WATER!!

Marcdohc

So my 300 was leaking oil from the starboard engine. It turned out to be the front seal on the timing chain cover. They were able to change it without removing the engine, Thank God.
Since the repair WATER!! has been in my bilge, about 5" under the engines every day.  I brought the boat back to the marina and the say its leaking in on the port side rear up under the water heater and water tank where the trim tab mounts to the boat. I swam under and all the screws were tight and every thing felt normal. I also checked the swim platform support arm and that seamed normal too. They say its not the through hull fittings. Any ideas? Im baffled.

Black_Diamond

I'd take a look at your raw water pump hoses. 

Marcdohc

Raw water hoses are fine, The water is dripping from the rear corner way to the side of the boat. under the shelf the hotwater heater and freshwater tank sits. The boat leaks weather its running or not. I dont think the water heater would flow that much water in the boat without running. I think it would have to be an internal leak in the hot water heater because the hoses are fine. Do they ever leak internally? and if so, could it put 5" of water in the bilge?

Black_Diamond

So much for my easy idea!  Is the water clean or sea water?  If clean it could be your potable water tank or line(s) is leaking. Do you leave your water pump on or city water connection on when at the dock?  

Marcdohc

Its salt. the boat has 4" to 5" daily. No hoses connected. Its leaking salt water.

TonyWalker

4 to 5 inches per day?  You should be able to see water coming in from somewhere.

Black_Diamond

That's a lot of seawater coming in. 
Thru hulls, leaking a/c raw water, toilet raw water,  out drive bellows, gimble pin...or you got hull damage somewhere. 

MarkB

If you can't see the after coming in from a high point like the bellows or through hull connection, pull the boat out of the water and see where that 4 to 5" comes out of. 

Michael T

Marc, I know you are aware that you need to get this fixed fast. 4 to 5 inches a day is way too much and if it's a perforated bellows or through hull and it gives way your boat will be sitting on the bottom. If it is some sort of hull damage or leakage around a through hull you need to get it dried-out and repaired before you suffer expensive hull delamination. I hope it is something small and easy to fix but if you can't find it with a thorough search (in one day) I agree with Mark B. that you should pull the boat. MT

Cableguy Greg

Can you get us a picture of where the leak is coming from?

Michael T

Steve,  if it was the hot water heater or the fresh water tank I would not be too concerned. As Marc has said, he can't find the source of leak in all of the "normal" places therefore, I suspect something more sinister and potetionally dangerous and damaging. A haul-out may be his best '"cheap" insurance? MT

TikiHut2

As a former electrician doing service calls I used to tell people who didn't have a sense of urgency with wiring issues to "just be sure to keep fresh batteries in your smoke detectors and you'll probably be fine". 

It's not too far from what those bilge pumps are being asked to do with all that water EVERY day. Bilge pumps are designed for a duty cycle that is far less than that kind of DAILY volume. My guess is a bellows leak. It should be fine unless the bilge pump has ANY type of glitch....... My .02c,  pull the boat. That's serious volume.

Good luck, Mike

Dream_Inn

I'd think up in Cape Cod that you are close to winterization anyway, so pulling it immediately would be good. I'd have my head in there searching night and day until it was found, period.  You can wipe the entire bilge area and put a dry powder in to see where it is coming.  As others have said, this is serious and can cause many other problems quickly.  Usually this amount of water comes from the bellow area or transom plates.

Marcdohc

Great imput and concern, Thanks. The waters coming in from under the shelf that the hot water heater and freshwater tank is sitting on on the portside. Right near the transom. I looked forward of that section and it was dry. The so called "pros" at the marina say its the trim tab. The boats getting looked at Fri and Sun to be purchased, $45,900 and Hauled out on Mon. Sure would be great if the next guy had to worry about it.

Dream_Inn

Maybe it's the hardware holding the tabs.

Marcdohc

Red skies comes out tomorrow, stay tuned...

halifax212

My boat is dry with the drive down but if I put it in trailer position seawater starts to trickle in. New rubber is needed somewhere. Possibly your situation?

Lifes Good

halifax212... Sounds like your bellow has been compromise which is BAD.  You'll  need new Gimbal bearing and most likely new u joints too due to water corrosion.  If the issue has been going on a long time then the upper drive could get water intrusion.  Then really bad.  Don't ignore this issue.

halifax212

Wow, thanks for that LG, I am in storage now but will have the drive pulled in the Spring. I first noticed it 2 seasons ago and since then I always leave it down when operating. Will start saving my pocket change now.

Marcdohc

So I pulled the boat yesterday and got a good look at everything. All looked as it should with no evidence of an impact. But with glasses on and a flashlight it looked like a 1/16th to 1/8th inch hole to the left of the port side trim tab right up against the metal mount. Well the plug went back in the boat as well as my garden hose. After 45 minutes or so she started dripping. Right at that hole or at least to the left of the tab. So Im very relieved, at least I now know where the leak is. Im a little apprehensive of doing the repair myself. Im much more comfortable above the waterline. Experts, do you think this is do it yourself stuff or should I hire it out?

Michael T

You certainly can do it yourself. however no matter who does the repair I would do two things: have a friend or slip mate who knows boat hulls take a look at it and give advice (or post some pictures here) and you must make sure the hull material has thoroughly dried before closing the hole. This may require a moisture meter. A failure to do so could lead to hull rot. If you dry it thorouighly you can do the repair yourself. MT

Dream_Inn

I'd let it sit out of the water for the winter and then use something like 5200 to seal it up.  Good find!

Marcdohc

Ok I'll remove the tab now and repair it next spring. Thanks!

MarkB

Yeah, give it time to dry.  But shouldn't he be heating it up now? I don't think I would want a wet transom to freeze over.  That could cause even more cracking.

Michael T

I agree with Mark, if that area is wet or even very damp I'd try to VERY gently dry it the best I could. If it was wet and froze it probably would de-laminate. MT

Dream_Inn

You guys are right, but I'd think at least during daylight hours right now it would dry out.  We are getting mid 60s and sun here, so I'd think a little further up would be at least in the 50's?  but yes, a little heat would be good, just be careful cause unattended heating can cause things such as fire.

rasbury

I'm not sure I'm following this, where did this hole come from? Can he use a hair dryer so it would force heat and air thru the hole??

Black_Diamond

I bet someone misdrilled a hole and the 'repair' failed. I'd have that area checked with a moisture meter to make sure you don't have a hidden problem. 

Michael T

I'd sonsider a moisture meter - unless you can see it visually and if it was still eve damp when the weather turned I'd ue a hair dryer (NOT a heat gun) and as DI said be careful with it. Not only becauise of fire but also because prolonged use of a hair dryer could damage the hull. My buddies and I have used hair dryers (more times that we would have liked) in the past. We would stop for awhile as soon as the material was uncomfortable to touch. Don't wait until it is too hot to touch as the hull/gelcoat could be damaged  by that time. Like BD said this is probably a misdrilled hole that can be fixed easily. Please don't be alarmed - check HOW wet it is and then either let it air dry or use a hair dryer carefully. If you are sure you it is thoroughly dried you can seal it. If you're not really sure, cover it up for the winter and let the last bit of drying happen over the winter and fix it in the spring. MT

Lifes Good

Agree with Dream Inn.  Dry out and 3m 5200 quick dry.  It will last the life time of the boat if applied correcly.  A tube cost $10 and a little elbow grease.

Marcdohc

Ok, Thanks