Typhoon keel drain plug

[Ned Crockett]

I notice that several Tys in the boatyards have brass drain plugs in the keels. Mine does not. The location seems to vary but most are aft of center and about a foot up from the bottom of the keel. This indicates that it is possible for water to collect in the keel, but, obviously CD did not consider it important and a drain plug did not come as standard hardware. I do get water in the cockpit lockers when we have heavy rains and when I wash down the cockpit, but have not investigated to see if it gathers in the keel. Do any Ty owners out there have information/experiences with this?

Ned

[Jeff D]

Ned,

I have a typhoon daysailer which has a bronze drain connected to the sump. The plug is removed during winter storage to prevent ice formation in the sump. I believe that this was factory installed.

Jeff

[Ned Crockett]

Thanks Jeff for your reply. I should have indicated that my Ty is a Weekender and the Tys I have seen in the boatyards with keel drain plugs are Weekenders. The Weekender's cockpit is self bailing and does not need the sump pump, so I was curious about the drain plugs in the keel.

Ned

[sharkbait]

There is no drain plug in my 1973 Weekender.

[Ned Crockett]

I guess the questions are: since there are drain plugs installed in some Ty Weekenders and not others what is their function and are they really necessary? Since they did not come as standard fittings, does water collect in the keel and need to be drained when stored?

Ned

[Jim Davis]

Ned

There is no correct answer. Each owner has his opinion on this. If you walk through a yard you will see some with and more without. Also some skippers will remove the sea water intake hose and leave the seacock open as a drain. If the boat is like the Ty Daysailor, probably not a bad idea to have one. If rain water or snow melt does get into the hull in larger amounts to where the floors go under water, a drain plug would be wise. My personal approach has been to cover the boat with tarps, check from time to time and not worry about it.

I did buy one boat that I wish had a drain. Water was over the cabin sole and a plug (removed intake) would have prevented it. However this boat was on the hard for three years without being checked.

[drossbach]

This Spring I noticed a crack at the bottom of my keel. On further examination, it appears that water got into the bilge and flowed down into the keel and froze causing the crack. The frozen water also may have created a space between the lead and the outer fiberglass. drain plug would have allowed this to drain rather than cause the damage. To repair, I had to drill several holes in the keel. low out the water, then fill the space with foam and then repair all the holes and cracks.

Doug

[Dick Villamil]

I think the really old Typhoon weekenders actually needed the drain plug since they did not have self-bailing cockpits. The 1976 Ty I restored had been on the hard and uncared for probably for 3 years - it got water between the keel lead and fiberglass and separated it as well as causing many cracks in the hull. I repaired it using alcohol and acetone with air blown into one of two holes I drilled into the hull. Then I filled with a lot of resin and decided not to install a drain plug - so far so good - just check the bilge occasionally - so far no water.