I've noticed some of the seacocks on my 2007 B373 are slightly corroded. The main one I'm concerned about is in the head under the sink. Because I don't use it much since I'm not offshore often, the dump to the outside for the toilet is corroded and working the handle very difficult. I'm guessing since it is not used much it just begins freezing up. But on the outside there is visible green corrosion. I'm not sure what it is made of but it appears to be some type of cheap alloy metal. If I don't touch this, I wonder how dangerous this is. I'm thinking of using a wire brush to remove the green corrosion. Is there something you can paint on this to protect it?
Seacock corrosion
- Thread starter Dadawada
- Start date
I would replace it…… if it does not look good this has the potential to sink your boat. The original beneteau valves were not bronze and look silver unlike a true bronze part like a Groco valves….. with my 2005 423 I am slowly replacing all of the fittings, skin fitting (thru hull) as well as the valves. So far none of the originals have been that bad. Better safe than sorry.
good luck!
good luck!
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 24,455
Good images. It is a tough call.
Factors.
@Maine Sail has an excellent discussion about through hulls.
Factors.
- Boat was built in 2007. That makes her 19 years old, possible that the through hulls are original based on observation of the valves.
- There is some surface corrosion evident.
- Valve operation (stiff / smooth) is unknown
- No information about the need to change shaft zincs. If you have to change shaft zincs more than once a year that is evidence that where the boat sits has electrical energy in the waters and it is attacking the zincs. There could be galvanic corrosion going on inside the valve or through hull.
@Maine Sail has an excellent discussion about through hulls.
Replacing Thru-Hulls and Seacocks - Marine How To
Tip: If you would like a higher resolution or larger photo simply click on the picture and it will get bigger. A Poor Idea The picture on the left is what not to do if starting from scratch and installing new seacocks.
marinehowto.com
There is nothing, absolutely nothing worse than having one or both of your balls seize up when you least expect it. I've heard it can lead to E.D. as well as altering which side you dress on. I've heard of some people actually dressing to the "middle" after a prolonged ball seizure
.Scary stuff to be sure.
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Nothing in the picture scares me much. There’s no pinking or signs of severe corrosion, just surface patina. Having said that, they are 19 years old and if they’re not moving as smoothly as they should I wouldn’t be afraid to replace them.
Beneteau thru hulls are known problems. They used a product that met/meets Eurpoeans standards of something like 5-10 years lifetime. The problem is that they have zinc in the bronze that leaches out compromising the integrity. If they are original you should start the process of replacing them. At the very least have them inspected.
That is not a popular opinion here. Although true and well-documented, there are some here that will go bananas on you for pointing it out.
Mark
on a 2000 Beneteau 411 we had the raw water intake valve handle breakoff so to the yard we went. further inspection revealed that many of the valves were in various tages of decay. the interior pipinig was regular hardware store copper and some crumbled in your hand.
many calls later we spoke to a fellow at NAOS Yachts in San Francisco who concidentally worked for Jeanneau (Beneteau) in Europe in quality control around that time. he reported that all the thruhulls and valves are british thread. NPT won't work. Also, the reason they were failing was because for a period of time Beneteau used bronze made with arsenic which met European standards but had some problems in the US. (odd statement but that's what he said). because there were failures in the US he prevailed on Beneteau to change over to regular bronze.
we changed out all the thru hulls and valves.
many calls later we spoke to a fellow at NAOS Yachts in San Francisco who concidentally worked for Jeanneau (Beneteau) in Europe in quality control around that time. he reported that all the thruhulls and valves are british thread. NPT won't work. Also, the reason they were failing was because for a period of time Beneteau used bronze made with arsenic which met European standards but had some problems in the US. (odd statement but that's what he said). because there were failures in the US he prevailed on Beneteau to change over to regular bronze.
we changed out all the thru hulls and valves.
I replaced all of my original Beneteau thru hull assemblies (thru hull, ball valve, & tail piece) starting fifteen years ago. Upon removal, (even though they weren’t quality bronze fittings) I didn’t find one that showed evidence of imminent failure. No regrets in replacing them; gives me peace of mind that I have true bronze US manufactured hardware.