Unknown leak in aft

[Jennifer]

I recently purchased a 1989 Hunter 27' and have found we have a leak in the aft; somewhere below the pedestal. I thought it was coming from the deck joint where it was attached below, so I caulked it and I still have the same leak! I am not sure where to look now. My cushions are pratically ruined from the leak thus far and let's not even get into the mold and mildew....yuk! Anyone else have this problem and if so, where exactly was the leak? Mine seems to be come right in the middle of the aft of the boat, but I can't put my finger on it!

 

[Jon]

Pedestal Cables

My 35.5 had a similar problem. It turned out to be where the throtle and shift cables enter the interior of the boat under the pedestal.I fixed it by wrapping the cables in a sheet of rubber to match the hole size, jammed the bundle into the hole to get a tight fit, then secured the end of the rubber sheet with a zip tie. No leaks since.

 

[Michael]

Leak

JenniferWe need more information such as do you have an inboard engine and thus a propeller shaft? Are there ports or seacocks in the aft? Has the cutlass bearing been replaced recently (say last couple of years)? If the boat has a pedistal and wheel steering there shouldn't be any water coming in unless the cables exit the transon to attach to the keel. Is there a crack along the keel joint, particularly at the point if the keel joint? How old is the boat, what model?Would like to help but need more information to help narrow down the posibilities.Fair 'winds, Mike

 

[Michael1974]

Leak

Sorry I meant the cables attach to the rudder if they exit the transon. Usually the cables attach to a mechanizm that attaches to the rudder shaft.

 

[Jon Zaimes]

check these out

A couple of aft leaks we have found on our 1980 Hunter 27:--Stainless muffler had corroded through and leaked (replaced with new fiberglass muffler)--Loose bronze collar on rudder shaft. There are four stainless bolts used to tighten this down. It's in a very difficult spot to see and even more difficult to work on (upside down in stern locker). This only leaked when we were under way -- I finally found the problem by having someone else at the helm and using a flashlight down in the starboard cockpit locker to see the water coming in.-- Loose bimini mounting hardware (dampens aft berth area). Needs to be removed and resealed to fix.---------"Airwaves" sailing out of Cambridge, Md.