leak question..

G

groundhogyh

.
May 30, 2006
1,075
I had a short haul friday and now i have a leak.
Bilge level rises 3 inches per hour.

The mechanic pulled my old 1 inch prop shaft out so he could get a new one made and put an extra one that he had laying around back in its place.

At first I thought it was the shaft seal that was leaking because his old shaft was right on 1 inch diameter and my shaft was about 0.012 inches bigger in diameter.

But I can see no water at the shaft seal. Surely I would see very visible amounts of water coming in?

The other thing that happened was with the travel lift operator. For the first time in my experience, he lifted my boat with the aft strap going around the bottom of the keel. His first try when he lifted to take a look, he had the strap on the keel, but right on the bottom hinge for the rudder. I told him to put it back in and reposition which he did and moved it a couple of feet forward.

Could this have caused a leak in my keel?

Normally, they lift my boat with the strap on the hull above the propeller.

gh[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
 
V

vegatern

.
Oct 2, 2005
465
If the dripless shaft seal is a PSS from PYI inc. ( www.pyiinc.com ) they recommend replacing the seal every 6 or 7 years. If the leak was from the seal it would surly be visible. When my boat is hauled they place both straps on the keel, although forward of the rudder . There was once a suggestion on this list that, when the boat is hauled correctly, to paint marks on the rail where you want the next operator to place his straps.sorry to hear of your problem. Craig

________________________________
From: groundhog groundhogyh@...
To: AlbinVega@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Saturday, November 10, 2012 1:30 PM
Subject: [AlbinVega] leak question..

I had a short haul friday and now i have a leak.
Bilge level rises 3 inches per hour.

The mechanic pulled my old 1 inch prop shaft out so he could get a new one made and put an extra one that he had laying around back in its place.

At first I thought it was the shaft seal that was leaking because his old shaft was right on 1 inch diameter and my shaft was about 0.012 inches bigger in diameter.

But I can see no water at the shaft seal. Surely I would see very visible amounts of water coming in?

The other thing that happened was with the travel lift operator. For the first time in my experience, he lifted my boat with the aft strap going around the bottom of the keel. His first try when he lifted to take a look, he had the strap on the keel, but right on the bottom hinge for the rudder. I told him to put it back in and reposition which he did and moved it a couple of feet forward.

Could this have caused a leak in my keel?

Normally, they lift my boat with the strap on the hull above the propeller.

gh
 
R

reefmagnet

.
May 9, 2011
1,000
I have the Volvo blackjack seal and the seals are a different part between
25 mm and 1" (25.4 mm) shafts so I would guess that it is the seal that is
leaking as that little bit of extra clearance could be enough to allow
water to seep through.. If you reach under the bottom of the stern tube -
behind the seal - and rub your finger along it, your finger will have water
on the end of it if the seal is leaking.
 
G

groundhogyh

.
May 30, 2006
1,075
Thank you for your ideas on this.
I have placed my hand and looked with a flashlight several times under the shaft and really dont detect anything. Maybe should try to get my finger all the way back aft on the tube. Its very tight there.

I have since installed a float switch and it cycles every half hour.
This boat is so dry, sometimes I wouldnt have to turn on the bilge pump but every month or two.

Only three things were done on friday
-new raw water through hull, sealed with 5200 and not allowed to cure. This leak seems fixed with expoxy putty.
-Dummy shaft slided in. 10-12 thousanths of an inch smaller in diameter. Pumped in grease in shaft seal and rotated. No difference in leak rate.
-unusual lift method with strap on bottom of keel.

I plan to put dye in the bilge on the next haul out.

gh
 
W

winslowbuoy

.
Jan 31, 2009
122
Did you disturb the keel drain plug at all, when the boat was out of the water did you drain the bilge or maybe the lifting strop caught it.
Can't think of much else unless boat lifted onto something that caused a puncture in the boat's hull.

Mike________________________________
From: groundhog groundhogyh@...
To: AlbinVega@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, 13 November 2012, 16:43
Subject: Re: [AlbinVega] leak question..



Thank you for your ideas on this.
I have placed my hand and looked with a flashlight several times under the shaft and really dont detect anything. Maybe should try to get my finger all the way back aft on the tube. Its very tight there.

I have since installed a float switch and it cycles every half hour.
This boat is so dry, sometimes I wouldnt have to turn on the bilge pump but every month or two.

Only three things were done on friday
-new raw water through hull, sealed with 5200 and not allowed to cure. This leak seems fixed with expoxy putty.
-Dummy shaft slided in. 10-12 thousanths of an inch smaller in diameter. Pumped in grease in shaft seal and rotated. No difference in leak rate.
-unusual lift method with strap on bottom of keel.

I plan to put dye in the bilge on the next haul out.

gh
 
G

groundhogyh

.
May 30, 2006
1,075
yes, it just has to be the prop shaft doesnt it?
I cant imagine them building this boat and making the fiberglass that thin on the keel that just lifting it would crack something.
 
R

reefmagnet

.
May 9, 2011
1,000
Well... actually the fibreglass in the keel is only about a 1/4" thick. I
know this because a previous owner of my boat for reasons known only to
themselves had installed a "drain bung" in the void at the rear of the keel
(directly under the bilge bung). By "drain bung" I mean a screw screwed
into the glass which of course I discovered was stripped on launch day as I
went to screw the screw back in!
 
P

pjacobs55

.
Oct 30, 2019
1,459
When my boat is hauled I see water dripping slowly from the bronze fitting
that carries the lower rudder bearing. I did once rebed the long bolts that
hold that fitting to the aft end of the keel, and it certainly seems like a
solid piece of glass there. But based on the drip I have always wondered if
water could be entering the bilge (or more likely the void space) via the
bolts or that area. ??



Nicholas H. Walsh P.A.

120 Exchange Street

P.O. Box 7206

Portland ME 04112

207/772-2191

Fax 207/774-3940



This email is from a law firm and may contain material that is confidential
or privileged. If you suspect you were not the intended recipient, please
delete the email and give us a call.
 
G

groundhogyh

.
May 30, 2006
1,075
Bingo...
thats probably it...
I looked again at the shaft seal and nothing...
Because I cant find the leak makes me think it is low.
I will add red dye to the bilge and when they haul it I will see.
Be fun asking them to do the repair...
gh
 
R

reefmagnet

.
May 9, 2011
1,000
The lower rudder shoe will have nothing to do with the leak as it mounts
around the outside of the keel. There are two bolts mounting it to the keel
that pass through what looks to me like solid fibreglass. The void in the
keel would need to completely fill and the bilge would need to be open to
the void in order for the water to pass from the keel to bilge. The rudder
shaft on the other hand could be a problem if the rudder has been strained
when lifting.
 
S

stevebirch2002

.
Nov 8, 2001
1,818
Hi

Rudder shoe bearings are easy to fit but will not cause a leak as the bearing is held in a bronze removeable shoe.

Bearings available.

Cheers

Steve BFrom: Peter
Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2012 4:58 PM
To: AlbinVega@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [AlbinVega] Re: leak question..
Hi GH,
There is a bushing that goes in the rudder shoe that holds the bottom of the rudder shaft. It's the white bit in this picture:
I think you can get new bushings from Steve Birch. Check the rudder for side-to-side play at the bottom to see if you need one.
Good luck with your leak detection!
Peter
www.sintacha.com
 
P

pjacobs55

.
Oct 30, 2019
1,459
That maya be a "factory" screw. My Series I Vega has one in the same place. It drains water in the keel bottom that leaks down from the bilge, which is not as deep as the Series II and III models. The fuel tank on the Series I is in the starboard locker, and the bilge has a false bottom, leaving a large cavity below.

Here's a photo from the files section posted by "nkoskine":

Screwing things such as bilge pumps and float switches to the false bottom, if not sealed properly, could be a cause of leaks into the lower cavity.
I wouldn't be surprised if most of the early boats have a large hunk of water-saturated foan lurking in there. A larger screw and a little 3M5200 should fix the stripped hole.

Peter
www.sintacha.com
 
N

newboldnoyes

.
Jul 31, 2012
38
When I had my boat surveyed after an extensive re-fit, the surveyed found moisture in the rudder with some moisture detecting device; he said it was not serious, apparently it happens to many boats, but he said I should "keep an eye" on it. It seemed fine when I hauled it this fall...
from myphone nn
 
G

groundhogyh

.
May 30, 2006
1,075
For the record...There were two leaks, both from the new water intake through hull..
One was a failure of the 5200 which the installer thought it would cure under water. It doesn.The second leak was due to the fact that the engine drip pan is a separate piece from the hull. It is glued to the hull. So in the area of the through hull, there may or may not be an air void between teh drip pan and the hull.
In my case, the old through hull had a strainer cup at the through hull opening with 4-6 screws into the bottom of the hull. One or two of these may have been the culprit as well b y letting water into the void area.
gh
 
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