Scuppers

[Tom P]

I own a 1995 Dixie WA (821). For the past few years I?ve trailered the boat. I store the boat with the plugs out. When I?m in the water I keep the plugs in. This year I?m planning to keep the boat in a marina. I?m considering installing scuppers. When the boat is in the water the drain plugs are real close to the water line and I?m concerned that water will come in if I leave the plugs out. Should I keep the boat in the water with the plugs in or should scuppers keep the water out? Are there disadvantages to installing both the flap type and the ping-pong ball type (double scupping)?

Thanks,

Tom

 

[5150abf]

Re: Scuppers

Leave the scuppers out and get a bilge pump.
The problem is they work really well until they get something betweeen the ball and seal and don't seal.

Leave the plugs in if it is in the water and go with a bilge pump.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Scuppers

there are advantages and disadvantages to scuppers. the ball type work the best. but any scupper that is close to the water line, is effected by wave action. thus, you can take on water thru the scupper, but if goes right back out. you did not say whether you have covered storage. if open storage, i would go scupper. depending on a battery, and a bilge pump in a heavy storm, is not the best solution.

 

[Tom P]

Re: Scuppers

I have 2 automatic Rule 750 gph pumps and 2 batteries. The further aft pump is wired directly to the battery. The slightly more foward one, can also be turned on manually. I'm not sure how that one is wired. It sounds like it's a roll of the dice about leaving the plugs in while it's in the slip.

Tom

 

[Tom P]

Re: Scuppers

BTW - I have a helm cover. The rest of the boat is open.

Tom

 

[dingbat]

Re: Scuppers

Leave the scuppers out and get a bilge pump.
The problem is they work really well until they get something betweeen the ball and seal and don't seal.

Leave the plugs in if it is in the water and go with a bilge pump.

The problem with bilge pumps is that they only work until your battery goes dead. There are more boats sitting on the bottom from bilge pumps with dead batteries than everything else combined.


The function of a drain is to drain water. Why would you want to plug the drains in an unattended boat? That sounds like a sure fire way to come back and find you boat sitting on the bottom to me.

How far above the water line is your deck? Water can not run up hill. Unless your deck is below the water line you have nothing to worry about.

FWIW: I have 4- thru hulls and 2 scuppers w/flaps at water level and 2- thru hulls and a thru-hull transducer below the water line on my boat. No plugs and I don't loose a minute of sleep over it.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Scuppers

a couple of years ago i had a bilge pump fail, while in the Keys. the boat was docked, in an 1 1/2 hours storm i had a 12 inches of water in my boat. had to get a bucket and bail, then had to put it on the trailer, for the duration of the trip, instead of leaving it docked. they want 4 prices for bilge pumps down there, and i had 2 at home.

 

[INJUN]

Re: Scuppers

Install the scuppers if physics allow for it.

I learned my lesson with pumps. I had a 16' o/b runabout that sank at the marina after a storm. You'd think someone would have caught on that she was in trouble and intervened. Nope, she sank.

I checked a friends bowrider with o/b (the same marina, different pier) and if you stepped onboard she would've sank due to water at the edge of the transum. I had to bail her from the pier.

Both boats had pumps with floater switches.

Needless to say; I don't use that (very popular) marina anymore.

 

[Tom P]

Re: Scuppers

On my starboard installing a ball scupper is no problem. On the port side the swimming platform is in the way. I have a friend stopping by tomorrow to see what we can come up with for the port side. The starboard is a tad lower than the port and that?s where water ends up normally. Has anybody heard about a boat sinking with scuppers?

Tom

 

[Tom P]

Re: Scuppers

We came up with an interesting way to resolve the port side. The part of the swimming platform that is against the transom was right up against the drain whole. This didn?t leave any extra room for the ball scupper. We put part of a fat broom handle in the drain whole to keep a 3? drill bit centered. This allowed us to cut away enough of the swimming platform to mount a scupper.

Thanks for the replies,

Tom