Water in bilges

[RHibbs]

My first post. I noticed water in (aft) bilges several months after putting my 2000 Mac 26x in a boat lift. Bow is elevated in lift. (I never noticed such a problem when boat was kept on trailer.) I firstbnoticed water in rear of battery compartment when charging. I didn't find any water in cabin. Stern faces north, from where a lot rainwater blows. I pumped out some water but still need to crawl near stern bilge accesses to pump more water out. Is companionway and sliding hatch area a likely source of bilge water? I plan to look elsewhere (engine area, etc.) for leaks when my broken foot feels well enough to climb and crawl. Thanks! Richard.

[Don T]

Hello,
Stern to weather I would be looking at where the steering and power / control cables exit the well area or possibly the well drain fittings.
Because the bow is elevated water could be entering at any of the usual spots and finding it's way aft (chain plates, side window in the head, deck hardware (turning block for center board line etc, screws for hatch rails, deck connector for mast lights).

I think any water coming in through the gap between the hatch & insert would end up on the floor in the cabin.

Don

[sailboatmike]

And of course under the pedestal, I was taking a heap of water through there, comes out all around the place because it can go under the liner, my 1995 X has a bit of PVC pipe around the hole that all the cables go through back into the cabin, I just put a heap of sealer around it and it best part of fixed the issue, of course I still get a bit of water in but I dont think I have ever owned a totally dry boat

[dthiesmeyer]

If the bow is too high and it rains hard, you may be getting water in at the front of the sliding hatch. This has happened to me while on the trailer.

[NiceAft]

From years of reading this forums posts, I realize that leaks can come from a variety of areas. are older boats, and it is not unusual to read that leak sources can be any of the above mentioned, or from sources such as chain plates, or any through deck attachments.

This may be tedious, actually it will be , but try doing a search for “bilge”, or “leak”, or “leaks”, or whatever comes into your head. This subject has been discussed many times, and solutions are buried in the site. Then again, you may get lucky, and someone with a better memory than I will give you a list of things to look for.

Ray

P.S. If you list where you are, there may be a nearby forum member who can assist in the physical search on the boat?

[WASP18]

I came to the realization that these boats leak and I don't know where and I gave up looking. I bought a pump similar to one that would be used in a home basement. I also bought a 15' garden hose for an attachment. My boat is in a slip with available shore power. Most of the water accumulates in the stern area in the voids under the cushions. Some water appears under the cooler located under the galley seat, starboard side. Small puddles appear under the battery port side.

I use large sponges for the puddles, a turkey baster in the nickel-size hole under the companionway ladder and of course the sump pump in the stern. I have a dodger and bimini when the boat is tied-up at the slip and the results are it doesn't take on much water. It takes on more water when on the trailer in my back yard.

[Tony E]

I love your comment WASP "I came to the realization that these boats leak and I don't know where and I gave up looking"...lol. I am so with you on that one. You could spend hours and hours looking but its probably alot easier to just pump it out and get rid of it. Your comment should go under "confessions of a Mac owner" and we should start a Mac support group for people that own leaky Macs. I did the same thing and just bought a regular boat pump and put some extra long wires on it and got a long hose for it. Now I can go virtually anywhere in the Mac and pump out the water with battery power. Welcome to the leakers support group....

[RHibbs]

I appreciate all the responses. I plan to systematically search for both the numerous potential sources of leaks and an easier mechanism to regularly pump bilges in my Leaky Mac. It rains a lot this time of year in Shreveport, LA.
RHibbs

[WASP18]

I love your comment WASP "I came to the realization that these boats leak and I don't know where and I gave up looking"...lol. I am so with you on that one. You could spend hours and hours looking but its probably alot easier to just pump it out and get rid of it. Your comment should go under "confessions of a Mac owner" and we should start a Mac support group for people that own leaky Macs. I did the same thing and just bought a regular boat pump and put some extra long wires on it and got a long hose for it. Now I can go virtually anywhere in the Mac and pump out the water with battery power. Welcome to the leakers support group....

Thanks Tony E. On a positive note, I actually enjoy watching the rapid suction of water removal. It's really amazing to see it expunged so completely.

[NiceAft]

I appreciate all the responses. I plan to systematically search for both the numerous potential sources of leaks and an easier mechanism to regularly pump bilges in my Leaky Mac. It rains a lot this time of year in Shreveport, LA.
RHibbs

RBibbs,

You can go to the “user control panel”, and then to “profile” to enter your location.

Ray

[Gazmn]

Wasp & Tony are Spot On:

Hi. I'm Greg & I have a leaky Mac...

` ( Reply- "Hi Greg ..." )

[NiceAft]

Yes, but Greg's Mac goes really, really, REALLY fast.

His solution to the problem, was create enough friction on the hull, so the bilge water just evaporates from the heat

Ray

[Jeff L]

Yes, but Greg's Mac goes really, really, REALLY fast.

His solution to the problem, was create enough friction on the hull, so the bilge water just evaporates from the heat

Ray

LOL

[Gazmn]

Thanks Ray

[Cougar]

... and we should start a Mac support group for people that own leaky Macs...

I guess that would be just about each and everyone of us.