Leaky Shaft

[Capt JON]

My Hunter 30 was out of the water for the winter I put it back in yesterday and the shaft is leaking into bilge,does that stop after a while?

 

[Steve Dion]

Not normally.

Capt. Jon:Normally they need a periodic adjustment. If you have a Cherubini this can be a tough job. If it is plastic instead of metal, they tend to be easier to adjust. The other thing to consider is a repack. Being that you are already back in the water, you may want to pay the yard to do it.

 

[David]

Capt Jon, Yes

With new or dry packing the recommendation is run the engine slow in gear about five minutes. Adjust so that it just stops leaking and let sit overnight. Then run for a half an hour and adjust so that it just stops leaking in the static mode but leaks 3-6 drops a minute in the run mode.

 

[Augie Byllott]

You make no mention of how much water is "leaking". If you type the go words PACKING GLAND and hit Enter, you will get a number of websites which discuss your problem at length. After reading through a few, you will see that tightening the compression nut or even replacing the packing while the boat is in the water is not a really big deal.