Taking on water?

Ross · Jan 3, 2009

Look for a cockpit full of water and a blocked cockpit drain.

sailingdog · Jan 3, 2009

Given that the stern is lower than the bow, and that it has rained a lot lately, Ross is probably on the right track... You probably have a cockpit full of water. If you have a low companionway threshold, I'd expect that you've got some water down in the cabin as well.

Bring a piston pump, like a BilgeMate, a bucket, some big sponges and some trash bags. You might also want to look into getting something to put over the cockpit drains to prevent them from clogging again.

Ross · Jan 3, 2009

At Home Depot and else where you can find cone shape roof drain screens in heavy plastic or metal. Those work well. Also haven't you guys had more than a little snow? If it starts raining while the drains are blocked with snow the cockpit could fill and down flood the boat. Then the snow melts and the rest of the cockpit water drains properly. you then find water in the boat and no leaks.

ChuckThomas · Jan 3, 2009

doesnt the s2 also have the filler hole for the diesel in the bottome of the cockpit? if so be sure to check tank for water. durn 'O' rings.

Ron20324 · Jan 3, 2009

If the drains do not have grills over them, you can roll up some screen and stick it in the hole.

rockp2 · Jan 3, 2009

I had blocked cockpit drains XMAS Eve.

Christmas Eve day I spent a few hours dealing with blocked drains in the cockpit. But the blockage was due to ice in the hoses leading to the thru-hull (I have an H22). At first I tried boiling water. Once the water cooled down, I would bail it out and start over. Probably did this a dozen times. Finally I crawled under my cockpit from the cabin (extremely tight squeeze) and saw the hoses for the first time. They were about the size of vacum cleaner hoses and had a bend in them similar to a trap under a bathroom or kitchen sink.

I took a heat gun and after about 15 minutes was able to thaw the hoses and the cockpit then drained fine. Obviously I did not hold the heat too close to the hoses.

Which leads to a question I wanted to ask the more experienced folks out there. How can the hoses do anything but freeze during the winter? With water sitting in the "traps" it's bound to, isn't it. I figure the traps have to be by design, probably because the drain is under the water-line. But that is just a guess on my part. I do have the cockpit full covered now, but isn't there still a risk that the water sitting in the traps could freeze and burst the hoses? I have read in these forums failure of those hoses is the number 1 cause of H22's sinking at the dock. Could someone please elaborate? Thank you and I hope I am not hijacking the original post.

Ross · Jan 3, 2009

The hose to the drain should be all down hill. You don't even want a horizontal run with just a small low place in it.

rockp2 · Jan 3, 2009

Really?

Ross said:
The hose to the drain should be all down hill. You don't even want a horizontal run with just a small low place in it.

That's what I thought, but as I was staring at them for 15 minutes with the heat gun, the hoses looked like they were positioned with traps on purpose by the manufactuer. BUT I am incredibly new to this.

I will try to get a photo tomorrow and will post it in the "Smaller Boat" forum. If you wouldn't mind taking a look Ross and letting me know what you think, I would appreciate it. I will send you a message when it is posted. Thanks Much! -Herv

Ross · Jan 3, 2009

I once found a the cause of a water stain on a ceiling in a house was caused by the attic installed airconditioner system drain having frozen and broken during the winter because of trapped water from the previous summer. Then instead of carrying the condensate away and draining it outside, it spilled into the attic and stained the plaster ceiling. All caused by a low sag in the drain pipe in an unheated attic.

Don S/V ILLusion · Jan 3, 2009

Scott
If you have a pump and tube hose typically used to remove crankcase oil via the dipstick tube, you have what you need - open the tank through a cleanout, vent or tank gauge hole, insert the tube to the bottom of the tank and inspect what you withdraw. If you are lucky, your tank will have a drain at the low point which makes this even easier. My suggestion is that everyone should add this step to their routine maintenance as it can save a great deal of consternation later if/when the tank gets dirt or water in the pickup tube.

Ron20324 · Jan 3, 2009

Don, I thought I just read somewhere that fuel tanks can't have a bottom drain? I suppose so they don't leak fuel. Or is my memory shot also?

Hermit Scott · Jan 3, 2009

I think what he said was they don't have openings at the bottom, like a motorcycle pet cock. The tank has a depressed area which is the lowest point in the tank and a dip tube goes down into that. That's where the water will be if there is any.
The dip tube that the engine draws from will be an inch or so off of the bottom to avoid picking up any water or sludge. I think that's what he said, paraphrased.

Don S/V ILLusion · Jan 4, 2009

Ron20324 said:
Don, I thought I just read somewhere that fuel tanks can't have a bottom drain? I suppose so they don't leak fuel. Or is my memory shot also?

They can and often do - I just don't know if yours has one. It wouldn't surprise me if ABYC recommends against a tank drain as many of their standards are written to the lowest common denominator, that being the dumb boater incapable of ensuring the drain is tight and not leaking. However, my Yanmar manual and my boat manual both show the provision of such a tank drain so it is very much dependent on where your boat's tank came from and when it was installed.

ChuckThomas · Jan 4, 2009

my filler hole is in the cockpit floor. after hurricane ike a lot of cypress leaves stopped up cockpit drain. put about 6" of water in cockpit for about a day before it could fully drain. during that time water seaped into the diesel tank through the filler. i had even put a new "O" ring on filler cap just prior to hurricane. Knowing that cockpit was at one time under water i checked my tank. I use a piece of fuel line taped to a piece of dowel long enough to drop through filler hole to bottome of tank. I then connect that to a hand bulb pump like many outboard tanks use. I then pumped that in to a clear gallon jugs. about 1.5 gallons of water came out before any diesel. Sure saved a lot of headaches that would have happened later on by not clogging any fuel filters while out motoring. which is a real PTA. my tank does not have a bottom drain. I agree with Don. It is now part of my periodic maintenance schedules.

TimCup · Jan 5, 2009

Scott D and ChuckThomas-

reread the post by Ron20324- I do this in my boat-

I take a piece of "hardware cloth" which is actually more like the wire you would make a cage out of for a small animal, the holes are about 1/2" square. I roll it up with a center opening about the diameter of a cigar, small enough to shove down in the scupper (cockpit drain). I have about 4 or 5 inches sticking up, which means I can have 4 0r 5 inches of leaves, trash or anything else and still have a perfectly working drain.

And even Ross can appreciate the fact that this modification is less than a dollar!!

cup

Ross · Jan 5, 2009

Cup , I love simple solutions to vexing problems. Well done.