OK you guys with all those 89-94 H30/33/35's built similarily... just commissioned the boat and found she is taking on a lot of water....gallon every 6 hours or so. No sign of any water thru/around any thru hull, packing...nothing...Hull was sanded and barrier coated this winter...no prior sign of hull/keel delam. The only thru penetrations we cannot see are the keel bolts...what is going on here?
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Few things you can try
I had a similar problem on my 88-H30. Here are a few things you can try to see where it is coming from. If the boat is in salt water taste it or test it if you don't care to try your bilge water. Thats how I found it was fresh water and not from outside the boat.Mine ended up being a leak in the aluninum fresh water tank. OR Dry the water from the bilge as best you can. Make a few baby powder lines in different areas you suspect and wait to see which one gets wet. Bob Always Something
I had a similar problem on my 88-H30. Here are a few things you can try to see where it is coming from. If the boat is in salt water taste it or test it if you don't care to try your bilge water. Thats how I found it was fresh water and not from outside the boat.Mine ended up being a leak in the aluninum fresh water tank. OR Dry the water from the bilge as best you can. Make a few baby powder lines in different areas you suspect and wait to see which one gets wet. Bob Always Something
Dry Board Markers
I use dry erase board markers to mark circles around through-hulls, around tank firrings, etc to determine what's leaking. Does the same thing as the baby powder mentioned previously, but has a bit more flexibility. RD
I use dry erase board markers to mark circles around through-hulls, around tank firrings, etc to determine what's leaking. Does the same thing as the baby powder mentioned previously, but has a bit more flexibility. RD
how long has it been leaking?
Bruce: How long has it been leaking? It could be water that is trapped in the liner.
Bruce: How long has it been leaking? It could be water that is trapped in the liner.
May not be tru hull leak
Are you sure it's not windows, stanctions or something else leaking? We had an unbelievable amount of rain in NE these last few weeks.
Are you sure it's not windows, stanctions or something else leaking? We had an unbelievable amount of rain in NE these last few weeks.
Old Standby
Seal up someone inside the boat and hose it down to look for obvious leaks from the aforementioned heavy rain. Also, check around the rubrail. On the later model 29.5s the water seeped in between the top hull and bottom hull. Resealing the rubrail did the trick for me. But in neither case was the water pouring in at the rate you describe. Don't give up. These boats can be sealed tight.
Seal up someone inside the boat and hose it down to look for obvious leaks from the aforementioned heavy rain. Also, check around the rubrail. On the later model 29.5s the water seeped in between the top hull and bottom hull. Resealing the rubrail did the trick for me. But in neither case was the water pouring in at the rate you describe. Don't give up. These boats can be sealed tight.
salt or fresh
I agree, pump out existing water. Then see if the leak is freash or salt. At this point you do not know hwat you are chasing. If salt, shut all intake valves. turn on one at a time indepedantly.
I agree, pump out existing water. Then see if the leak is freash or salt. At this point you do not know hwat you are chasing. If salt, shut all intake valves. turn on one at a time indepedantly.
Too bad there isn't an alternative to tasting it.
Yep, you will have to taste it to find out if it is salt or fresh. I had the problem a few years ago, and I panicked a bit. After tasting it, I found out it was fresh. I then tracked down every fresh water hoses and connections, and that wasn’t it. I then put strips of paper towels below every hatch, window, port, and waited for a big rain. It ended up being the mast. Water came through the deck where all the mast wiring came through. The water followed the post all the way down into the bilge. I then used a water hose to spray the bottom of the mast, hoping it wasn’t water coming down from the top of the stick. I ended up deciding not to use a mast boot, and just wrapped the bottom of the mast with white tape to cover up the access holes, and that stopped it. If the water tastes salty, then shut off all of the thru-hulls, remove and dry the water from the bilge, and put down paper towel or newspaper in the bilge, and sit and wait. With a gallon every 6 hours, you shouldn’t have to wait too long to see wet spots in the paper towels. By the way, is the water in the engine bilge? Is the stuffing box too loose? If the water is coming up by the keel bolts, you can have the boat yard tighten them using a torque wrench, a big honkin torque wrench. They can find out what to torque it at from the boat’s maintenance manual. Don’t worry too much. It can be sealed. My bilge is bone dry all year around, except for the engine bilge, that should have some water in it.
Yep, you will have to taste it to find out if it is salt or fresh. I had the problem a few years ago, and I panicked a bit. After tasting it, I found out it was fresh. I then tracked down every fresh water hoses and connections, and that wasn’t it. I then put strips of paper towels below every hatch, window, port, and waited for a big rain. It ended up being the mast. Water came through the deck where all the mast wiring came through. The water followed the post all the way down into the bilge. I then used a water hose to spray the bottom of the mast, hoping it wasn’t water coming down from the top of the stick. I ended up deciding not to use a mast boot, and just wrapped the bottom of the mast with white tape to cover up the access holes, and that stopped it. If the water tastes salty, then shut off all of the thru-hulls, remove and dry the water from the bilge, and put down paper towel or newspaper in the bilge, and sit and wait. With a gallon every 6 hours, you shouldn’t have to wait too long to see wet spots in the paper towels. By the way, is the water in the engine bilge? Is the stuffing box too loose? If the water is coming up by the keel bolts, you can have the boat yard tighten them using a torque wrench, a big honkin torque wrench. They can find out what to torque it at from the boat’s maintenance manual. Don’t worry too much. It can be sealed. My bilge is bone dry all year around, except for the engine bilge, that should have some water in it.
Its salt water!!!
Yup..it is salt...I thought maybe a hose in the water system hidden, or the tank itself, was leaking...nope...its salt. All the thru hulls have been checked out again...no water in the engine compartment...no water coming from the stern where the hull is completely visible...Except for the fore/art stringers...rudder post secure/muffler. Keel bolts are cranked. Just wish I could see under the liner... Spoke with Hunter and they are ??? Only choice now is to haul, dry, and fill bilge with dye in the water? Other choices? I'm not having fun yet, but there is a solution somewhere...
Yup..it is salt...I thought maybe a hose in the water system hidden, or the tank itself, was leaking...nope...its salt. All the thru hulls have been checked out again...no water in the engine compartment...no water coming from the stern where the hull is completely visible...Except for the fore/art stringers...rudder post secure/muffler. Keel bolts are cranked. Just wish I could see under the liner... Spoke with Hunter and they are ??? Only choice now is to haul, dry, and fill bilge with dye in the water? Other choices? I'm not having fun yet, but there is a solution somewhere...
May not need to dye it.
I wouldn't dye the water yet. It may stain the inner hull. Just watch for where it may be seeping out of the hull. It will show as a wet spot. My only thought is that it's the stuffing box.
I wouldn't dye the water yet. It may stain the inner hull. Just watch for where it may be seeping out of the hull. It will show as a wet spot. My only thought is that it's the stuffing box.
If You Can Avoid Hauling Just Yet...
Keep after it. It's got to be something simple. There just are not that many places for water to come in. RD PS: keep smilin'. I once had a leak I just could not figure. I did the taste test. Yup, it was salty. It should have been. It was the holding tank leaking...
Keep after it. It's got to be something simple. There just are not that many places for water to come in. RD PS: keep smilin'. I once had a leak I just could not figure. I did the taste test. Yup, it was salty. It should have been. It was the holding tank leaking...
Maybe Keel Bolts
Just because the keel bolts are tight does not mean they aren't leaking. I had to rebed mine. There is space around the bolts that require sealant It is going to leak around the bolts if the sealant is gone.
Just because the keel bolts are tight does not mean they aren't leaking. I had to rebed mine. There is space around the bolts that require sealant It is going to leak around the bolts if the sealant is gone.
Just had a thought about salty taste
Was the bilge dry before all this? or was the bilge wet from sea water at one time, and had since dried? The salty taste could be fresh water leak from the fresh water tank, and mixed with the old salt crystals from before. Just a thought. As to the possibilities of the stuffing box or the rudder shaft, I would think the water would go into the engine bilge first before going into the main bilge.
Was the bilge dry before all this? or was the bilge wet from sea water at one time, and had since dried? The salty taste could be fresh water leak from the fresh water tank, and mixed with the old salt crystals from before. Just a thought. As to the possibilities of the stuffing box or the rudder shaft, I would think the water would go into the engine bilge first before going into the main bilge.
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