This may be a dumb question, but my previous boat had no thru hulls below the water line. Is it a good idea to close the valves on the thru-hulls when you leave the marina (just in case) or is it common to leave them all open all of the time? (end of season excluded) Joe R. s/v Skooky 3 Catalina 30
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Ron
Close Them
Maybe I'm paranoid, but I never leave my boat unattended with the thru-hull valves open. Consider the water pressure acting on a 1" or greater diameter hole 3-4 ft under water. That can move a lot of water into the boat in a very short time. Your electric bilge pump probably wouldn't keep up with it. I had one experience (while tied up at a slip in a marina) last year where a hose on my pressure water system had come loose & suddenly pop off while we were ashore and begain flooding the boat. This isn't very serious in comparison with a hose on an open thru-hull, but illustrates how "Murphy" rules in these things. (Yes, my electric bilge pump did keep up with that event.) Further, on any off shore passages I close the thru-hulls. I've had the boat pounding very hard on waves to the point where a pump was damaged. I only open those I'm using at any time, then close them right away when done. Regularly opening & closing them isn't likely to waer them out. More likely, it will prevent a stuck valve resulting from lack of use. Aquatic lifeforms can get in there and take hold. Check all the hose connections regularly. Keep a bag of wooden plugs and a mallet handy, too. its a good idea to lubricate the ball valves during the annual winter storage haulout. --Ron
Maybe I'm paranoid, but I never leave my boat unattended with the thru-hull valves open. Consider the water pressure acting on a 1" or greater diameter hole 3-4 ft under water. That can move a lot of water into the boat in a very short time. Your electric bilge pump probably wouldn't keep up with it. I had one experience (while tied up at a slip in a marina) last year where a hose on my pressure water system had come loose & suddenly pop off while we were ashore and begain flooding the boat. This isn't very serious in comparison with a hose on an open thru-hull, but illustrates how "Murphy" rules in these things. (Yes, my electric bilge pump did keep up with that event.) Further, on any off shore passages I close the thru-hulls. I've had the boat pounding very hard on waves to the point where a pump was damaged. I only open those I'm using at any time, then close them right away when done. Regularly opening & closing them isn't likely to waer them out. More likely, it will prevent a stuck valve resulting from lack of use. Aquatic lifeforms can get in there and take hold. Check all the hose connections regularly. Keep a bag of wooden plugs and a mallet handy, too. its a good idea to lubricate the ball valves during the annual winter storage haulout. --Ron
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Tom
Closed valves
It's safer to close all the valves when away from the boat. Just remember to open the raw water valve for the inboard prior to cranking the engine. Some people store their key on the valve handle, as a way to remember to open the valve prior to inserting the key into the panel. On a previous boat, I forgot to close a head valve twice in 15 years. On the second occassion, I returned to the boat the next day to find an inch of water covering the cabin sole. The Y-valve just upstream of that thru-hull had leaked a little water over the 24-hours I was gone. Replaced the Y-valve, but the lesson was learned - close all the thru-hull valves when not in use.
It's safer to close all the valves when away from the boat. Just remember to open the raw water valve for the inboard prior to cranking the engine. Some people store their key on the valve handle, as a way to remember to open the valve prior to inserting the key into the panel. On a previous boat, I forgot to close a head valve twice in 15 years. On the second occassion, I returned to the boat the next day to find an inch of water covering the cabin sole. The Y-valve just upstream of that thru-hull had leaked a little water over the 24-hours I was gone. Replaced the Y-valve, but the lesson was learned - close all the thru-hull valves when not in use.
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LaDonna Bubak - CatalinaOwners.com
One step farther
I have the old volcano-style "to hulls" and get very nervous using them. I DO use them, if only to keep them in good working order but because of this paranoia, I close them after every use. This insures that I'm safe while my back is turned AND that I don't forget to close it when I leave the boat. LaDonna PS: I have an outboard so the raw water intake thru hull isn't an issue for me.
I have the old volcano-style "to hulls" and get very nervous using them. I DO use them, if only to keep them in good working order but because of this paranoia, I close them after every use. This insures that I'm safe while my back is turned AND that I don't forget to close it when I leave the boat. LaDonna PS: I have an outboard so the raw water intake thru hull isn't an issue for me.
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Eric Ludin
I don't believe it!
I understand that bad things can happen if you leave the thru hull open. But, I really don't believe that it is common practice to always close thru hulls when leaving the boat. You can really drive yourself crazy worrying about all the things that can go wrong. I walk around my marina and see AC units pumping water all the time on empty boats.I like keeping my AC system on when I'm not there. It keeps down the humidity. The only way to do that is keep at least one thru hull open. I do close the ones I don't need.
I understand that bad things can happen if you leave the thru hull open. But, I really don't believe that it is common practice to always close thru hulls when leaving the boat. You can really drive yourself crazy worrying about all the things that can go wrong. I walk around my marina and see AC units pumping water all the time on empty boats.I like keeping my AC system on when I'm not there. It keeps down the humidity. The only way to do that is keep at least one thru hull open. I do close the ones I don't need.
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Chris Gonzales
Eric, better become a believer...
It is prudent practice, good seamanship, to close ALL through-hulls when you leave your boat and even when you are ON your boat if you don't need them open. It can save the boat from sinking and can keep the valves working properly by operating them on a regular basis. Check the website link below. By the way, does your marina not care about the AC running all the time and drawing the extra juice? Chris
It is prudent practice, good seamanship, to close ALL through-hulls when you leave your boat and even when you are ON your boat if you don't need them open. It can save the boat from sinking and can keep the valves working properly by operating them on a regular basis. Check the website link below. By the way, does your marina not care about the AC running all the time and drawing the extra juice? Chris
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Tom
I confess I don't either. Then again,
I am not away from my boat that long typically. If I was going to be away for a long time (3-4 weeks....months?) then I would. Its a newer boat and I do know where all of them are and I rotate the handles to make sure they work....The one I do close if I go for more than a day or two (that is if I remember) is the one for the head. Reason being that this is the most likely area of problems (if there was going to be one). And also it helps keep the raw water input to head clean and less likely to have it smell like rotten eggs when I come back and pump the head for the first time. (I replace water in the input to head hose with fresh water and CP cleaning liquid) . ps. Chris SO many boats at my marina keep their AC on all the time....(mostly motorboats, but big sailboats too). I see it ALL the time. Obviusly they have 'some" seacocks left open (and I trully doubt they ever touch the others) My marina charges a flat fee at the beginning of the year for the electric, They are not metered, so I guess they don't care.
I am not away from my boat that long typically. If I was going to be away for a long time (3-4 weeks....months?) then I would. Its a newer boat and I do know where all of them are and I rotate the handles to make sure they work....The one I do close if I go for more than a day or two (that is if I remember) is the one for the head. Reason being that this is the most likely area of problems (if there was going to be one). And also it helps keep the raw water input to head clean and less likely to have it smell like rotten eggs when I come back and pump the head for the first time. (I replace water in the input to head hose with fresh water and CP cleaning liquid) . ps. Chris SO many boats at my marina keep their AC on all the time....(mostly motorboats, but big sailboats too). I see it ALL the time. Obviusly they have 'some" seacocks left open (and I trully doubt they ever touch the others) My marina charges a flat fee at the beginning of the year for the electric, They are not metered, so I guess they don't care.
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LaDonna Bubak - Catalina Owners
Crazy talk!
You guys have got to remember that it's not just the seacock that could go. Most likely, the hose clamps will be the culprits. And you have TWO places they could go and then BOOM! there goes your boat (or should I say GLUG). A preventative measure for this would be to double clamp each fitting. Yours ARE double clamped, aren't they? BTW, I'm on my boat almost every day during the summer and I still leave all thru hulls closed when not in use. One moer BTW...I knew someone who just happened to be on his boat when he heard a funny gushing sound. Turned out the clamp on the head sink blew and the incoming water was like a geyser. If he hadn't been there at that EXACT moment - like maybe later in the day - his boat would have been on the bottom of the river. LaDonna
You guys have got to remember that it's not just the seacock that could go. Most likely, the hose clamps will be the culprits. And you have TWO places they could go and then BOOM! there goes your boat (or should I say GLUG). A preventative measure for this would be to double clamp each fitting. Yours ARE double clamped, aren't they? BTW, I'm on my boat almost every day during the summer and I still leave all thru hulls closed when not in use. One moer BTW...I knew someone who just happened to be on his boat when he heard a funny gushing sound. Turned out the clamp on the head sink blew and the incoming water was like a geyser. If he hadn't been there at that EXACT moment - like maybe later in the day - his boat would have been on the bottom of the river. LaDonna
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Eric Ludin
OK, OK, you win!
I decided to take an informal survey of sailors I know at my marina. None said they always close all their seacocks. A few suggested turning the a/c as high as possible so it will not run too often. Well guess what! Today, I visited my boat and was surprised to find water floating my bilge switch. Normally, the bilge is dry. I discovered that my AC pump developed a crack and was spraying water all over the place. Fortunately, the crack wasn't too bad and it hadn't been spraying very long (I was last at the boat on Friday). But, it did frighten me a bit. I don't think I will always close all my seacocks...but, I will close all that I don't need and turn my AC up from 89 to 95 or so. That way if the pump does start pumping water into the boat it will stop in time for the bilge pump to catch up! By the way, we are individually metered at our marina. Most boats that have AC keep them running for humidity control. Every other slip has a boat with water being pump for the AC. Eric
I decided to take an informal survey of sailors I know at my marina. None said they always close all their seacocks. A few suggested turning the a/c as high as possible so it will not run too often. Well guess what! Today, I visited my boat and was surprised to find water floating my bilge switch. Normally, the bilge is dry. I discovered that my AC pump developed a crack and was spraying water all over the place. Fortunately, the crack wasn't too bad and it hadn't been spraying very long (I was last at the boat on Friday). But, it did frighten me a bit. I don't think I will always close all my seacocks...but, I will close all that I don't need and turn my AC up from 89 to 95 or so. That way if the pump does start pumping water into the boat it will stop in time for the bilge pump to catch up! By the way, we are individually metered at our marina. Most boats that have AC keep them running for humidity control. Every other slip has a boat with water being pump for the AC. Eric
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Tom
La Donna....Of COURSE double clamped and inspected
You could have it tripled clamped and I know you could still have a problem ....if I didn't feel 100% confident of the quality or something didn't seem right I would definitely keep it closed....
You could have it tripled clamped and I know you could still have a problem ....if I didn't feel 100% confident of the quality or something didn't seem right I would definitely keep it closed....
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Chris Gonzales
An Unlocked Door in a Good....
...neighborhood. Isn't this the same as figuring that chances are nobody would walk in and steal your stuff, and that since it doesn't happen much to the neighbors and hasn't happened to you so don't worry? It's like playing the odds, or taking chances. You may never have experience a theft but why leave the front door unlocked when it takes so little effort to turn the deadbolt? Maybe it is the same thinking that causes some to be lax on changing out the standing rigging in hopes that it won't fail... As they say, hindsight is 20/20. Please take the time to close the valves and evade any possible consequenses and feel good about your seamanship.
...neighborhood. Isn't this the same as figuring that chances are nobody would walk in and steal your stuff, and that since it doesn't happen much to the neighbors and hasn't happened to you so don't worry? It's like playing the odds, or taking chances. You may never have experience a theft but why leave the front door unlocked when it takes so little effort to turn the deadbolt? Maybe it is the same thinking that causes some to be lax on changing out the standing rigging in hopes that it won't fail... As they say, hindsight is 20/20. Please take the time to close the valves and evade any possible consequenses and feel good about your seamanship.
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Dennis Thomas
Rats
In our case, a rat taught me to close the seacocks. Our Cat 25 was a long way from shore on the 3rd finger pier from the walkway. No one at the marina had ever had a rat on board. I was the first. It entered through a clamshell vent on the stern. In one week, it chewed the corners off two cushions and the insulation from a few wires. The scary thing though was the hole I found in the drain hose from the sink in the head. The hole was a half-inch above the water line and the seacock was open. As the boat rocked, a little bit of water would dribble in. I had to use a lot of WD40 but I got both seacocks limbered up enough to use them. Since that time, I have always closed the seacocks and I always insert hardware cloth screens into any openings over a half inch in diameter. S/V Anodyne Catalina 36'
In our case, a rat taught me to close the seacocks. Our Cat 25 was a long way from shore on the 3rd finger pier from the walkway. No one at the marina had ever had a rat on board. I was the first. It entered through a clamshell vent on the stern. In one week, it chewed the corners off two cushions and the insulation from a few wires. The scary thing though was the hole I found in the drain hose from the sink in the head. The hole was a half-inch above the water line and the seacock was open. As the boat rocked, a little bit of water would dribble in. I had to use a lot of WD40 but I got both seacocks limbered up enough to use them. Since that time, I have always closed the seacocks and I always insert hardware cloth screens into any openings over a half inch in diameter. S/V Anodyne Catalina 36'
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Dwight Miller
Open Thru-hull Sank the boat
All of these responses are very interesting, and I get a lot of good information from all of you fellow Catalina owners, so I'll share my own opiion here. We have about a hundred boats (all sailboats) in our marina. I don't know of anyone in our marina who purposely leaves his thru hulls open if he isn't on the boat. The electricity usage at our marina is individually metered for each boat, and that might be a factor, but I think the real reason that many of the boat owners in our marina saw a 35' Dufour go to the bottom (65 ft down) because the air conditioner coil ruptured and no one was on the boat at the time. By the time others in the marina realized there was a problem, it was to late to keep the boat afloat. Those of us who didn't actually see it sink, know about it in detail from those who did. In this case, the rupture was due to freezing temperatures, but a failed clamp, broken hose, faulty AC unit, etc., etc., etc., could just as easily have done the same thing. I'm sure the expense of sending divers down to install a bladder, raise the boat and repair the damage done by the sinking was not small. In addition, the boat then became known as "you know, the boat that sank". This little bit of common knowledge made it very difficult for the owner to sell the boat when he later wanted to. My advice is CLOSE YOUR THRU-HULLS WHEN YOU AREN'T ON THE BOAT. I always do. The odds of this happening or that happening won't be much comfort to you after your boat is on the bottom. It's only a little trouble for a lot of peace of mind.
All of these responses are very interesting, and I get a lot of good information from all of you fellow Catalina owners, so I'll share my own opiion here. We have about a hundred boats (all sailboats) in our marina. I don't know of anyone in our marina who purposely leaves his thru hulls open if he isn't on the boat. The electricity usage at our marina is individually metered for each boat, and that might be a factor, but I think the real reason that many of the boat owners in our marina saw a 35' Dufour go to the bottom (65 ft down) because the air conditioner coil ruptured and no one was on the boat at the time. By the time others in the marina realized there was a problem, it was to late to keep the boat afloat. Those of us who didn't actually see it sink, know about it in detail from those who did. In this case, the rupture was due to freezing temperatures, but a failed clamp, broken hose, faulty AC unit, etc., etc., etc., could just as easily have done the same thing. I'm sure the expense of sending divers down to install a bladder, raise the boat and repair the damage done by the sinking was not small. In addition, the boat then became known as "you know, the boat that sank". This little bit of common knowledge made it very difficult for the owner to sell the boat when he later wanted to. My advice is CLOSE YOUR THRU-HULLS WHEN YOU AREN'T ON THE BOAT. I always do. The odds of this happening or that happening won't be much comfort to you after your boat is on the bottom. It's only a little trouble for a lot of peace of mind.
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Brad McEachern
Always do it.
I always close the thru hulls on my boat. THat is when ever I am not on the boat. This common sense. If you have a problem with a clamp your boat could sink. If I am anchored out and go ashore for the day, I shut them. Everytime I shut my engine down I also shut the thru hull. One time when I first got the boat, I did not close the engine thru hull and sea water came out the muffler for the engine. All the ofshore sailors at my dock close them up when not on board.......
I always close the thru hulls on my boat. THat is when ever I am not on the boat. This common sense. If you have a problem with a clamp your boat could sink. If I am anchored out and go ashore for the day, I shut them. Everytime I shut my engine down I also shut the thru hull. One time when I first got the boat, I did not close the engine thru hull and sea water came out the muffler for the engine. All the ofshore sailors at my dock close them up when not on board.......
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Tom
"I did not close the engine thruhull and sea water
came out the muffler for the engine" ?!? Why would that happen? Sounds like a design flaw or serious defect. I don't disagree that the safest, belts and suspenders, way of ensuring the boats doesn't sink at the dock is to close the thru hulls. BTW, the only time I DID have a 10 inches of water on my salon floor after leaving my old boat for weeks was not from a thru-hull but rather from an excessively weeping packing-gland. If was *really* easy to close all my sea cocks I would do it all the time, but for a day or 2 or a week or so, I don't....I guess its taking a chance, but some boats are a bigger risk than others. It all depends on what is connected at the end of that thru-hull . e.g. a well maintained new boat with a double clamped reinforced hose going straight up to a sink drain, or an older boat in disrepair with cracked, worn and brittle hoses snaking up and down below the water line chaffing along a rough surface and not double clamped.....some risks are bigger than others.
came out the muffler for the engine" ?!? Why would that happen? Sounds like a design flaw or serious defect. I don't disagree that the safest, belts and suspenders, way of ensuring the boats doesn't sink at the dock is to close the thru hulls. BTW, the only time I DID have a 10 inches of water on my salon floor after leaving my old boat for weeks was not from a thru-hull but rather from an excessively weeping packing-gland. If was *really* easy to close all my sea cocks I would do it all the time, but for a day or 2 or a week or so, I don't....I guess its taking a chance, but some boats are a bigger risk than others. It all depends on what is connected at the end of that thru-hull . e.g. a well maintained new boat with a double clamped reinforced hose going straight up to a sink drain, or an older boat in disrepair with cracked, worn and brittle hoses snaking up and down below the water line chaffing along a rough surface and not double clamped.....some risks are bigger than others.
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