Leak through Keel bolts

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morris

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Apr 24, 2009
12
2 30 Vancouver
We are worried we may have water seeping in through the keel as a result of a grounding. Can this be checked and repaired?! Thanks for any help. We have a 1989 Hunter 30 in the Vancouver, BC area.
 
Jun 5, 2010
1,123
Hunter 25 Burlington NJ
How bad was the grounding? --a constant pounding on rocks, or just a bump and go?

In any case you will have to look at it. Haul it out, and assume it is compromised. Inspect the keel/hull joint from outside before and after. If the 'glass around it looks cracked, it may be bad. If not, you are probably fine. Remember this part of a boat is made to take a beating.

If the 'glass is cracked and you see water oozing out, you have 2 options. The first is to rebed the keel. Loosen everything, prop the keel from outside, jack up on the jackstands about 3/4" and go to town cleaning out the gap and rebedding it. Wait till it dries and then use ONLY 5200.

The other cheaper, easier option is less reliable but will serve if there is no major damage (just the seam wracked loose a little). Loosen everything, prop the keel from outside, and pour epoxy down along the bolts' holes. Immediately tighten everything home (you won't be able to later). If no epoxy comes out the outside of the boat, you are safe. Even if some does, you can drill a few pilot holes from inside into the boat bottom above the forward end of the keel and fill with epoxy. If it takes a lot of epoxy, with none coming out, you were compromised. If it takes nothing you are done.

In either case I would then re-'glass around the hull/keel seam.

The epoxy is not the best thing as it is not sufficiently flexible; but this assumes the existing 5200 is otherwise in good order and you will only be filling mild gaps. The correct way is to rebed the whole keel, as I suggested (as I did with mine).

I don't want to think about cracked keel bolts; but if the outside looks only like something has been cracked loose it should not be the case.

Especially in fin-keeled boats this is always a worry and the best-built boats are always built to deal with it. A boat moves a LOT when it strikes something and this movement is usually what saves the day. It's not like a car hitting something and having tires that do not lose grip on the road. Everything on a boat is ultimately flexible.

You may also have a leak somewhere else, you know. Look carefully.
 
Nov 8, 2009
537
Hunter 386LE San Fancisco
H25 Diana sounds spot on based on my discussion today with Don Huseman. In case your local boat yard cannot accurately diagnosis for issue and recommend the correct fix then contact Don Huseman in San Pedro, CA at 310-547-4604 home, 310-418-6481 cell and email at huseman@mindspring.com for keel repair information, advice and on-site repairs.
 
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