Transom drain tube and plug

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Transom drain tube and plug

Postby Nick Braughton » Sat May 07, 2005 3:10 pm

I've just purchased a Daysailer II. It seems to have a lot of water in the bilge, which I'd like to get rid of without using a manual bilge pump all the time. Has anybody installed a transom drain for the bilge to use once the boats out of the water?
Nick Braughton
 
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Location: Rewdood City CA

Yes, I have a drain on my DS II

Postby Roger » Sat May 07, 2005 6:58 pm

Yes, I have a drain on my DS II. (1974)

On some occasions, I can drain as much as 5 gallons out of the bilge after a day of sailing. I think the main areas of concern for leaks are the cb pivot bolt, the cb uphaul line, the seal between the hull and deck joint, the lower gudgeon screw holes, the self draining dePersia bailer, and finally the seal on the bilge drain. I think I have now resealed all of these possible leak locations on mine, so the next dip in the lake will tell.

The good news is that even if the bilge is full of water, it will float near the waterline. (Experience is speaking here.)

Here is a link to the picture of where my drain plug is located and how it is used. Let me know if you have any other questions.

http://groups.msn.com/RogerConrad/shoeb ... hotoID=182
Roger
 
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Location: Ninette Manitoba

leak into the transom

Postby EberbachD » Sat May 07, 2005 10:00 pm

Hi Roger (and group),
Does your bilge drain tube reach and seal to the bilge. Mine is only about an inch long and the bilge is further in than that. This has allowed water from the bilge to enter into the transom resulting in rot of the wood there. I had resin injected last year but I'm installing a new tube plug assembly (threads cracked) and I'm concerned about water still working around the tube. Any ideas how to seal it? Thanks for all of the help.
David
DS II #10445
Grinnell, Iowa
EberbachD
 
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same issue

Postby Roger » Sun May 08, 2005 10:28 am

David,

When I was checking for leaks, the drain plug just happend to be a haphazard guess. I was just dong a final thorough check of all fastenings that went through through to the bilge. I had really thought that my leak was at the cb pivot bolt and uphaul line. Imagine my surprise when I unscrewed the two screws holding on the tube fixture and screw plug, to find that most of the silicone came out with it. When I felt with my finger, in and around the hole, I found the same thing as you, wet wood fibres. I let it dry for a couple of days, and it seemed dry enough to be able to take some new silicone. I used 3M 4000 adhesive sealant. I really gooped up the plug, but as you say, the tube does not go all the way through the transom, thereby exposing the wood within to moisture. I did put enough goop in to seal this to some degree, but I think to be sure, I will pull this fitting again at the end of the season and check the quality of the silicone at the inboard end of the hole.

I guess another option, if moisture is soaking into the wood sandwiched in the transom, is to really dry it out well. I installed a 7" inspection port in the cuddy floor this year in order to examine the front of the cb trunk and the uphaul hole where there is a gap between the liner and the hull. I concieve placing a ceramic heater or fan down into the bilge for a couple of weeks, with a tarp covering the boat, opening up all the inspection ports, and hopefully drying things out, by circulating a lot of air through there. The next step, may be to epoxy the exposed wood, with a latex gloved finger through the removed fixture and resulting hole. When that has all cured, then silicone and reinstall the plug fixture.

I assume from examination of the rest of the boat, that the inside of the transom is fg covered. Evidence: I had to replace the jib track backing nuts last fall. There is a piece of wood laminated in back there into which the original screws went. The wood was rotten, but the fg was ok. A second piece of evidence was a nav light that I installed on the port quarter this spring. I drilled a 3/4 inch hole through the gelcoat, exterior fg, a plywood plate, that again was sandwiched by fg on the inside. (I guess I should seal that exposed wood on the inside surface of the hole as well). From this evidence, I would deduce that the transom drain hole is the same, and that the only exposed wood is where the hole was drilled. Let me know what kind of repair you choose to do, and how it goes.
Roger
 
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Location: Ninette Manitoba

Postby Nick Braughton » Sun May 08, 2005 9:04 pm

So Roger,

I'm still a little confused of the bilge drain. Does the bilge drain tube actually reach all the way into the bilge it self or is it a blind hole with wood behind it. I myself have drilled about 2-1/2" in from the transom and still haven't hit water or the interior of the bilge. what is the approximate length of bilge tube/hole, and are you draining the 5 gallons from the bilge drain or are you hand pumping this amount out. Also thanks for the photo. It was very useful to see the exact location of the drain.

Thanks, Nick
Nick Braughton
 
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Location: Rewdood City CA

Sorry for any confusion Nick,

Postby Roger » Mon May 09, 2005 12:00 am

Let me try to clear it up for you. Firstly I was draining about 5 gal out from the lower rear drain plug, measured into a pail, with the trailer tilted slightly backward after removing from the lake. This was water from the inner hull... the space between the cockpit floor and the outer hull.

The plastic drain tube is only about an inch long, and definately does not go all the way through the tunnel of wood. (as indicated prior, this concerns me). The hole itself is about an inch and a quarter long, (just measered now with my little finger).

I am wondering what you are drilling into if you are already in 2 1/2 inches? I do know that the self bailer is directly ahead of this hole by about a half inch or so, so water must make its way toward the back along the bottom of the inner hull, separate around the self bailer, then out the transom drain hole. You don't want to be drilling into the metal of the self bailer!!! Are you drilling out wood, or fg material, or something else, that may give you a clue about what you are drilling into? What size of pilot hole are your using?

For your reference the centre of my hole is 3/4" up from the bottom of the hull dead centre on the transom.

If you can send a picture, I may be able to help you further.
Roger
 
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Location: Ninette Manitoba

Postby psness » Mon May 09, 2005 9:41 am

Ah, the continuing saga of water in the bilge. Coincidently, over the winter a mouse family took up residence in my boat and one of them chewed through the little strap that keeps the bilge plug from coming the whole way out. So I decided to replace the entire bilge plug and thread tube that goes through the transom as you have described. Last year I siliconed around the old bilge plug fixture thinking that would eliminate one possible source for the leak. Well, just this past Saturday when I unscrewed the plug fixture one of the screws came right out as its hole was too close to the larger tube hole and had broken out. The tube hole into the transom was irregular and much larger than the fixture tube. I am filling the hole to make it more narrow and will also seal the wood through the transom. I think if you are drilling straight ahead you're probably heading straight into the vertical self-bailer tube. I'm hoping my repair to this hole will at least slow down the leaking bilge. We'll see one of the weekends when she gets wet for the first time this season.

PS - last year I pumped the bilge water out while sailing using a West Marine hand pump through one of the floor inspection ports. What a pain! Maybe this year I'll just do as you said and wait and just let it drain out when finished.
Paul Ness
1979 DS II
Lake Marburg, PA
psness
 
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