Jump to content

Water in the bulge


laura hinks

Featured Posts

Im not a mechanical person but i just wondered what the reasons would be for water being in the bottom of the engine bay. 

If the boats sat idle over winter for a few months without someone on it regularly to usw th bulge pump would the water build up massivley?

 

Is it something to worry about?

Someones told me that its historical water. I dont even know what that means. Can any one shead any light please?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Leaking stern gland.

Condensation

Domestic water leak

window/hatch leak

Engine coolant/tank leak

Engine board leak (cruiser stern)

Deck leak

Hull leak 

 

The extent of the worry is dependent on the extent of the leak and your continued ability to pump it out

Edited by rusty69
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, laura hinks said:

I think it may be a leaking stern gald. 

If you can't stop the leak by turning the stern gland greaser it may be time to have the stern gland re-packed, or the pusher adjusted if you have one.

Edited by rusty69
Link to comment
Share on other sites

27 minutes ago, laura hinks said:

Someones told me that its historical water. I dont even know what that means

I think you could describe ALL water as 'historical water' - it has all been here for millions of years and none has been made 'recently', in fact there is the same amount now as there was millions of years ago, it is just not always where our expanding populations want it to be.

The water cycle :

Image result for the water cycle

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

I think you could describe ALL water as 'historical water' - it has all been here for millions of years and none has been made 'recently', in fact there is the same amount now as there was millions of years ago, it is just not always where our expanding populations want it to be.

The water cycle :

Image result for the water cycle

Unless Laura has the biblical Red sea in her bilge complete with Os-Moses 

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

I think they just mean its been there a long time!

I thought that too but its a funny name 

2 hours ago, ianali said:

It maybe a battle to remove it..

 

How much water? What type of boat?

Ian.

About 4 inches i guess. A narrow boat . Ledgard

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some cruiser sterns (and I guess some semi-trad and trad but cruiser more prone to it) can not help but gather rainwater - on Lutine the deck is below the gunnel and rain water has nowhere else to go. I doubt anyone can keep the bilge under a cruiser stern completely free of rain water. 

A leaking stern gland that only adds four inches over a few months isn't leaking at all fast, and would be hard to detect. it would be a drip every couple of hours

Empty the bilge using the bilge pump, and see what happens

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, magpie patrick said:

A leaking stern gland that only adds four inches over a few months isn't leaking at all fast, and would be hard to detect. it would be a drip every couple of hours

A bit of kitchen towel balanced beneath the gland could help detect it. Or an ice cream tub (remove ice cream first) 

Edited by rusty69
Link to comment
Share on other sites

12 hours ago, rusty69 said:

Leaking stern gland.

Condensation

Domestic water leak

window/hatch leak

Engine coolant/tank leak

Engine board leak (cruiser stern)

Deck leak

Hull leak 

 

The extent of the worry is dependent on the extent of the leak and your continued ability to pump it out

....................  you forgot rat's piss.

  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, Murflynn said:

....................  you forgot rat's piss.

Damn, I knew I forgot something. I also forgot mushroom leaks and flue/collar leak. 

Do mushrooms leak? (makes good soup) 

Edited by rusty69
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Laura doesn't say what type of stern the boat has. We have a cruiser stern and like Maggie says it's virtually impossible to keep the engine bilge dry. With ours it's the rain that's the main culprit and the worn deck boards and raised gunnels don't help. 

If all the other possibilities mentioned on here regarding leaks have been investigated and Laura is still getting a depth of water in there, provided the bilge pump is set to automatic I don't think she has anything to worry about. I've been told many times to just accept that some boats have wet engine bilges and to not to be too concerned. I have and inch or so permanently in mine. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Stern glands drip.  That's what they do.  However, the solution is simple:  next time you finish a carton of Elsan/Oil/Deionised water etc.  cut a large square hole in the side of it and tuck it on its side under the stern gland and put your bilge pump in there.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.