Dry bilge

After all the work I've done on the deck, bait tank, and the rest of the boat, I still have water dripping into the bilge from the deck. The area I'm referring to is the aft part of the engine hatch where it meets the transome panel. There is a small channel or gutter (if you will) which allows the water to run off and into the side scupper area. Unfortunately the overboard discharge holes (scuppers holes) do not allow the water to drain fast enough and the water drips down into the bilge. Have any of you found a way to keep the water from dripping through there? My first thought is to just caulk it really well with 5200. Any better ideas? Not sure if this applies to the newer Billfishers. Tenacious is an 84' I'm determined to keep trhe bilge dry and the new engine rust free.

I too am going to be trying a few things to seal off the engine and side hatch covers from leaking water when washing down the deck. I have an 83, same problem sometimes.

Let me know if you find a fix before I get a chance to contemplate this further. I don't expect I will be trying any of my ideas until this winter.

The new ones get a bit of water in the bilge too. Not sure there is an effective cure.

If either of you two find a remedy,get a patent on it, you'll have 300 other customers waiting in line to pay anything for a guaranteed fix!

Otherwise, keep your washdown to a minimum (Good Luck Glenn with the pics from last trip!), and only go out when you boat will roll less than 15 degrees in any direction. Currently the only other known fix is to attach sheet rubber, vinyl, or plastic covers to the bulkheads above what you want to protect and drape the covering material over it so the water will run over it down into the bilge. Charlie had a full head of hair before he had the Nomad built; look what water worries have done to him!

For your information, I have my hair neatly trimmed like this to give me that older, more distinguished look. It's really quite convenient too, no need for a comb after a shower, just slick it back with the towel!

....I thought you were talking about diapers at first. Shoot me now....

Salt water in the bilge. Is the engine pan stainless? I fog the engine with some type of milspec potion that supposedly is harmless to plastic, rubber. etc. Probalby is just $700 a gallon mineral spirits.

Scott, I used the 5200 four months ago, the bilge is still dry and I tend to overdo the deck washing. It will probably make the hatch removal a pain but I only do that once a year.

Thanks all for the replies,

Jeff: Steve Blackman also recommended covering any vital equipment in the bilge with plastic or rubber.

Charlie,
Your hair looks great! I'm trying to look older and more distinguished these days too.

Steve (Grebe), Thanks, I will try the 5200. Really? No water in the bilge? Howz the boat sale going? Are you planning to go bigger? Supersize or what? The Grebe looks great. You might consider sending the pictures of her to NASA though cause everytime I see her in a picture looks like a flying saucer is hovering above her. Kidding!

I just replaced the tank on my 26' billfisher(which I will be selling within the next year)...the previous owner worked on the bait tank and didn't seal it when he replaced it. I just had a custom-built tank built by the original builder.....foam encased it...and did everything right. I 5200'd the section of cockpit deck, but only used weatherstripping for the baitwell, just in case. Turns out it was sound decision...fuel sending unit isn't grounded right and I have to take it off again to get to wires...

Steve,

Where did you apply the 5200 to on the deck hatch, just the hinge side? Will the hatch still open?

4200 is just like 5200 except it can be removed without DESTROYING the surfaces it adhered to. If there is ever a chance it will be removed to be used again at a later date use 4200!

Although Pistolero believes he won't have to get back into the tank area again and I'm sure it doesn't leak now anyway, you can never be to sure you won't have to cut an access door in your tank to remove the crud put inside it while it was at a repair facility who couldn't finish the work in a timely manner (help me out here Russ,), Vulkem makes an excellant self-leveling polyurethane caulking that fills all the voids and seals the deck completely, you only need a razor knife to cut the caulk out for removal. Sunshine Supply in San Diego has it in many colors.

I`m keeping my mouth shut to much bad carma around me

Jeff, sorry for the delay in replying. Just got back from 5 days at 2 harbors. With the hatch and backplate out of the way I ran a bead up about 4" on either side then dropped down to the run off trough and came forward and up the small rise. The scupper holes don't allow the wash down to exit fast enough, I think sealing the trough area is most important.

NASA :D Scott you are good. I've always been told BIGGER is BETTER eh? I actually thought about putting up railing around it and calling it the upper deck. As far as selling Grebe, I have not aggressively marketed her yet. I am in the process of laying out a spread for Charlie to post here. I am moving up to a 44' Bruce Roberts custom ketch. I want to arrive in the South Seas aboard my own vessel by 2006 and as much as I love her, Grebe ain't up for that trip.

Water in the small channel.
Remove the piano hinge and replace the naughide strip. I do this every 2 years. It helps but does not completely stop all of the water.

We used to have rain water getting thorugh our engine hatch. Could not figure out how water was getting to the underside of the engine hatch cover. I finally used 4200 to seal the lifting handle to the hatch cover. I believe the problem is solved.

Bill