I did think of adding my circumstances to your thread Rod but since my leak may well be related to a water ballast issue I decided on a separate one.
To recap, I just bought my boat which has been out of the water for the best part of a year.
In the couple of weeks since I've had her I've kept her out of the water whilst I familiarize myself with her and have raised the mast and installed a solar system.
During this time I could see that all the bilge compartments were dry - not surprising as she benefits from a custom made full cover.
On Thursday evening (two days ago) I put her on our mooring.
However, when I got home I realised that I had not closed the transom ballast valve or inserted the ballast bung - doh.
Also, as my mooring strops proved to be too big for the bow cleats, I had two good reasons for returning to the boat this morning.
I found that my mooring provision had been fine but was surprised to find that the water ballast tank was empty?? Turns out I must have trodden on the transom ballast handle by mistake at some time.
Anyway, I then opened the transom valve and waited while the tank filled.
After a few minutes I went to fit the bung (remembering that the water level should be around an inch below the hole) and was a little surprised to see the level about an inch ABOVE the hole - hmm!!
I quickly inserted the bung and closed the transom valve.
Having done this I thought it prudent to check the bilges and found about half a pint of water in the port stern bilge - double hmm!!
sorry this is so long
At this stage I'm not sure whether the bilge water came in when I let the ballast in or in the previous day in the water.
I then took a look over the transom. I noticed that there are three through-hull fittings to the port side. Two, on the same level, above the waterline BUT the third, lower, on the waterline, maybe slightly below!!
I didn't have time to investigate further but I will be returning very early tomorrow morning...
In the meantime if anyone can let me know what these three hull fittings are, and, more importantly, why the water level rose so high when I filled the ballast - and what I should have expected/done, I would be very grateful.
Many thanks!
MacGregor 26M 2009 - Sky's the Limit - Suzuki DF50
On my 26M the three outlets are 1) high up on the starboard side the outlet from the manual bilge pump located under the starboard side fuel 'seat cover'. 2) the outlet from the electric bilge pump and 3) the combined outlet from the galley sink and the well in front of the outboard.
The surveyor who checked over my boat before I bought it recommended that all of them should have sea cocks fitted and closed when not required. This is still on my 'to do' list.
If you are standing at the front of the boat your weight might be allowing that extra inch or so of water to enter your ballast tank. I try to close the vent as the water starts to come through then close the transom valve.
P@ S.
GladNick 26M
Many thanks Patrick, I went to the boat early this morning in case the "leak" had got worse but there was no evidence of any water getting in - perplexing!
I did crawl around at the back of the rear berth and discovered that I do have sea cocks on the three through hull fittings. Anyway I guess I just need to keep an eye on things fttb.
Looking and feeling around the rest of the boat I have found a couple of other damp areas. One is behind the sink under the rear-most window; could this be a leaky window seal - has anyone had a leaky window?
Anyway I think I'm probably ready to head out from my mooring for a bit of exploration!!! Might even raise a sail of two:)
MacGregor 26M 2009 - Sky's the Limit - Suzuki DF50
Mike, Patrick,
If the water is coming from the ballast vent over topping there can only really be a few reasons.
Too much weight on board compared to the design displacement. So she's sitting low in the water.
Too much weight forward so she's sitting bow down.
The neck of the vent has been modified so it is too low.
I plan to attach a pipe to my vent and run it to a stainless ball valve mounted on the transom near the inlet valve for ease of operation from the cockpit.
Shutting the vent before the ballast has finished filling could result in a partially full ballast.
The resulting free fluid surface could seriously affect stability.
Sea cocks really should be fitted especially if the boat is to be left on a mooring/marina. Not quite so serious for tailer sailing. Worth keeping a set of softwood bungs of the right sizes just in case.
Seacocks would be required by European design standards but are only optional under US standards. (How Macgregor got this past the RCD for import to Europe I'm not sure).
Dave.
Dave Newton Sailbadthesinner
It's definitely not overtopping the vent well in my case, not sure where it came from but is only in the port stern bilge.
When leaving her this morning I did notice she was sitting nose-down by around 2". I think this is partly all the bow weight from bits and pieces I've got in the v-berth temporarily plus the weight of my oversized mooring junk - new smaller strops on order:)
I'm guessing this was the cause of my overfilled vent well as I filled on the mooring - by accident.
Still need to track down the cause of the leaks, will just have to keep a sharp eye out.
Having said that I'd still be interested in whether anyone has had window leaks.
MacGregor 26M 2009 - Sky's the Limit - Suzuki DF50
Just a follow up on my leaks.
We had a lot of rain the last couple of days so I visited the boat early this morning.
Good news is the bilges are all dry.
However the floor carpets were soaked and water tracks were visible on the big mirror; the heads was also pretty wet.
I removed the wooden cover under the mast (next to the big mirror) to reveal the mast electrics entry points - this was good as I'm also trying to trace lack of mast current and now have access the the entire circuits.
Anyway, I set my phone to video the underside of the deck/mast electrics and went topside to poor water over the two through-deck mast electric fittings.
The video reveal a constant fast dripping which was encouraging if annoying.
My Butyl tape was at home so I used some available brown!! Sika to remake the fittings as best I could.
More rain is forecast so I'll be watching carefully.
The "window leak" is worse, as one would expect, but not too bad so I think I'll leave this until the Winter. Interestingly, if I pressed the edges of the window I could see them move in relation to the topsides indicating the absence of sealant.
This is really sad but in some ways I'm looking forward to Winter and I haven't even sailed yet; just one short motor:)
MacGregor 26M 2009 - Sky's the Limit - Suzuki DF50
I love all the fixing and tinkering... possibly more than actually taking the boat out, that's how sad I am! Flushing the outboard on a crisp morning in the spring is probably a personal favorite, engine ticking over, kettle on the boil down below, dreaming of past and future adventures all from the safety of the trailer without any of the stress of actually going anywhere!
The manual states that you should not walk or step on the windows. If you do, and it is difficult not to, the seal will 'break' with a resulting leak.
Pottering around on a boat is almost as much fun as sailing.
Simon
Haha, good thing is that the leaky window is the rear port side one so not much chance of walking on it.
Am I right in thinking that although they look like they're fixed on with screws, they're actually nuts and bolts. And, if so, are the nuts reasonably accessible from the inside - I imagine sourcing spares before starting is a must.
Thanks for the tip re not walking on the horizontal windows though Simon.
MacGregor 26M 2009 - Sky's the Limit - Suzuki DF50
Ok, just an update on this, it seems that the windows are simply screwed into the single layer of the deck side. Also, by flexing them from the inside I can see movement of the window, in places, without a corresponding movement in the surrounding deck side. This would seem to indicate a break in the seal.
However, I seeded various key sections (around the windows and under several of the through-deck fastenings) with plugs of kitchen towel, prior to the recent F8/Heavy rain, to try to see where the water was getting in.
The upshot of this was that they were all bone dry; puzzling!
I then started to wonder whether folk would expect some ingress (during heavy weather) through the coachroof/washboard non-joint as this would explain most of my "leaking".
Finally, I'm getting water in the area at the back of the heads and I'm puzzled by this as well since the surrounding (higher) areas are dry; any ideas.
Having said all this, it's not bad enough for any water to reach the bilges so maybe I should take Mrs F's advice and stop thinking about it; after all it only happens in bad weather and is dried up by a few sheets of kitchen towel.
MacGregor 26M 2009 - Sky's the Limit - Suzuki DF50
I agree with Mrs F.
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