Water Freeze in Bilge

[Hardcore]

it has been about 27 at night here and i noticed water dripping from the drain hole last night which is wierd becasue its always tilted with it unplugged and covered. it scares me to think there was water in the bilge that could have froze. will this cause damage and at that temp will it even freeze in a fiberglass insulated bilge? i tilted it further and about 15g came out. should i be worried about it cracking something?

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

i think you are ok. i always take a torn strip of tee shirt, about 18 inches long, feed 1/2 of it thru the transom drain, any water that accumulates there will be wicked out, leaving the stern area dry.

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

Yea, if that is all you got out I would not worry too much.

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

Did he mean 15 gallons? That may not be good

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

Did he mean 15 gallons? That may not be good

No it would not be if that is what he meant. DUHHHH, jet lag is still getting me.

 

[Pursuit2150]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

Just as a precaution, it would not hurt to pour some RV anti-freeze into the bilge.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

Unless the water fills some closed cavity, and then freezes, it will not damage anything. That is if the water is just sitting in the rear of the bilge, and freezes, you will have a chunk of ice sitting on top of the f/g hull.

I am hoping he means 15 grams of water. if he means 15 gal, he has some other issue.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

it has been about 27 at night here and i noticed water dripping from the drain hole last night which is wierd becasue its always tilted with it unplugged and covered. it scares me to think there was water in the bilge that could have froze. will this cause damage and at that temp will it even freeze in a fiberglass insulated bilge? i tilted it further and about 15g came out. should i be worried about it cracking something?

Rain, snow or condensation...... if it is condenstaion you should make sure you vent it so you have a turn over of air or other problems will happen. Once it defrosts it should just flow out unless you have leaves or trash in there.

Can you get the bow higher? Maybe raise the leg or add some blocks so it will not collect water.

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

Tent the new tarp,drill the drain hole and put a small heater in there and let it drip.That may be a lot of extra weight to risk moving it.

 

[scoutabout]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

That's a great idea about the piece of shirt hanging out of the drain hole, TD -- I'm going to do that.

I concur with others that, as long as the ice has somewhere to go as the water freezes and expands (in this case, it can expand anywhere but down) you are ok. It's when it's trapped inside of an engine block or pipe that you have bad things happen.

 

[orion25]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

i think you are ok. i always take a torn strip of tee shirt, about 18 inches long, feed 1/2 of it thru the transom drain, any water that accumulates there will be wicked out, leaving the stern area dry.

Great idea! I'm destroying some clothing tomorrow!

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

Great idea! I'm destroying some clothing tomorrow!

But what if the shirt freezes?

 

[orion25]

Re: Water Freeze in Bilge

But what if the shirt freezes?

I live in AL. It will thaw within 12 hours anyway..................