Hi,
Is heavy rain an explaination for water in the bilge? If so how does it get there? I'm not talking about a lot. Not enough enough to trigger the bilge pump but definity more than when I leave the boat.
I currently have no water in the holding tanks, I use a port-a-pottie for a head, my stuffing box use just repacked and when not motoring there is no drip and I have checked all of my sea-cocks for leaks.
Thanks,
rich
cd 36
Water in the bilge
Moderator: Jim Walsh
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Larry DeMers
Re: Water in the bilge
Rich,
I doubt it..but it could be <I know..what an unambiguous answer, heh?> Rain could be coming in through the chain hawse pipe possibly, or other weather fittings if you are so equipped. Otherwise, it could be the rudder shaft log or the prop shaft log leaking, perhaps your fresh water system leaks a bit into the bilge, or one of the scupper hoses is not installed correctly or securely, draining some of the cockpit water into the bilge.
What I have done a couple times now, to find leaks in the bilge as well as in the stoprage area behind a settee, was to take individual sheets of paper toweling or toilet paper, and after making sure that the surface you are interested in monitoring is dry, place the paper toweling or TP flat down on the likely surfaces that the water might be coming in on. Leave them there all week long, and when you come back, look at them carefully. There will be evidence in the form of water spots or marks where the paper absorbed some water, and caused the papers weave to expand. It works. This will eliminate several directions anyway, and allow you to concentrate on the real direction it is coming in from. Repeat this procedure as often as needed until you have eliminated everything that it could be..then find that it's the damn galley sink fitting leaking water when you drain the sink or something silly like that.
Good Luck,
Larry DeMers
s/v DeLaMer
Cape Dory 30
demers@sgi.com
I doubt it..but it could be <I know..what an unambiguous answer, heh?> Rain could be coming in through the chain hawse pipe possibly, or other weather fittings if you are so equipped. Otherwise, it could be the rudder shaft log or the prop shaft log leaking, perhaps your fresh water system leaks a bit into the bilge, or one of the scupper hoses is not installed correctly or securely, draining some of the cockpit water into the bilge.
What I have done a couple times now, to find leaks in the bilge as well as in the stoprage area behind a settee, was to take individual sheets of paper toweling or toilet paper, and after making sure that the surface you are interested in monitoring is dry, place the paper toweling or TP flat down on the likely surfaces that the water might be coming in on. Leave them there all week long, and when you come back, look at them carefully. There will be evidence in the form of water spots or marks where the paper absorbed some water, and caused the papers weave to expand. It works. This will eliminate several directions anyway, and allow you to concentrate on the real direction it is coming in from. Repeat this procedure as often as needed until you have eliminated everything that it could be..then find that it's the damn galley sink fitting leaking water when you drain the sink or something silly like that.
Good Luck,
Larry DeMers
s/v DeLaMer
Cape Dory 30
Richard Formica wrote: Hi,
Is heavy rain an explaination for water in the bilge? If so how does it get there? I'm not talking about a lot. Not enough enough to trigger the bilge pump but definity more than when I leave the boat.
I currently have no water in the holding tanks, I use a port-a-pottie for a head, my stuffing box use just repacked and when not motoring there is no drip and I have checked all of my sea-cocks for leaks.
Thanks,
rich
cd 36
demers@sgi.com
-
Al Levesque
Re: Water in the bilge
Do you vent your engine? We use a cowl vent on the stern deck for incoming air and I always suspected that was a source of bilge water, though I have never verified it.Richard Formica wrote: Hi,
Is heavy rain an explaination for water in the bilge? If so how does it get there?
Al
albertlevesque@cove.com
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jim
Re: Water in the bilge
Had the same problem in a 25D going down the Jersey coast in lots of rain. It was fresh water by taste and oddly stopped when the rain quit. I finally traced it to a void between the anchor locker and hull where the locker drain passes to the outside. Filled in the void with epoxy paste and all is well. Try running a hose into the anchor locker as I did - and watch the water run into the bilge. Just a thought.
james.jamieson@yale.edu
james.jamieson@yale.edu
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Richard Feffer
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Russ Campbell
Re: Water in the bilge
Rich, I have suspected rain behind the water in my bilge for a while now. It does come in the cowlings but not much. One thing I just did that slowed the amount down considerably was to caulk around the wood piece under the tiller. Rain water gets in here quite readily so I would check your pedestal if you have wheel steering. Good luck
Russ
camroll@together.net
Russ
Richard Formica wrote: Hi,
Is heavy rain an explaination for water in the bilge? If so how does it get there? I'm not talking about a lot. Not enough enough to trigger the bilge pump but definity more than when I leave the boat.
I currently have no water in the holding tanks, I use a port-a-pottie for a head, my stuffing box use just repacked and when not motoring there is no drip and I have checked all of my sea-cocks for leaks.
Thanks,
rich
cd 36
camroll@together.net
-
Mike Everett
Re: Water in the bilge
Gosh, this is turning into an encyclopaedia entry on "Leaks, Cape Dory."
My contribution is stanchion bases. Sometimes we get fresh water dribbling down (or behind) the ceiling from a loose base.
everett@megalink.net
My contribution is stanchion bases. Sometimes we get fresh water dribbling down (or behind) the ceiling from a loose base.
everett@megalink.net
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fong
Re: Water in the bilge
had the same problem until I put expoxy on where the rudder shaft
comes through the cockpit.
Turns out that is not epoxied. Just caulked.
pin
archie_spore@yahoo.com
comes through the cockpit.
Turns out that is not epoxied. Just caulked.
pin
Richard Formica wrote: Hi,
Is heavy rain an explaination for water in the bilge? If so how does it get there? I'm not talking about a lot. Not enough enough to trigger the bilge pump but definity more than when I leave the boat.
I currently have no water in the holding tanks, I use a port-a-pottie for a head, my stuffing box use just repacked and when not motoring there is no drip and I have checked all of my sea-cocks for leaks.
Thanks,
rich
cd 36
archie_spore@yahoo.com
-
Matt Cawthorne
Re: Water in the bilge
Rich,
The Patricia Louise is a CD 36 with a Perkins 4-108 that leaks oil. I had similar problems for several years. The sump under the engine will eventually fill up with water and spills into the main portion of the bilge when the boat rolls. I had no less than 5 separate sources of the water. Here is what I found.
1: The stuffing box. You walk a very fine line with the stuffing box. Tighten it too much and you wear the shaft very quickly, wear out the packing quickly and then will be unable to seal the stuffing box well.
Too loose and you have the obvious leak. The way I handle that is to use the GoreTex packing that the navy uses. The first launching after the packing is replaced I tighten the nut just as soon as the boat goes in the water, but only tight enough to slow the stream to a drip. After running the engine I finish tightening the nut in very small increments. The old school of stuffing box adjustment to leave it loose enough to drip once in a while while the prop is turning. My experience is that it doesn't need to be so loose as to drip when the prop isn't turning. I found that if you are careful you can tighten it enough that you will not get water in while the engine is running either. Remember use TINY little increments when tightening. Spartan marine makes a set of wrenches that will fit your stuffing box. My shaft seems to be in good shape after 18 years (6 1/2 years of me owning it). If you use flax stuffing, launch the boat but do not tighten the stuffing for 24 hours. Usually the stuffing box will not have to be tightened much at that point, sometimes not at all. Check for dripping every month or so. Just climb in behind the engine with a flash light and watch where the shaft exits the stuffing box. Don't blink.
Check to make sure that the rubber hose behind the stuffing box is double clamped and in good shape.
All of the remaining leaks I found by cleaning out the lazerette and cockpit lockers, climbing in during a heavy rain storm and watching for drips. You should do the same because there are many possible
sources of rain water and salt water from the top of the boat.
2: The turning blocks at the back of the cockpit that turn the jib sheets sit on a wooden block on the CD36. Water collects behind them and runs through a little channel cut under the block where it meets
the toe rail. On the Patricia Louise they mis-drilled the holes. When they discovered the problem they re-drilled the holes and bolted the blocks in place without filling the old holes. The little channel under the block just directed the water into the lazerette. I had to remove the wooden block (it is attached to the deck and to the toe rail) fill the holes, re-seal mount the blocks and re-seal the bolts.
3: Where the pumpout fitting in the cockpit protrudes through the deck the seal was bad. I had to remove the fitting, spoil away some of the damp core, dry the remaining core, fill the missing material with epoxy and filler, and finally re-mount the fitting in a poly-sulfide bedding. Be sure to mask if you use poly sulfide or you will have an endless mess.
4: Same as 3: but around the deck plate for the emergency tiller.
5: The wooden frame under the cockpit locker was poorly bedded. It leaked water in when it rained. I
had to remove the frame, clean everything, varnish the frame, and re-bed/ re-mount it.
With all of that done the sump under the engine collects only about 1 cup of water in a season. I mop it up with a sponge. Now if I could only stop that oil leak........
Matt
mcawthor@bellatlantic.net
The Patricia Louise is a CD 36 with a Perkins 4-108 that leaks oil. I had similar problems for several years. The sump under the engine will eventually fill up with water and spills into the main portion of the bilge when the boat rolls. I had no less than 5 separate sources of the water. Here is what I found.
1: The stuffing box. You walk a very fine line with the stuffing box. Tighten it too much and you wear the shaft very quickly, wear out the packing quickly and then will be unable to seal the stuffing box well.
Too loose and you have the obvious leak. The way I handle that is to use the GoreTex packing that the navy uses. The first launching after the packing is replaced I tighten the nut just as soon as the boat goes in the water, but only tight enough to slow the stream to a drip. After running the engine I finish tightening the nut in very small increments. The old school of stuffing box adjustment to leave it loose enough to drip once in a while while the prop is turning. My experience is that it doesn't need to be so loose as to drip when the prop isn't turning. I found that if you are careful you can tighten it enough that you will not get water in while the engine is running either. Remember use TINY little increments when tightening. Spartan marine makes a set of wrenches that will fit your stuffing box. My shaft seems to be in good shape after 18 years (6 1/2 years of me owning it). If you use flax stuffing, launch the boat but do not tighten the stuffing for 24 hours. Usually the stuffing box will not have to be tightened much at that point, sometimes not at all. Check for dripping every month or so. Just climb in behind the engine with a flash light and watch where the shaft exits the stuffing box. Don't blink.
Check to make sure that the rubber hose behind the stuffing box is double clamped and in good shape.
All of the remaining leaks I found by cleaning out the lazerette and cockpit lockers, climbing in during a heavy rain storm and watching for drips. You should do the same because there are many possible
sources of rain water and salt water from the top of the boat.
2: The turning blocks at the back of the cockpit that turn the jib sheets sit on a wooden block on the CD36. Water collects behind them and runs through a little channel cut under the block where it meets
the toe rail. On the Patricia Louise they mis-drilled the holes. When they discovered the problem they re-drilled the holes and bolted the blocks in place without filling the old holes. The little channel under the block just directed the water into the lazerette. I had to remove the wooden block (it is attached to the deck and to the toe rail) fill the holes, re-seal mount the blocks and re-seal the bolts.
3: Where the pumpout fitting in the cockpit protrudes through the deck the seal was bad. I had to remove the fitting, spoil away some of the damp core, dry the remaining core, fill the missing material with epoxy and filler, and finally re-mount the fitting in a poly-sulfide bedding. Be sure to mask if you use poly sulfide or you will have an endless mess.
4: Same as 3: but around the deck plate for the emergency tiller.
5: The wooden frame under the cockpit locker was poorly bedded. It leaked water in when it rained. I
had to remove the frame, clean everything, varnish the frame, and re-bed/ re-mount it.
With all of that done the sump under the engine collects only about 1 cup of water in a season. I mop it up with a sponge. Now if I could only stop that oil leak........
Matt
mcawthor@bellatlantic.net