Deck Penetrations for Wires on a 25?

[Ward H]

I had found some water had leaked in along the wires for the steaming light where they went through the deck. I also have a mast head antenna and that wire also goes through the deck near the base of the mast. I cut and pulled those wires, cleaned out some wet wood until it looked like dry wood and filled with epoxy. In the spring I will decide on a method or type of waterproof connection for the wires.
While doing this I found a third hole that had been filled in with silicone. When digging out that hole I found remains of a wire in it. This hole is not visible from the cabin. It appears to be directly over where the compression post and bulkhead join.

Did O'day hide the wire for the steaming light in the channel where the bulkhead fits into the compression post?

The bottom of that bulkhead shows it has wicked up some water and I have found the bottom edge looking damp for about an inch up from the sole when the sole itself was completely dry.

If that wire ran down into the compression post/bulkhead joint, that could the source of the dampness at the bottom of the bulkhead.

Luckily, the bulkhead is not rotted with only slight delamination of the first layer of ply for the first inch up from the sole.

 

[Ritdog]

I just finished replacing my through deck wires last week. Did that on my first 25 too...Oday incorporated the wiring when they set the deck down on the headliner. I'm pretty sure it's all one "piece" in there. I have never been able to run wire between the deck and headliner, and one that was in there does not pull out. .

I bought a 4-connector plug kit for the mast wiring and after epoxying the hole, drilled that, then used butyl tape to seal the fitting to the deck. For the radio coax I am just drilling the epoxy in that hole, and putting a compression seal passthrough on it, although I may go back to a wired plug, sealed all the way through...have mental problems with a real hole in the deck, even if 3/16ths in diameter.....

I would carefully check all the bottoms of the bulkheads and the compression post. The bulkhead bottoms are above the bottom of the post, which sits about 6" deep in that socket you can see when you pull the bilge cover off. If the bulkheads are delaminating, you might have a bit of rot in the post.

I had to replace all my bulkheads, the post, and the galley this Springall the wood (6 sheets of plywood!), as there was a foot of water in the boat for a while when with the previous owner.....the post was rotted through at the top of the socket. The chainplate slots were shot too, as was the wood where they were bolted. I used 3/4" for everything, which causes problems in measuring, but it's bomber now.....

Will post some pix for you later. Good luck!

 

[chrislaurae]

Where did you get your new electrical connector for the mast? I have been looking but haven't found an obvious source.

 

[hewebb]

http://www.mouser.com/?gclid=COL5pvS33sECFRY0aQodtSsA4w

 

[Ward H]

Ritdog,
Didn't even think about the wire running between deck and cabin top liner. That's probably it.
No signs of anything sinking or settling which would make me look harder at the bottom of the post. The bilge is pretty well sealed around the post so that it would need to be almost full for water to reach the post. That only happened once last year when the cockpit drain thru hull cracked and let water leak into the bilge.
I think the bulkheads are good for now. I put in new chain plates 2 springs ago and that area of the bulkheads was fine. I'll keep a watch on the bottom of the port side. Maybe the leak at the wire was dripping down and getting wicked up into the bulkhead.

You got me thinking about the compression post. I think I will mark it where it enters the socket and watch to see if it settles any.

 

[Ritdog]

chrislaurae - Hamilton Marine in Portland, Maine . Seadog made it if I remember correctly.....about $8....

 

[ebsail]

I am currently replacing my steaming light also. The mast part is easy and of course I'm using an LED light and running new wire. I'm going to use a U-Haul trailer connector to make it easy to unplug the mast from the boat. They can also be replaced for $10. Problem is that the 2 wires coming out of the cabin top are dead. No current showing with a meter, and the circuit braker is on. Am I to understand that these wires run between the headliner and the exterior cabin top? Anybody ever rerun or repace thes wires from the cabin top to the circuit breaker panel.?

 

[Ritdog]

EBSAIL_ you got it- they are dead- I'd drill them out and just replace them- usually the new ones run along the top of the salon bulkhead in the head section, then along the headliner to the galley panel.