Think I discovered something today! tada!! The most aft shallow bilge area under the cabin sole. (where the small keel bolts are and the rope tunnel to the cockpit drain goes.) It has too small holes in the side of what appears to be structural "rib" between it and the middle bilge with the full size keel bolts. water seeps from those 2 little holes. We had over an 1" of rain the other nite and the cockpit bilge had a few gallons of water in there. I'm assuming the rope tunnel to the swing keel is leaking from the cockpit bilge to the keel and into the structure. so.. am I correct? Right now the boat is not tilted aft. when I had the boat in the water a few weeks I assumed the keel bolts were leaking. now it's on the dry. and the water is there again. unless... this just occurred to me the hull has water from the deck leaking around the rub rail, stanchions etc? really really love this forum! thanks in advance everyone! Denise
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Denise, check the
cockpit drain by getting into the cockpit locker (you can do it!!) and eyeballing the hose. Mine cracked before I bought it and the rain all leaked into the bilge instead of draining out through the transom. The water rotted out the bulkhead behind the electric panel and the battery and water tank box. If that's OK, then check all around for deck leaks.
cockpit drain by getting into the cockpit locker (you can do it!!) and eyeballing the hose. Mine cracked before I bought it and the rain all leaked into the bilge instead of draining out through the transom. The water rotted out the bulkhead behind the electric panel and the battery and water tank box. If that's OK, then check all around for deck leaks.
My H23 leaks
Hi Denise, since you have one of the centerboard versions, you might have leaks in addition to all the typical H23 leaks. On ours, the worst leak was the hose to the anchor locker thru hull. Next was the rub rail which I stopped with a bead of silicone (did not want to tackle a full rub rail replacement, so I'll probably have to "refresh" my caulking job). I still get a drip through the port side of the companionway slider when the wind blows just right. The worst was the rub rail, though. Bilge would be dry, it would rain, bilge collects water even though I could not see where it came from. One day I visited right after a rainstorm and saw water in the port settee locker. That led me to conclude the path was through the rub rail, down the side, into the locker, into the bilge. By the way, notice how many times I said port? My boat lists maybe 2 or 3 degrees that way, due to placement of the motor and battery. The bath tub ring I saw this fall when we hauled out was conclusive. Anyway, you'll figure it out, stop the leaks and be far happier for it!
Hi Denise, since you have one of the centerboard versions, you might have leaks in addition to all the typical H23 leaks. On ours, the worst leak was the hose to the anchor locker thru hull. Next was the rub rail which I stopped with a bead of silicone (did not want to tackle a full rub rail replacement, so I'll probably have to "refresh" my caulking job). I still get a drip through the port side of the companionway slider when the wind blows just right. The worst was the rub rail, though. Bilge would be dry, it would rain, bilge collects water even though I could not see where it came from. One day I visited right after a rainstorm and saw water in the port settee locker. That led me to conclude the path was through the rub rail, down the side, into the locker, into the bilge. By the way, notice how many times I said port? My boat lists maybe 2 or 3 degrees that way, due to placement of the motor and battery. The bath tub ring I saw this fall when we hauled out was conclusive. Anyway, you'll figure it out, stop the leaks and be far happier for it!
Water Leaks
Hi Denise, Another spot to look for leaks in addition to what is already mentioned is the companionway hatch. There is a strip of wood on the upper side and ours was leaking there. The water would run forward and leak in here. We discovered this the first night we spent the night when it was raining. This was about 2:00A.M. We also had a couple of small leaks on some deck hardware. We pulled those and sealed them and now our bilge is dry. Rob
Hi Denise, Another spot to look for leaks in addition to what is already mentioned is the companionway hatch. There is a strip of wood on the upper side and ours was leaking there. The water would run forward and leak in here. We discovered this the first night we spent the night when it was raining. This was about 2:00A.M. We also had a couple of small leaks on some deck hardware. We pulled those and sealed them and now our bilge is dry. Rob
Ditto on the cockpit drain hose
I have the exact same problem, Denise. For now, my 23 is on the hard and tilts back about 2 degrees. The bilge under the lazarette gets 4-6 inches after every rainstorm and I'm sure it has to be leaking from the cockpit drain. For now, I wired up a bilge pump and run it dry once a week. I plan to crawl down and replace the drain hose after a food coloring test in the cockpit (food coloring in drain area, NOT cockpit sole!) If the water stays clear I'l know it's not the drain hose. Thanks for the other suggestions folks!
I have the exact same problem, Denise. For now, my 23 is on the hard and tilts back about 2 degrees. The bilge under the lazarette gets 4-6 inches after every rainstorm and I'm sure it has to be leaking from the cockpit drain. For now, I wired up a bilge pump and run it dry once a week. I plan to crawl down and replace the drain hose after a food coloring test in the cockpit (food coloring in drain area, NOT cockpit sole!) If the water stays clear I'l know it's not the drain hose. Thanks for the other suggestions folks!
yes but...
the cockpit bilge I've been into. found the hose to the transom drain.. had to remove the old motor mount. But.. I think everyone missed what I was asking. in the cabin floor. there are plywood panels over the shallow bilges they are separated by a rib like structure that has 2 weep holes. I know I can stop the cockpit bilge water. but i'm still thinking the water is coming down the swing keel rope tube that's part of the hull. Or would it be deck water going down between the deck and cabin floors into the bottom of the hull? oh.. does the rub rail snap in? May remove that next month. thanks so much for all the help!
the cockpit bilge I've been into. found the hose to the transom drain.. had to remove the old motor mount. But.. I think everyone missed what I was asking. in the cabin floor. there are plywood panels over the shallow bilges they are separated by a rib like structure that has 2 weep holes. I know I can stop the cockpit bilge water. but i'm still thinking the water is coming down the swing keel rope tube that's part of the hull. Or would it be deck water going down between the deck and cabin floors into the bottom of the hull? oh.. does the rub rail snap in? May remove that next month. thanks so much for all the help!
Swing Keel H23
The swing keel version of the H23 is fairly rare. First year, maybe part of 2nd at most. I think that is why we are not answering your specific question about the potential for the lifting line to be a leak source. In the archives where H23 leaks are referenced, there is talk about the weep holes you describe. When I was chasing leaks, I attached a thin tube to a shop vac and worked it down into holes I found in the lower parts of the cabin, such as in the settee lockers. I think I got the hose below those keel bolt bilges and found no water. When the boat is in the water, it stays dry, unless it rains. That's why I concluded it was coming in from above. I have not seen references to the swing keel being a leak source, but that might simply be because they are rare. Please put rub rail into an archive search when specifying Hunter 23 as the boat and you will get dozens of hits. Think long and hard before you tear it off. You will most likely need a replacement and will have to remove and rebed very many screws. Try my caulking suggestion first. If you use clear marine silicone, it will be unnoticeable. If it works, you saved yourself a big project. If it doesn't, you're out the cost of the caulk and about 30 minutes of your time.
The swing keel version of the H23 is fairly rare. First year, maybe part of 2nd at most. I think that is why we are not answering your specific question about the potential for the lifting line to be a leak source. In the archives where H23 leaks are referenced, there is talk about the weep holes you describe. When I was chasing leaks, I attached a thin tube to a shop vac and worked it down into holes I found in the lower parts of the cabin, such as in the settee lockers. I think I got the hose below those keel bolt bilges and found no water. When the boat is in the water, it stays dry, unless it rains. That's why I concluded it was coming in from above. I have not seen references to the swing keel being a leak source, but that might simply be because they are rare. Please put rub rail into an archive search when specifying Hunter 23 as the boat and you will get dozens of hits. Think long and hard before you tear it off. You will most likely need a replacement and will have to remove and rebed very many screws. Try my caulking suggestion first. If you use clear marine silicone, it will be unnoticeable. If it works, you saved yourself a big project. If it doesn't, you're out the cost of the caulk and about 30 minutes of your time.
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