I have a 272LE. The chainplate area is a problem in numerous boats. The original construction is a teak plywood bulkhead with the stainless steel chainplate on a teak block and bolted thru the bulkhead. If water intruded from above, then the teak bulkhead may have deteriorated. Many 272 and other make owners have added reinforcement plates of plywood, stainless steel, or in my case 1/4" thick G10 material plates on each side of the bulkhead (thru bolted with stainless steel bolts) rather than replacing the whole teak bulkhead. I preferred the G10 material (available on eBay) to plywood because it is impervious to water, extremely strong, and is easier to work with than stainless steel plates which are difficult to drill. I removed 1/4" of the thick teak blocks on each side of the boat so that the chainplate would remain in the same place as before. If your bulkhead was repaired with plywood, make sure that it was coated with epoxy to resist water intrusion. Check to see if your stainless steel deck fitting has been rebedded with butyl tape rather than another type of sealant and the problem should have been solved.