drilling small holes to allow future water to drain into the bilge would be a good idea.