i have a 1985 catalina 25 fixed keel noticed a small brown liquid ozing out of stern of keel 6 inches down from hull bottom driled a small hole and water started coming out. drilled another hole three inches towards bow, same distance from bottom of hull, on keel from other hole, water came out, drilled another hole 2 inch further and no water. keel has no cracks, fairing at hull joint solid. boat is in mint condition as it has beeen on hard since 95. sail,cushions,pop top cover all where in storage for same time. does any one have advice. went on web and heard they put wood in keel stub, i think previous owner did not keep keel bolts sealed and what little water was in bilage migrated to keel. it is lead encapsulated. do i have to replace wood in stub
weeping keel
- Thread starter maya42
- Start date
I used to own A C 25 & most of them were swing keels with cast iron used for the keel, not lead. I'm assuming you have a fixed keel model, which is likely built to the same design as the fixed keel C 27 & C 30. Yes, they all have wood core between the keel bolts the keel, beneath the bilge area. This was obviously a bad design. THe only time you would have to replace the wood is if its so rotten, that you cannot torque down the keel bolts properly, as rotted wood in the sump would continue to compress under load. If you have no signs of a Catalina smile developing at the forward keel to hull joint, then your problem is likely what you thought, water migrating in from the keel bolts. Let the keel dry out on the hard for several weeks, patch & fair your holes you drilled with epoxy. Then re-torque your keel bolts. I know that other sailboat manufactures apply wax or other waterproofing agents to the entire head of the keel bolts to try & prevent further corrosion to the bolts & help prevent water migration. The only problem with this idea, is that if water does get past the wax it will be trapped in an oxygen deprived environment, which will accelerate corrosion. I have thought of installing a dripless shaft seal on my boat, but it seems that having a completely dry bilge on a Catalina is virtually impossible due to all of the points where water can get in!
thanks spoke with catalina direct today and said drill hole in bilge area above weeping if wood is solid will come out on drill bit end if rotten then will be wet and dark brown. said it unlikely wood is gone as keel joint would have cracked and gotten catalina smile
I have a 1985 Catalina 30. I hauled out last summer and had the smile. I had read a lot about it and dreaded the fix. I first drilled down into the plywood under the bilge floor with a 1" paddle bit all the way to the lead top of keel. There was a lot of moisture but the plywood was nice and yellow and the fibers seemed ok. I decided to let it dry out for a while then I dried out my core sample hole with a heat gun and filled it full of west system and high density filler topped with a biaxle cloth patch. The keel nuts were a bit loose and the washers sunk into the cloth some. After removing the nuts and washers I made starboard stringers to go across the nuts side to side and 5200'd them down with new washers top and bottom of starboard sealing the bolt holes and retorqued the nuts. I was ok with this fix but as a perfectionist it bothered me a little. I ended up doing the complete fix anyway. I cut out the plywood and it was not fun using every tool drill bit saw zall rotary hammer with chisel. hand chisels and hammers. Then re glassed the entire thing with 8 layers of woven roven and 1708 biaxle alternately. I had to cut out part of the engine bed to get to the last bolt and reglass all that back. While I was at it I also dug out the mast compression post and glassed under that area and put in a big 3/4" stainless jack screw that isn't finished yet. The only thing with the keel bolt fix is Catalina doesn't talk about how close the keel studs are to the outside walls of the keel stub. The further you dig down 1-1/2" the less room you have on the sides for the nuts and washers. So I found some 3/4" inside dia. 316 stainless plumbing pipe and cut out eight 2" sections to go over the studs with washers cut to clear the sides where needed. So now the nuts are about the same height as the old floor clearing the sides. It was a pain in the ass but I am much happier with it. Was it completely necessary ? No I could of tightened those bolts up and kept an eye out for settling every year and it would have lasted another 30 years. I just had the time to do it because I had tons of blisters and I ground off my entire gelcoat and have been waiting for the hull to dry out so I can reglass it. Labor of love. When I am done it will be stronger and more waterproof than it was from the factory.
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Scott, while a really do admire all the work you put into your C 30,
if I & indeed most sailors had taken a core sample from the keel sump
that looked as good as yours does, they would be happy & left the keel core wood alone.
I have to ask, why did you put yourself through all that work & grief,
when you even stated that your C 30 would've lasted another 30 years without all that effort? The work that you did while noble, in my opinion was a waste of time & money.
It will not add 1 nickel of value to your boat. But I guess peace of mind is hard to put a price on, mate! But I do admire your thoroughness.
if I & indeed most sailors had taken a core sample from the keel sump
that looked as good as yours does, they would be happy & left the keel core wood alone.
I have to ask, why did you put yourself through all that work & grief,
when you even stated that your C 30 would've lasted another 30 years without all that effort? The work that you did while noble, in my opinion was a waste of time & money.
It will not add 1 nickel of value to your boat. But I guess peace of mind is hard to put a price on, mate! But I do admire your thoroughness.
Well the statement I made was in hindsight. I just couldn't live with the water in the stub leaching in behind all of my new glass work at the keel joint. Also my bolts had lots of corrosion and material eaten away where the nuts were originally. I thought it wouldn't be too much trouble and maybe I could get the nuts down lower on the good part of the bolts. I already had the materials from an earlier project and the time. Just seemed like the right thing to do. That was a ridiculous design flaw by Catalina and didn't belong on my boat. When I saw my keel swinging loose in the lift I knew something was wrong. Now I know Its done right. I am kind of the same way when it comes to my remodeling and cabinetry work for my job. I have to say I would buy my boat now that it's done over one with a smile any day.
You did the right thing Scott . . .
I had concerns about an 89 Capri I bought and learned that that type repair is common. The guy at Catalina even sent a repair guide for doing the job. They did stop with the plywood in 86-87 I think so I quit worrying about mine.
I had concerns about an 89 Capri I bought and learned that that type repair is common. The guy at Catalina even sent a repair guide for doing the job. They did stop with the plywood in 86-87 I think so I quit worrying about mine.