new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

[lime4x4]

My wife got this boat from her father.It has the 3.0 liter mercruiser inboardengine with a alpha 1 sterndrive.It was sitting for 4 years out in the weather uncovered.So we cleaned it up and got the engine running.Took her out on the local lake the other week.As we were backing her down the ramp i noticed the engine compartment was filling up with water.So i got out and removed the boat plug and we left it on the ramp for an hour to let all the water drain out.Reinstalled the plug.No more water was entering the engine compartment.Then e tied her to the dock for an hour to make sure she wasn't takin on any more water.Had a little water by the rear seats from the drain holes.Seems the drain holes exit just at or slightly below the water line.Going in reverse we get alot of water in the boat or if someone is standing in the back of the boat.Fixed that for the time being by installing plugs into those drains.When trying to get the boat to plane the front of the boat would lift atleast 2 feet out of the water and stay there and the sterndrive was all the way down.Found it was the prop causing that issue.The prop was a 19 local dealer rec a 17 for that boat.Now the frt lifts maybe a foot or so and then planes out never have to mess with the tilt of the sterndrive.When coming to a dead stop the back of the boat feels like it just sank.The water level comes to with in 3 inches of the top of the boat in the rear.Is this normal? Someone said that the boat might be water logged in the rear.How can i tell?Some one said to go to nada and get the weight of the boat and c if it still weighs that much yet.nada says the boat weighs 1670 dry but according to 5 dealers when i was looking for a trailer for it said that boat weighed around 3200 lbs dry. Also trying to find info on the live well that is in this boat.This boat has 4 compartments built into the floor and all of them have drain holes.There is also a drain hole next to the boat plug that connects to a black hose under the engine that has a open/close valve on it which i have no idea where or what it does.SO any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

one of those compartments has a enter and exit. that hose is for a circulating pump to pump water into the live well.

the outboard version of that boat is 1650, your inboard/outboard is 2450 lbs. add the weight of the trailer and fuel and gear on board. have the boat weighed. look in the phone book for yellow pages for public scale.

 

[lime4x4]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

what type of pump do i need then for the live well?

 

[tmh]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

95% chance your boat has 100+ of lbs of waterlogged foam under the floor. It may be mostly in the back half depending on what drains where. MANY discussions here about boats from that time period and most wound up finding waterlogged foam - and many of those were not left out uncovered!

Is the floor soft in any areas around/under seats, etc? If not, that would be amazing. To check for wet foam you have to either drill down or "dig" down to the hull under the floor. Often, the foam is very dry ON TOP but wet in the bottom few inches. The only way to get it out is to rip up the floor and hack it out! Then, of course replace the floor and seats, etc.

Or, if it's running OK you have the option to just leave it alone and deal with whatever issues it creates.

 

[lime4x4]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

well everything draind to the rear.The only good thing was that the drain plug was left out while it was sitting.Just find it hard to believe that water got into the foam cause of the way the boat is made.The entire deck looks like sprayed on fiberglass.The floor isn't soft in any spots.She just seems alittle heavy in the rear.I'll try and get pics of her in the water.Maybe it's just me and the rear is designed to sit a little lower then the front

 

[studlymandingo]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

I/Os are by nature a little *****-heavy; the drive and engine are more weighty than an outboard for sure. When you stopped, did you drop from running speed to a quick stop? I will give the throttle a little "nudge" before the wake catches up to the stern.

The water entering through the deck drains can be addressed in the manner you did using the plugs; or perhaps a better solution is a scupper-valve, it lets water out but closes with the water pressure from the outside of the hull.

Keep an eye on your bellows, that could be where the water came in to the engine compartment. A regular maintainence item for I/Os.

When you are taking off from a stop, you should use your trim to "tuck" the outdrive in towards the stern as much as possible, as the boat starts to come over the wave it is creating, you will want to use the trim to move the outdrive up farther away from the stern. You stated that you didn't have to touch the trim the whole time you were out, you will want to play around with the trim switch as you are out using the boat. Proper use of the outdrive trim can make your boating experience much more pleasant as the boat will handle much more responsively, not to mention you will use less fuel when you are properly trimmed out. You may want to consider trim tabs to help with the planing process.

It might not be a bad idea to find a friend who is an experienced boater to go out with you one afternoon to give you a few pointers on handling. Getting to know all about your boat will only make it more fun on the water!​

 

[lime4x4]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

Thanks for the info.I was under the impression that as i trim out the sterndrive away from the stern the front will come up.I will have to play some more with it.My buddies that have boats have little alum 12 footers with 5 hp outboard drives on them.I was read somewhere else about using trim-tabs to help with planing but all the ones i've seen so far are pricey 400 to 900 bucks.

 

[studlymandingo]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

Go to http://www.nauticusinc.com/ and check out the Smart Tabs, you can pick up a set here on iboats.com for just a little change.

Once the boat is on plane, you will want to push the outdrive away from the transom; it will raise the bow only slightly. It gets more of the boat out of the water thereby reducing hydraulic drag. Less drag equals easier handling and more speed. In rougher water, you may want to trim in a bit to use the bow to cut the waves.​

 

[lime4x4]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

will i don't want to accidently launch the boat out of the water at full throttle...lol.that's what concerns me the most.But i will try trimming the drive away from the stern this weekend when we have the boat out once i get up to speed

 

[lime4x4]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

Okay just ordered a set of the smart tabs xs from iboats so they should be here next week sometime

 

[tmh]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

Good move getting the Smart Tabs. I just put mine on last week (haven't had it in the water with them yet). Those are one of the few products I've run across that almost 100% of those who have them say they are excellent.

 

[studlymandingo]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

The Smart Tabs will definitely make it handle much better.

Just take the time to play around with the boat as you are trimming the outdrive, you will feel the difference at different trim angles. Once you get the feel for it, you will notice that different angles work at different speeds and water conditions. After a while, you will instinctively begin to work the trim button.

This is all what makes boating so much fun! A boat is so much different than a car; you can feel a huge difference with little tweaks and adjustments here and there. If you get the chance, spend a little time running the boat before you install the Smart Tabs; then put them on so you get the full effect of the difference they make. Happy boating.​

 

[lime4x4]

Re: new to boating 91 19' sea-pro centra

Well took the boat out today found that slightly up trimming after the boat planes does make the boat handle a little nicer.Then i went to far cause the boat started to feel like it was riding on air.I'll take it tomorrow again and play some more with it before my smart tabs come