[Rhodes22-list] Water in the Cabin

[Todd Tavares]

Reuben,I  may just be echoing what others have said.
The lazarette is not sealed off from the cabin bilge by a bulkhead on any
boat I have heard about. I think Stan commented once about this last year
or so when I asked a question about it. What you may see when you look
forward in the laz, under the cockpit, is the back of the poured in
expanded flotation foam. It may or may not have been glassed or tabbed down
to the hull, but water will migrate down through the foam into the cabin.
The older and dryer the foam gets it seems, the faster water will get to
the bilge.
Some boats have some sort of pipe cut in half lengthwise and laid against
the hull under the foam, like hollow stringers, forming two tunnels so
water runs directly from the laz to the bilge.

But clogged seat drains, and rain water flowing over the lip into the laz
is the most likely cause of such a large quantity of water in a short time,
unless you find a leak at the CB cap or at the cockpit aft drain thru-hull
fitting.
Some owners have also noted the (garden) hose that connects the centerboard
cap to the cockpit gutter, through which the CB pennant runs is not always
connected at the top/gutter fitting. This would be a very slow leak.
These are the first places I would look.
And if the seat drains are still the small ½" ID ones, I'd suggest
enlarging those fittings to 1" ID.
I also made screens from white plastic house gutter guards that fit into
the drain pockets. The enlarged drains along with the screens have
eliminated water in the bilge even when stored uncovered under an oak tree.

Todd T

On Thu, Dec 14, 2023, 3:18 PM Reuben Mezrich <reuben.mezrich at gmail.com>
wrote:

> This morning a friend called and said my boat was sinking...When I got to
> the boat there was about a foot of water in the cabin (it was up to the
> bottom of the cushions) and the boat was hanging from its lines (it was a
> very low tide)...I borrowed a pump and got most of the water out...checked
> the two through hulls for the head and the one in the lazerette and no leak
> seen. inspected the top of the centerboard trunk and no evidence of a leak
> at any of the visible screws on top (hard to see the two at the
> furthest aft). There still appears to be a slow leak. There was also water
> in the lazerette but the lazerette seems to be separate from the rest of
> the boat and no idea how the water got there...There hasn't been much rain
> lately..boat was dry on Monday, which was the last time I checked it...
> We're having some storms here in Sarasota and the TowBoatUS guy says we
> really can't tow it till Tuesday
>
> Any thoughts on where else to look for leaks. I haven't put any holes in
> the boat..haven't gone aground
> Its a puzzle
>
> --
> Reuben Mezrich
> cell: 410-499-8922
> Pelican Cove in Sarasota and Back Bay, Boston
>