Question about deck leak

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Chuck1ley

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Apr 14, 2010
1
Oday Oday 22 Blue Point
Hi everyone!
This is my first post here. Just discovered this website, and what a great site it is! I recently acquired an O'Day 22. The hull is in fine shape, but the deck leaks. I noticed the previous owner has quite 'liberally' applied what appears to be silicone caulking all around the mast plate. My question to you is should I be worried the mast will pull through the deck if the rot is severe enough already (which I would imagine it is), and is there a way to repair this problem. Thanks!
Chuck
 
Joe11688

Joe11688

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Jan 24, 2005
4,881
Oday 222 Dighton, Ma.
Chuck1ley said:
Hi everyone!
This is my first post here. Just discovered this website, and what a great site it is! I recently acquired an O'Day 22. The hull is in fine shape, but the deck leaks. I noticed the previous owner has quite 'liberally' applied what appears to be silicone caulking all around the mast plate. My question to you is should I be worried the mast will pull through the deck if the rot is severe enough already (which I would imagine it is), and is there a way to repair this problem. Thanks!
Chuck
Click to expand
Hi Chuck,
Silicone caulking really doesn't adhere well. It acts more like a gasket than anything. I would remove the Tabernacle and clean the area good. You may want to probe the bolt holes a little with something thin like an ice pick to see if there are any soft spots. If it's sound, you should use a polysulfide boat caulking like Boat Life Boat caulk. I favor 3-M 4000 Adhesive Sealant Caulking which can be bought at Wal-Mart cheaper than "Worst Marine". Bare in mine that you shouldn't use this type of caulking on anything plastic, but for metal deck hardware it's a heck of a lot better than silicone. Also, don't use any hull cleaners on your deck that contain Oxalic Acid. It'll eat out the caulking. The gunwale moldings are notorious for leaks also. Good luck!
Joe
 
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emergpa1

emergpa1

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Oct 2, 2008
1,424
Island Packet 31 Brunswick, Ga
Chuck1ley said:
Hi everyone!
This is my first post here. Just discovered this website, and what a great site it is! I recently acquired an O'Day 22. The hull is in fine shape, but the deck leaks. I noticed the previous owner has quite 'liberally' applied what appears to be silicone caulking all around the mast plate. My question to you is should I be worried the mast will pull through the deck if the rot is severe enough already (which I would imagine it is), and is there a way to repair this problem. Thanks!
Chuck
Click to expand
Hello Chuck, If your pulpit is leaky, you most likely have other leaks to: fittings that need reseating, maybe wet or rotting core.. but don't despair, they can be repaired easily.
To get a basic idea of different sealent-adhesives, basic deck construction and repair, and rebedding of hardware to your deck, you need a book by Don Casey called "this old boat". It is the fundamental primer on sailboat maintenance and repair. I hope this is not a shock to you.! Hopefully you knew when you became the proud owner of your boat that sailing is what you do 1/3 of your time, and repair and maintenance of your little jewel of the sea is what you do 2/3 of the time. Getting to know every part and parcel of the boat is part of the fun....no really, it is fun. And the sense of pride you get is way more than you would if someone else did it for you, or you just sprung for a new boat.
The pics below chronicle the sequence of repair for the deck below my mast, from rot to back on the water in one short year (along with a complete tearing out and rebuild. you can see some other stuff on my profile album oday 26 the rebuild):)
keith
 

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emergpa1

emergpa1

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Oct 2, 2008
1,424
Island Packet 31 Brunswick, Ga
so far i like butyl tape alot, the one thing i have noticed is that it never dries, so that it can always smear onto something, like your line around a cleat that you bedded with butyl, and it collects dirt. finally, it is not as sticky, so if you want a little extra adhesion, say like on a stanchion, or hand rail, maybe not so good
keith
 
damoses1

damoses1

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Mar 25, 2010
64
Cal 29 Lake Saint Clair - SCS
I recently bought an O'day 22 and every time it rained, the walls inside would be wet. Also, the hull would fill up with water. After plenty of troubleshooting, I found the toe rail screws to be leaking. I pulled off the toe rails, put tons of silicon under them and in the screw holes, and my boat has been dry inside. As for the hull filling up with water, it turned out to be the hose under the cockpit drain to be leaking. Hopefully my leak-chasing days are over for now.
 
Joe11688

Joe11688

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Jan 24, 2005
4,881
Oday 222 Dighton, Ma.
damoses1 said:
I recently bought an O'day 22 and every time it rained, the walls inside would be wet. Also, the hull would fill up with water. After plenty of troubleshooting, I found the toe rail screws to be leaking. I pulled off the toe rails, put tons of silicon under them and in the screw holes, and my boat has been dry inside. As for the hull filling up with water, it turned out to be the hose under the cockpit drain to be leaking. Hopefully my leak-chasing days are over for now.
Click to expand
I think that the biggest killer of caulking is hull cleaner. Never use it on your deck. I found that out the hard way. Most hull cleaners contain Oxalic Acid that will eat out caulking. Even house hold cleansers like "Zud Cleanser" contain this acid. When I caulked my gunwale molding I used "Boat Life Boat Caulk which will not harm metal and is more preferable to use than Silicon in most circles. Some O'Days particularly the O'Day 25's, have PVC gunwale moldings with the rubber strip and the right caulking for these, plus windows and plastic hatches is Dow Corning 795 or something similar to it which is kind to plastic. Polysulfide caulking would cause the plastic to dry out and crack in time. Of course, silicon is kind to plastic, but it has no adhering agents in it. It acts more like a gasket, than an effective caulking according to Don Casey, author of the book, "This Old Boat". As long as it cured your problem and worked for your boat, that's great. I firmly believe that these boats shouldn't leak a drop of water. They can be found if you're persistent.
 
emergpa1

emergpa1

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Oct 2, 2008
1,424
Island Packet 31 Brunswick, Ga
As an aside, both my chainplates started leaking this weekend. Now i am not sure why or what happened or why, but i intend to pull them this weekend. I know I was very carefull with my method and site preparation. More later
 
emergpa1

emergpa1

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Oct 2, 2008
1,424
Island Packet 31 Brunswick, Ga
RBone said:
You probably don't want to replace bulkheads.

Rich
Click to expand
Amen to that rich.

I am about to head out to the boat and pull the covers and take a peek.. At least i know that there is not core that can be wet by the water, so may see if i can just remove and reseal the cover plates to reduce the leak, then pull the plates after the season. I hope to get some sailing in this weekend and the sealent would have to set up a while before i can sail. all depends on how it looks.

i also have a leak from my fixed starboard salon port, i knew it was leaking just allittle. i was hoping to do that after pull out this fall, but now it makes a small wet spot on the settee cushion there. to bad, they are not crazed, but the one that leaks is cracked at the corner. i ordered two (one for the port also) from rudy and will reseat them in a couple of weeks. what do you guys recommend, my butyl seems to be working pretty good on the forward hatch. I know i could have pulled them and had copies made at my local glass shop but the time and trip and delay would not have been worth saving a few bucks IMHO.

it is always something.....but she lives, she lives!

keith
 

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