Merit 22 cockpit drain.

[sloughsailer]

I just bought a Merit 22 and have been sorting it out and fixing problems. One problem is the cockpit drain. There is an inch and a half through deck drain in the cockpit sole near the transom and the outlet exits the transom a few inches above the waterline.

The problem is that there is not a straight shot from one fitting to the other. the area under the cockpit is foam filled and right under the cockpit drain is a fiberglass structure that may be a structural member. This makes it impossible to run a hose without having it crimp closed. It takes very little debris to plug the drain.

The only access is through an inspection plate the previous owner put in the transom liner.

Any ideas?

 

[Hunter216]

I just bought a Merit 22 and have been sorting it out and fixing problems. One problem is the cockpit drain. There is an inch and a half through deck drain in the cockpit sole near the transom and the outlet exits the transom a few inches above the waterline.

The problem is that there is not a straight shot from one fitting to the other. the area under the cockpit is foam filled and right under the cockpit drain is a fiberglass structure that may be a structural member. This makes it impossible to run a hose without having it crimp closed. It takes very little debris to plug the drain.

The only access is through an inspection plate the previous owner put in the transom liner.

Any ideas?

Welcome to SBO.

I believe @RussC has a Merit 22.

 

[shemandr]

Is the problem that you want to replace the hose and can't or is the problem the hose clogs easily?

 

[sloughsailer]

The problem is lack of room to make the 90 degree turn from the cockpit fitting to the transom through hull fitting.
Because of the way the boat is built, foam filled with a fiberglass pan in the way of the transom under the cockpit sole, a solid or proper rubber hose can't be used. So they used a thin hose like you'd use for a pump discharge hose. This can make the 90 but it crimps badly and fouls regularly.

Also the only access is through a 6 inch inspection port.

I've never had a boat before in which you can't see the inside of the hull. I'll try to take some pictures that will better show the problem.

 

[shemandr]

Can you re-route the hose? I'm thinking back to my Ranger which had a funky cockpit drain system. The thru hulls were on the bottom but not underwater, as I remember.

 

[sloughsailer]

I'm going to try to make a sketch on Paint that might make it more clear than I can explain it.

 

[sloughsailer]

Here is a crude sketch. The hump under the deck drain is the problem. It may be some kind of structural thing I shouldn't try to cut out.

 

[RussC]

I just bought a Merit 22 and have been sorting it out and fixing problems. One problem is the cockpit drain. There is an inch and a half through deck drain in the cockpit sole near the transom and the outlet exits the transom a few inches above the waterline.

The problem is that there is not a straight shot from one fitting to the other. the area under the cockpit is foam filled and right under the cockpit drain is a fiberglass structure that may be a structural member. This makes it impossible to run a hose without having it crimp closed. It takes very little debris to plug the drain.

The only access is through an inspection plate the previous owner put in the transom liner.

Any ideas?

I took this photo of mine (Merit 22) by holding my camera down through the lazaret. a more flexible fellow than me may be able to actually replace the hose via the laz also, or perhaps a skinny fellow could wiggle back there via one of the torpedo tubes. anyway... it sounds like someone has replaced your tube with a piece of straight hose (access port you describe is not an oem item), which obviously won't make the bend required. I would stop by an auto parts store and pick up a 90* molded radiator hose with the proper dimensions. remove your clamps and slice the hose over the fittings with a razor knife to remove the old hose and take it with you for a reference.

 

[sloughsailer]

Thanks Russ. But my Merit doesn't have the channel under the cockpit drain fitting like yours. My boat was made in '84. That pan or whatever one calls that structure is lower than shown in your picture and is solid all the way across the boat. There is about one inch of clearance between it and the end of the drain fitting.

Tomorrow I'll take some photos so you can see exactly what my problem is.