Water in Tournament Hull.

[Paikea]

One of my earlier posts showed pics of the 3 buckets of water that came out of the transducer screw holes on the starboard side of my 1800 Tournament.

As I have not been able to identify the source of the leak that let the water in in the first place and as the compartment is supposed to be completely sealed I have bought an inspection device from Jayco that allows you to put a 9mm dia probe through a small hole and see what is happening in the cavity. At $85.00 the inspection unit will be good value if I can find out where the water is coming in.

I will have to drill a 12mm hole in the floor to insert the probe. probably need to do that for the four rear sealed compartments.

Since discovering the water in my boat I recently heard of another Tournament that had a similar problem. Rang the service guy at Blakes Marine who had been working on removing water from a T20 Tournament, he said that they got the water out by removing the fuel tank and drilling holes through the main stringers (Glass) but he could not find the cause of the leak.

Has anyone else had this problem?

I will post details of anything that I find from the inspection.

Question; should I be able to claim the leak on insurance?

Cheers

Paikea

[Dfishin]

Is there any chance the water leaked in through the screw holes of the transducer you pulled of ? even if only a small leak over time it would fill up ?

[GaryO]

Im not familiar with these boats but do they have an anchor well ? I have seen the drain pipe on them not secured to the skin fitting properly and the water from the well and wash from outside the boat has leaked into the hull. May not be applicable to your type of boat but may help others chasing leaks.

[pjbink]

Aren't they foam filled? The foam would make it hatd to see where the leak is, and it could be anywhere

in the hull. Is it salt or freshwater coming out?

Insurance wouldn't cover it unless accident damage has caused the leak. Your best hope would be a

a claim under warranty.

Edited December 29, 2013 by billfisher

[Paikea]

I don't believe that the compartments are foam filled but will find out when I drill the inspection hole.

My initial thought was that the water had got in through the transducer screw holes but 3 buckets past screws that had some sealant on them seems a big call. I was surprised to find that the screw had gone right through the transom, normally they would stop short of doing that. I will be asking the manufacturer what the thickness of the transom is.

I originally rang Tournament just before they sold out to the Haines group and the factory manager sent me the following pic of the under floor layout of a similar boat. All Fibreglass and supposedly all sealed between compartments and the floor over. It looks great but only adds to the mystery as to how the water got in. (If you left click (once) on the pic it will change to full screen

Thanks for your comments

Cheers

Paikea

[Dfishin]

Over time that any amount of water will pass through a leaking screw hole. I once had a Stacer 525 that got electrolisys in it causing initially 1 tiny pin hole. Over a couple of days or less on the water while camping we had water coming up over the floor boards.

The water in your hull isnt getting drained out after every trip on the water. It will fill up from the smallest leak.

When i got a brand new boat only a couple of years ago there was a leak coming through where the transducer cable comes through the back of the transom which was above the water line. Even though it was above the water line enough water was coming in with the chop/ rocking of the boat to cause concern.

I would not jump to conclusions and think the worst of a hull defect, I would check the basics first meaning anything that has been added or drilled to the hull as such including on the inside if anything has been screwed into the walls of these compartments. I have seen some really stupid things done to boat hulls by the people selling the boat from new drilling in bad places and not taking care of sealing things correctly.

Dave

[Paikea]

Is there any chance the water leaked in through the screw holes of the transducer you pulled of ? even if only a small leak over time it would fill up ?

Given Dfishin's comment that is a distinct possibility

I'm not familiar with these boats but do they have an anchor well ? I have seen the drain pipe on them not secured to the skin fitting properly and the water from the well and wash from outside the boat has leaked into the hull. May not be applicable to your type of boat but may help others chasing leaks.

Dave

Yes it has an anchor well but even if water leaked in there the chambers are all sealed from each other, there are no limber holes for water to run down to the transom. But I will check the drain tube.

Over time that any amount of water will pass through a leaking screw hole. I once had a Stacer 525 that got electrolisys in it causing initially 1 tiny pin hole. Over a couple of days or less on the water while camping we had water coming up over the floor boards.

The water in your hull isnt getting drained out after every trip on the water. It will fill up from the smallest leak.

When i got a brand new boat only a couple of years ago there was a leak coming through where the transducer cable comes through the back of the transom which was above the water line. Even though it was above the water line enough water was coming in with the chop/ rocking of the boat to cause concern.

I would not jump to conclusions and think the worst of a hull defect, I would check the basics first meaning anything that has been added or drilled to the hull as such including on the inside if anything has been screwed into the walls of these compartments. I have seen some really stupid things done to boat hulls by the people selling the boat from new drilling in bad places and not taking care of sealing things correctly.

Dave

Thanks Dave, your info/experience makes me feel a whole lot better but I will still check the area that the water came from with the inspection scope. Maybe there will be water tracks from the screw holes that will prove that the water came in through the screws.

I originally thought that the possibility of water leaking through the screw holes may have been increased as a result of the previous owner using the boat for water skiing at Lake Jindabyne. Maybe he left it in the water overnight or maybe the temperature differential between the boat standing in the sun and then putting it in very cold water could have sucked water in through the screw holes. Any thoughts on that theory?

Thank you all for offering suggestions. They are much appreciated.

Cheers

Paikea

[arpie]

Damn! Hope you get to the bottom of it, Paikea! Most inconvenient, let alone upsetting!! Fingers crossed you sort it & are out & about soon!!

Roberta

[pjbink]

Water will travel along surfaces by a process called capillary action. If the screw holes goes all the way

through the transom (poor installation) then it's quite likely that this is how the water got in. Seeing

that the boat was used in freshwater i would be worried about wood rot in the transom. I would be

drying the area out, treating the wood with Evadure and sealing the holes up properly (and I don't

mean with sealant).

[Paikea]

Water will travel along surfaces by a process called capillary action. If the screw holes goes all the way

through the transom (poor installation) then it's quite likely that this is how the water got in. Seeing

that the boat was used in freshwater i would be worried about wood rot in the transom. I would be

drying the area out, treating the wood with Evadure and sealing the holes up properly (and I don't

mean with sealant).

I used larger screws and Sikaflex to seal the holes, would that be ok or do I need to fill them with epoxy and gel coat repair putty over?

Re drying the area out, it is completely sealed however I will be drilling a small hole in the floor to allow the inspection scope camera to fit through. The only way to get in there would be to install a 6 inch plastic screwed inspection port. That would be a big job. Also, the batteries are positioned over the spot where the port could be fitted. Problem in terms of potentially damaging the bottom of the battery!

As I have yet to put the boat in the water since I purchased it would the dealer that sold me the boat have any responsibility to fix this problem?

Thanks

Cheers

Paikea

[pjbink]

I used larger screws and Sikaflex to seal the holes, would that be ok or do I need to fill them with epoxy and gel coat repair putty over?

I doubt that duplicating what probably caused the problem would be OK. You don't want holes going all the the way through the transom. The latter suggestion would be the go.

Re drying the area out, it is completely sealed however I will be drilling a small hole in the floor to allow the inspection scope camera to fit through. The only way to get in there would be to install a 6 inch plastic screwed inspection port. That would be a big job. Also, the batteries are positioned over the spot where the port could be fitted. Problem in terms of potentially damaging the bottom of the battery!

It's not sealed as you have holes going through the transom. Just dry out the holes before you repair them.

As I have yet to put the boat in the water since I purchased it would the dealer that sold me the boat have any responsibility to fix this problem?

Diid they include a warranty as part of the deal?

[Paikea]

Damn! Hope you get to the bottom of it, Paikea! Most inconvenient, let alone upsetting!! Fingers crossed you sort it & are out & about soon!!

Roberta

Thanks Roberta, I am starting to feel a bit like a ten pin bowling ball, get up and knocked down again. But well get there,

I used larger screws and Sikaflex to seal the holes, would that be ok or do I need to fill them with epoxy and gel coat repair putty over?

I doubt that duplicating what probably caused the problem would be OK. You don't want holes going all the the way through the transom. The latter suggestion would be the go.

Re drying the area out, it is completely sealed however I will be drilling a small hole in the floor to allow the inspection scope camera to fit through. The only way to get in there would be to install a 6 inch plastic screwed inspection port. That would be a big job. Also, the batteries are positioned over the spot where the port could be fitted. Problem in terms of potentially damaging the bottom of the battery!

As I have yet to put the boat in the water since I purchased it would the dealer that sold me the boat have any responsibility to fix this problem?

Did they include a warranty as part of the deal?

There is no specific reference to a Warranty however it is my understanding that Statutory Warranty that requires a product to be fit for its intended purpose may apply. Any lawyers among the Raiders?

We live in hope, in the meantime I will try to drill the small hole in the floor and have a look.

Stand by for further reports!

Cheers

Paikea

[Testlab]

Regarding defects warranty, the boat is second hand but the statutory guarantees under the Aus Consumer Law still apply. A boat shouldn't leak when sold unless you were told it might have a leak and bought it "as is." But since it isn't new they don't have the same responsibility as the manufacturer would if it was new.

I think the hot boat into cold water theory is very valid. The pressure drop could be substantial and draw water through the tiniest of paths until the pressure was equalized and it would keep doing it if the entry point was under water but above the level of water in the compartment, so you could wind up with a lot of water in there over successive uses that allowed water to enter put not get forced out again.

Since you've resealed everything I would use the boat and monitor the situation before drilling anymore holes. It may not take anymore in and you'd be worrying about nothing.

[Paikea]

Regarding defects warranty, the boat is second hand but the statutory guarantees under the Aus Consumer Law still apply. A boat shouldn't leak when sold unless you were told it might have a leak and bought it "as is." But since it isn't new they don't have the same responsibility as the manufacturer would if it was new.

I think the hot boat into cold water theory is very valid. The pressure drop could be substantial and draw water through the tiniest of paths until the pressure was equalized and it would keep doing it if the entry point was under water but above the level of water in the compartment, so you could wind up with a lot of water in there over successive uses that allowed water to enter put not get forced out again.

Since you've resealed everything I would use the boat and monitor the situation before drilling anymore holes. It may not take anymore in and you'd be worrying about nothing.

Thank you for a very comprehensive reply. Sounds like a plan if I can get ALL of the remaining water out.

Cheers

Paikea