Water in Bilge again

[JohnKorte]

Since my last posting "water in Bilge" that was Jan. I replaced all bellows, shift cable, gimble bearing, u-joints. Was confident that the ripped bellows was the culprit for the water in bilge. However after about 4-5 hrs at the lake yesterday I drained 5-8 gallons of water out of the bilge. There is no visible leaks from the engine, live well pump. Any ideas what to do next?

 

[dubs283]

with the boat in the water, use a light and a mirror to inspect all areas where items pass through the transom and check for leaks

a loose/improperly sealed garboard plug assy will leak

the steering shaft seal can leak water in too, located at the top portion of the gimble housing

 

[alldodge]

Since my last posting "water in Bilge" that was Jan. I replaced all bellows, shift cable, gimble bearing, u-joints. Was confident that the ripped bellows was the culprit for the water in bilge. However after about 4-5 hrs at the lake yesterday I drained 5-8 gallons of water out of the bilge. There is no visible leaks from the engine, live well pump. Any ideas what to do next?

Need to check you transom, it may be getting soft. Back the boat in the water as deep as possible and watch

 

[redneck joe]

Need to check your transom, it may be getting soft. Back the boat in the water as deep as possible and watch

Good call here. Keep stern strapped to the trailer when you do so, with the previously mentioned mirror.

 

[Alumarine]

Also, you might want to use your bilge pump a bit more often.

 

[JohnKorte]

So if I should use the bilge pump more often that means it is normal to take in water?

 

[bruceb58]

So if I should use the bilge pump more often that means it is normal to take in water?

It is not normal. You need to find out how it's getting in.

 

[Fastatv]

So if I should use the bilge pump more often that means it is normal to take in water?

I'm sure he meant that you really don't want all that water in the boat because it will hinder performance of the boat and the possible damage that water can do. And no, your boat should not be taking on water. As mentioned above, take a mirror, put the boat in the water, and try to see where the water is coming from, and look well at the transom area...from the inside. It could be that something went amiss with one of the gaskets/ "O" rings that seal the outdrive to the housing. Good luck....I know it can be very frustrating.

 

[flipbro]

I would also check the hull over maybe a crack somewhere.

 

[djmakko]

Cracked Y pipe, manifolds, or rubber elbows from raisers. check those.

 

[Trooper583]

Here's something to check...Someone else eluded to it in an earlier post. A few Years back, I had a Gimbal bearing installed and when I got it back I had the same problem. Mystery water getting into the bilge...a lot... Knew something wasn't right. I checked all the fittings hoping to fix it myself with no luck. Turned out that when they put the outdrive back on, the o-ring for the water jacket that seals the passage between the outdrive and bell housing had become displaced when they reinstalled the drive. So, as the impeller was pumping water up to the engine, it was also pumping a good deal into the drive bellows and through the gimbal bearing and into the bilge. It was a costly mistake on their part.

 

[Trooper583]

Here's something to check...Someone else eluded to it in an earlier post. A few Years back, I had a Gimbal bearing installed and when I got it back I had the same problem. Mystery water getting into the bilge...a lot... Knew something wasn't right. I checked all the fittings hoping to fix it myself with no luck. Turned out that when they put the outdrive back on, the o-ring for the water jacket that seals the passage between the outdrive and bell housing had become displaced when they reinstalled the drive. So, as the impeller was pumping water up to the engine, it was also pumping a good deal into the drive bellows and through the gimbal bearing and into the bilge. It was a costly mistake on their part.

 

[Grub54891]

On mine,I replaced all the bellows,gaskets ect. Still leaked. Turned out on the trim cylinder block on the bottom of the gimble,where the lines hook up,had a bad gasket. Just something to check!

 

[beason]

you dont mention what boat you have, but i just got done RnR'ing one of my through hull drain fixtures. It was not sealed to the hull very well, and leaked pretty bad.

also. check your auto float switch. unless you got a pretty good size boat, 5-8 gallons should have turned the pump on.