water in bilge?

[wellcraft1]

Is it normal to have a little water in the bilge when the boat is in the water? It is a very small amount.

 

[cuzner]

Re: water in bilge?

Keep an eye on it, but yes it is normal.Any water you get in your boat will end up there evetualy.You"d be surprised how quik it accumulates,water splashing in while runing,no top is totaly water proof and alot of boats have built in coolers drain directly into bilge.If you keep it the water use a auto bilge pump,always remove drain plug when not in water,and keep bow tilted up as far as possible.Welcome to the forum!!<br /> Jim

 

[eurolarva]

Re: water in bilge?

If the boat is aluminum look at the rivets where the boat comes in contact with the trailer. You may have one working loose. I read a post somewhere about a product called aluminum gutter sealent that might help. A cheap bilge pump is good to have with. I came off the lake in front of a nasty storm. Boat sat in storm for three hours and there was too much weight to get it on the trailer without pumping it out. Bilge pumps are nice to have around

 

[Dead Eye]

Re: water in bilge?

Good Question. I have a 1988 18ft fisherman, I have water all the time. I talked to another Wellcraft owner he solved his problem by changing the scupper hoses . Next year that will be my project. What size/year Wellcraft?<br /> Dead Eye

 

[WHITEBOYY32]

Re: water in bilge?

ive never seen a boat without a bilge pump in it !! if you dont have a bilge pump in it i would get one quick, you never know what will happen on the water and you need a pump to pump water out if it gets some in it. see ya later.

 

[WHITEBOYY32]

Re: water in bilge?

by the way i have a tracker pro-18 and it has rivets on the bottom and it keeps about an 1/8 inch of water in it in the back all the time, but not enough to reach up to the pump.

 

[cuzner]

Re: water in bilge?

If your getting water trough your scupper hose check to make sure it it has a loop in it and its above the water line(the loop.) Same goes for any thru hulls even your live wells if you can..<br /><br /><br /> Jim

 

[wellcraft1]

Re: water in bilge?

I have a 1990 186 eclipse. I'm not sure what a scupper hose is? Also, I have a bilge pump. But the amount of water I have in the bilge isn't enough to pump out. It's a very small amount.

 

[Dead Eye]

Re: water in bilge?

cuzner,<br /> What do you mean by LOOP

 

[cuzner]

Re: water in bilge?

Deadeye,a loop is kinda like what you do when you roll up a hose.Make sure ther are no kinks in the hose and use a cable tie to keep loop in in place.the reason for this is that under the right cicumstance water will come into the boat as easily as it goes out.All boats leave the factory like this,and it appears as though they used a hose to long and looped it to keep excess out of the way.It will prevent water from entering when a wave wave hits one ,and also if for some reason one of your through hulls goes below the water line. Agood example would be like a month ago we instaled new trolling motor batteries in a friends bass buggie.Pulled live well hose off and did'nt realize til.we where 5 miles off shore. had 20 inches of water in bilge in less than10 min.Keep hoses up high as posible!I learned the hard way,water temp was 45, would have been a cold swim to shore.<br /><br /> <br /> Jim

 

[Catchem]

Re: water in bilge?

Wether aluminum or fibreglass boats will collect a certain amount of water from condensation.Colder the water the more condensation.This will also happen in your gas tanks as well as one of my friends found out the hardway.Neither is really a big problem if you plan for this.Hope this helps you out.

 

[HEDJUG]

Re: water in bilge?

Cuz,<br />That is a good point and it is also regulation for insurance. The setup is called anti-ciphon riser. Also, all hoses below the water line must be double clamped. <br /><br />Jug

 

[Northern Eclipse]

Re: water in bilge?

I have a 196 Eclipse and my father has a 192 Classic, both boats seem that the foward part tends to be lower than the back of the boat and the water gets up there but does not drain back unless you raise the bow, so if you have boat somewhat level the water will run foward and stay up there and not come back until the bow raise up, also are you sure that you don't have a leak, If you have a i/o make sure a bellow is not leaking or transom seal or Y-pipe on the exhaust, they can drip for awhile but they will get worse, In general water should be on the outside of the boat, But some does get in from spray being kicked back by wind, boarding boat wet from swimming or sking, but even after that most time it would only be a couple of cups, But if your getting like a gallon or more then start finding the source, If on a dry sunny day calm water no wet boardings. should not really have any water in the boat, IF your sure to be dry before hitting the lake.

 

[Catchem]

Re: water in bilge?

If you think you have a leak in your hull the best (and cheapest)method is to fill your hull with water(not too much)and add a red food coloring dye.This will show you where the leak is.NOW like I said,dont fill your boat up to the gunnells while on your trailer.See the problem here?Usually a foot of water in boat will show any leaks on seams ,rivets or fiberglass hull in very short order.Most leaks can be found on the very bottom of the boat.