Water in the bilges

[BlueStringPudding]

OSB *can* be okay in wet conditions - there's two grades, OSB2 and 3.

 

We've OSB3 outside, acting as a temporary stern deck, and although it's gone a bit grey with the constant winter rain and snow, it's not rotten at all - although has swelled up a bit, I wouldn't ask much more of it! Zero protection in all weathers.

 

The interior floor is OSB too, and one end of the boat suffered a major leak from the ceiling/deckhead onto the floor, which has dried up and returned to as-it-came-from-the-timber-merchants after warming up and drying out...

 

At least for us, it can be fine!

 

PC

 

I think on my boat when I bought it, there had been a lot of water under the floors and a leaking back step for quite some time, hence the bizarre ear shaped mushroon had time to grow out of it!

[brown]

Had a flooded hull myself, plywood floors though so it all dried up no problem and no smell.

Possibly heading your way, well getting off the Llangollen canal between next fri and Monday, so if we're near we could have

A look if you would like, have a wet vaccum as well. Rick.

[Water Woman]

Thanks Rick. I picked up a wet vacuum yesterday and am doing it as we speak... well, I am stopping for a cup of tea now and look outside at the good weather I am missing. If you want to PM me I can give you details of where I am etc. if you are going to pass by, thank you

[Offcumden]

[Hi If its any help we had a similar problem last winter, water under the bed and in bottom of wardrobe clothes wet etc. Emptied bilges put hairdryer onto cool and left under the bed and other wet areas, dried out in no time, hours not days,

The pump must have been leaking for ages by the amount of water we got out.

Once we replaced the leaking pump nothing else needed doing.

Good Luck

John

[Theo]

[Hi If its any help we had a similar problem last winter, water under the bed and in bottom of wardrobe clothes wet etc. Emptied bilges put hairdryer onto cool and left under the bed and other wet areas, dried out in no time, hours not days,

The pump must have been leaking for ages by the amount of water we got out.

Once we replaced the leaking pump nothing else needed doing.

Good Luck

John

 

Hair dryer on cool is an important point. Don't use warm air in this case. Warm air can hold more moisture. That's why you use is to dry things but in this case the warm air will come into contact with the cool hull and then the extra moisture in it will condense.

 

Nick

 

PS

 

I use an oil extractor to suck up small amounts of water that a normal pump can get to but the wet vac would be much better. If you seal up the hole in the floor around the nozzle you will draw air through the bilges which will be very good for them!

Edited June 12, 2010 by Theo
Add PS

[Water Woman]

Thank you John and Nick. Of course I knew about the COOL air thing.

 

 

 

Rushes to turn the fan heater placed to dry the place out down to cool

 

The heat in the boat has been killing me all day!!!

 

There was lots more water than I was expecting under there and this sucky up thing is brilliant. I am almost certain it was the leak under the sink which has been ongoing for a good while. I am hoping the bits of floor renewal is all I will need but I don't like the look of the shelves under the sink. But you never know.

 

I will keep giving it a suck over the next few days for any more to run down but if too much is there I guess I am going to have to look again for the source.

 

Remind me again why I am fighting to keep my boat????????

 

oh and this may be a stupid question but what is an oil extractor?

 

Edited to ask the above question.

Edited June 12, 2010 by Water Woman

[PhilR]

Remind me again why I am fighting to keep my boat????????

 

oh and this may be a stupid question but what is an oil extractor?

 

The important thing is - don't panic. Things are rarely as bad as they seem. I am sure everything will be OK when it is dried out. Replacing a few a few sections of floor might be a good thing long-term. You will then have a few sections of removable flooring so you can keep an eye on the bilge and ventilate it if necessary.

 

*What is an oil extractor*? - An extremely useful bit of kit. It uses vacuum to extract liquids. e.g:

 

1. The cleanest method of doing an oil change.

2. The best tool for removing water and crud from the bottom of the fuel tank.

3. Sucking up water from bilges after leaks from the water system!!

 

see: http://www.pelapumps.co.uk/default.aspx?A10PAGE=PL6000

[Water Woman]

The important thing is - don't panic. Things are rarely as bad as they seem. I am sure everything will be OK when it is dried out. Replacing a few a few sections of floor might be a good thing long-term. You will then have a few sections of removable flooring so you can keep an eye on the bilge and ventilate it if necessary.

 

*What is an oil extractor*? - An extremely useful bit of kit. It uses vacuum to extract liquids. e.g:

 

1. The cleanest method of doing an oil change.

2. The best tool for removing water and crud from the bottom of the fuel tank.

3. Sucking up water from bilges after leaks from the water system!!

 

see: http://www.pelapumps.co.uk/default.aspx?A10PAGE=PL6000

 

 

Thank you. I have had a look at oil extractors now and it is something else I have learned. I appreciate the time people have taken to offer advice and assistance.

[Morat]

For the later stages I'd look into a few cheapo dehumidifiers (the ones that use desiccant crytals). They can trap a surprising amount of water and we had great results with one in a car when the waterproof door membrane had failed. Using only a dehumidifier, the car went from sopping wet carpets to bone dry in about 2 months.

 

The best thing is that they just sit there and require no effort

Edited June 13, 2010 by Morat

[Matthew Dowson]

Just a thought - don't assume it was the water leak you suspected, check out the water tank, fill it full do the connecting pipes leak under the water inlet? (where you fill it) or around the tank? Get under your foredeck with a torch. What about your shower pump, a leaking jubilee clip can dump a lot of water.

 

But this is boat life, things break, things need fixing.

[Guest]

The important thing is - don't panic. Things are rarely as bad as they seem. I am sure everything will be OK when it is dried out. Replacing a few a few sections of floor might be a good thing long-term. You will then have a few sections of removable flooring so you can keep an eye on the bilge and ventilate it if necessary.

 

*What is an oil extractor*? - An extremely useful bit of kit. It uses vacuum to extract liquids. e.g:

 

1. The cleanest method of doing an oil change.

2. The best tool for removing water and crud from the bottom of the fuel tank.

3. Sucking up water from bilges after leaks from the water system!!

 

see: http://www.pelapumps.co.uk/default.aspx?A10PAGE=PL6000

agree 100% Possibly the most used/abused bit of kit on our boat.

 

Just a thought - don't assume it was the water leak you suspected, check out the water tank, fill it full do the connecting pipes leak under the water inlet? (where you fill it) or around the tank? Get under your foredeck with a torch. What about your shower pump, a leaking jubilee clip can dump a lot of water.

 

But this is boat life, things break, things need fixing.

Our shower drain pump is one of those things that looks like a plastic sandwich box, with a small automatic pump inside. It has flooded the bilges on numerous occasions when it decides to throw its toys out of the pram. The water comes out from under the lid, whilst the thing sounds like it is working. Utter junk. Whale gulper next time.