76 cuddy bilge

[Gallagher]

Originally Posted by smokeonthewater

no "exactly" to it but plain and simple, if it's leaking then something has failed... they aren't supposed to leak and until you find the leak you have no idea what has failed or how close it is to getting a lot worse

quick example... cracked thru hull fitting... seeps a few drops an hour till it finally pops off and then it "seeps" say, 1700 gallons per hour
OR I/O rotten bellows several years past needing replaced have a small pinhole and just drip a little till all of a sudden they rip and it starts coming in fast.....

the REALLY scary part is that for every inch lower the hole gets in the water due to boat taking on water the speed that the water comes in goes up exponentially

a 1" hole 2' under water will sink a boat in a couple minutes

I guess I meant, how check for leaks, but I searched the forums and found some great suggestions. Thanks though. You're right of course, I should definitely clear up the leak issue as job one.

[tsubaki]

Welcome to the site!
You may not have enough space to do what you want to due to the angle of the hull.
Might I suggest installing an access hatch between the last floor box and the bilge. This will give you a lot of room for most anything you want to do.
Also you can make the drain hole between the inner bottom and bilge bigger.
By putting the pump(s) in this area you will have them against the bottom of the boat which would be even lower than the shell in the bilge area.

[Gallagher]

Thanks, Benny! That is exactly what I wanted to know.

So midway between the last floor hatch and the transom? From the threads here I understand that as long as I retain the width of the floor hatch I will stay between the stringers? How and where do I run the line out from the bilge?

The guy who did the transom for me 10 years back put a second drain hole in below the original. He said water was getting held up below the original hole.

Sorry for the lack of pics. I hope to get her back home in the next week so I can post pics and get to work.

Dan

[tsubaki]

Mine was like you said, stringers on either side of the floor boxes.
Simply enlarge the drain hole from the inner bottom to the bilge enough to accommodate the hose(s) and wires and put the thru hull(s) below the rub rail.
Dremel tool or Roto Zip would be an easy tool for enlarging the hole. I did mine in a half moon.

[Gallagher]

I guess I'll understand once I tear into her but how do you get the hose to the side hull just below the rub rail? I can't understand how that gets plumbed with the stringers and deck in the way. Or do you run the hose out to the transom?

Thanks! I'm psyched to get that hull water tight and have working bilge pumps in the near future.

[tsubaki]

I'm horrible at explaining stuff.
The current hole that drains the inner bottom to the bilge will need to be enlarged but big enough to act as a drain hole also with the hose and wires running through it. Or you could simply drill a large enough hole above it to accommodate the hose and wire for the pump.
I don't suggest through the transom, either side just below the rub rail would be easier.
See this thread, note the bilge hose location.
http://www.wellcraftv20.com/communit...=battery+bilge

[tsubaki]

It's not worth the aggravation of attempting routing the hose through the stringers and penetrating the floor.
Here is a shot front to rear of the starboard side, the right stringer is next to the floor box.

[Gallagher]

Originally Posted by tsubaki

I'm horrible at explaining stuff.
The current hole that drains the inner bottom to the bilge will need to be enlarged but big enough to act as a drain hole also with the hose and wires running through it. Or you could simply drill a large enough hole above it to accommodate the hose and wire for the pump.
I don't suggest through the transom, either side just below the rub rail would be easier.
See this thread, note the bilge hose location.
http://www.wellcraftv20.com/communit...=battery+bilge

So if I understand correctly ...

1. cut the access hatch hole midway to the transom from the rear box, the same width as the box and maybe 12-16 inches long;

2. glue a platform such as an old cutting board to the hull with a quality bilge mounted to it;

3. run the electrical and the pump hose directly back to beneath the battery storage area, next to the transom;

4. come up into the battery compartment storage area with wires and hose;

5. wire the bilge and run the hose out to one side under the rub rail.

Is that it. Sounds like a great solution.

I hope I have it but one additional question is how to create a hatch cover for that hole? Do they sell them at West? Do I create my own? Obviously would want a flush mount ... I'm sure there's a thread on it somewhere here!