Hull water

L

Larry Patrick

New member
Commented on this end of summer. The last month boat was at dock,we had to pump water out from lowest point ,under 4inch stern screw cap about three times. Im guessing rain water somehow got in there before stern pump could get it. So I took it to recommened guy from Johnsons marina. Hoped it could be solved before sitting at Lake Erie next season. The design confuses me ,why wouldn't rear drain area where stern pump is located be moulded to lowest point where bottom area where you unscrew that 4inch screw cap is. Also drain plug isn't at lowest level ,its even with the recessed area where rear pump is. I think drain plug should have been located at lowest point,so when trailering all water would come out. Also if that rear stern pump was lower it could get rid of all hull water. When they moulded the hull ,why would there be that difference in height between rear stern pump area and inside hull area under 4inch screw out? So now water can be trapped in that area like its own compartment. I wanted to get a pump installed in area where you remove 4 inch screw cap. Guy talked me into letting him drill holes to allow that trapped water to hopefully seap into rear pump area. He drilled 4 -3/8 holes at lowest point in recessed area where pump is. I get boat home pour 15 gal thru 4 inch hole to see if it would make it to stern pump,a little trickle thru those holes,but that was with it on trailer and sitting higher in bow .Cranked trailer down to level of it sitting in water no seepage to pump. So his idea was a bust,I filled holes in he drilled,wish he would have listened and put a pump in lower area,he said it was to hard? He resealed any bolts,such as trim tabs,where water may have intruded,he found a cracked bolt and replaced it. So next season will leave the full canvas up all season to hopefully shed water before it can get on deck. Maybee next season find someone that will install a pump in that lowest point under cap. Hearing 15 gallon of water sloshing in hull was annoying ,pumping it 3 times. Any suggestions,sorry long post ,but need to explain it thanks.
 
Sorry to hear your issues. Unfortunately your '08 Venture is not the first to have this issue. Quite a few owners have put that plate in to address water issues. It wasn't a stock item. Your guy didn't solve anything with the drilled holes. The floor (cockpit) is bonded to the hull at each end. Those holes need filling to keep water out behind the floor and keep it in the bilge sump. The cause of water in the screw plate area may be the hull deck joint or the thru hulls for Wallace or the installation of the washdown thru hull or combination. Some owners just mop up that area once in a while
Your guy tried to create limber holes but he can't reach thru the floor bond. Don't let him! Try to stem the inflow to that compartment ,if you have a wash down pump I'd suspect the thru hull install as it was badly done on other '08 Ventures. See Pacific Wanderer album for his solutions best of luck
George
 
On most of the C Dory line, the "lowest place" in the bilge is by the aft bulkhead on the cabin--with the boat sitting level in the water. This is why the 25 and many of the 22's have a "step" just inside the bulkhead door, and there is a hole in the bulkhead, to allow water trapped under the floor boards to come to this sump. Your mechanic is correct, it is very difficult to put a pump, and then thread discharge pipe so it dumps overboard.

If it is a real major issue--then you can consider a second bilge pump, either inside or outside the cabin door. Inside it can run the drain and wiring up under the galley sink. Although the 22 and 23 are slightly different, this solution should work for both.
 
Welcome to the venture 23 . Many of us have had the same problem .I put in 4in deck plates between the fuel tanks and then one right before going into the v-berth . I also put in a large hatch under the v-berth so I can access all these points . usually pump it out a few times a year .I did have water coming in from anchor locker which I sealed with 5200 and no more leaks coming in there .Also one needs to seal the bond between the cabin and cockpit area this can and will leak and then you have water between hulls My hull can fill up from front to back so there must be limber holes between cockpit and cabin and v-berth I keep my boat in the water for 10 months a year so condensation does happen and fills these void with water . I've stayed on the boat during a rain storm and no water comes in anywhere that i can tell
 
Larry,
I think the issue is from rainwater. My suspicion's are that the problem could be from one or all of the following. The rub rail joint that covers the hull and deck joint the water fill not being properly sealed or the bow railing deck connections not being properly bedded. I installed the three inspection ports and we kept them open when not using the boat. We never saw 15 gallons of water. We stuffed towels in the inspection ports to dry up any accumulated water. We did use one of the three covers always. The camper back, the slanted cockpit cover, or the full winter cover. The boat was always plugged into shore power and we kept a small heater on low to ward off any chances of mildew etc. The water you are seeing I believe is in between the foam core and the deck it's self. The bilge just for accumulated deck water and is not designed to remove water that is trapped in between the foam core and the deck portion of the boat. Cutting in a lower bilge area would be ill advised in my opinion. I would look to the areas were there is any possibility of rain water getting in at the three areas mentioned above to keep the water from getting in in the first place.
D.D.
 
Thanks for replys, I had mechanic reseal livewell hatch. Today I took the Dri deck out and washed the stern floor area. I was looking at caulking seam that meets cabin ,looks like it is time to reseal that . What got my attention back when boat was in slip a few months ago was when we moved around stern could hear water sloshing under floor.Looked under screw cap then I stuck raw water wash down in hole,then filled buckets at outside spigot and dumped overboard next time hooked hose up., The water was about 3/4 filled under screw cap,so it took a while to drain it . Whats strange is only noticed this in last 6 weeks of boat in water. From spring until it got hot we had full canvas up,so im guessing it shed rain water. During the hot months didn't have the canvas up ,just the top. Only on boat on weekends made it hard to know how much rain occurred ect. When I removed the other 2 caps water wasn't to cabin pump. Its like a mystery I want to solve,will try everyones suggestions Thanks. With boat sitting in slip at Lake Erie this season,5 hrs away want to resolve it. During a rain storm near end of season watched quite a bit of water finding its way running down where plug in is located ,and other spots with just roof canvas ,so covered plug in area with plastic, That's when I decided even if its hot leave full canvas on, when leaving boat in slip.
 
There was a Puget Sound area owner of a 26' Venture ( I think it was Rose Budd). Same problem, the water then migrates up the rear bulkhead because the bottom edge was left raw. I believe he spent upwards of $10,000 dollars for the repairs. I would suggest, a dry bilge area should be sought. I looked at this boat while the floor was cut out, and the repairs were in progress. It scared me away.
alan
 
On the Tomcat there is considerable condensation that can gather in the hull. This can happen on either dry land or in the water. On dry land, I have a heater in the cabin but it doesn't heat well below the deck. In the water, the hull is much cooler than the cabin as it's in contact with water. Warm air exchanges with the area below deck and carries it's moisture with it. When that hit's the colder hull, it condenses. Perhaps the same is happening with the Ventures.
 
There is a small void between the sump and the hull in the 23 Venture but I believe this is only in the transom area. Between the cockpit floor and the hull is spray foam. Here's a picture of the sump area from when I replaced my transducer (looking aft):

20140802_164258903_iOS.sized.jpg

What you see is an outer FRP layer about .25" then a 1.25" layer of balsa then the inner layer of FRP then a void that's about .5" then the sump layer of FRP (hope that makes sense).

On my boat (a 2007) there is a 1" hole in the rear cabin bulkhead down near the floor that can only be seen if you remove the refrigerator. What I see is solid dry spray foam material right up against the bulkhead (thank you Poseidon). If you don't have this hole you might consider adding it.
 
Recaulked joints that looked weather beaten and cracked where floor meets cabin today. Guess its a venture thing,will hit all the possible trouble makers one at a time,next season may have someone pull rails and other suggestios that were made. Sorry to hear others have similar problems but now I know what is going on with it thanks.
 
Back
Top