QUICK PLEASE HELP! First time owning a boat and and i tied it to my dock overnight, and now there is water in the boat! The drain plug was put in before I got it in the water! Is this a normal amount of water after one day and night of being in lake?
>>780444
Aluminum hull?
maybe your rivets leaking?.
probably normal for an old boat.
you cant leave it in the water for a great length of time without pumping out the water it takes on-board.
>>780450
Yeah it's aluminum and made in 1996. So this is normal? This is only after one night of being tied to a dock. Shouldn't it not get water since I have a drain plug in though?
>>780450
This.
Can't tell from the pic but if it has rivets then they will loosen over time. Sadly there's nothing you can really do about it.
>>780456
yes its normal for an old boat.
nothing to be perturbed about as long as you know you cant just leave it sitting in the water unattended for more than 24 hours.
Though you might double check to see there's not something wrong with the plug.
Protip: Your boat motor is worth 10 times the value of that old boat hull.
If your disturbed by the leaking. hold onto the motor and replace the hull at some point with one that doesn't leak as much.
>>780467
>hold onto the motor and replace the hull
i mean, assuming its an outboard. cant tell for sure from you pic.
>>780467
The water is also sloshing out of vent in pic related is that a problem?
>>780462
Also the boat is all one piece, one piece of metal so no rivets right?
>>780476
Clearly you are in imminent danger. Op i'm sorry to say it is time to abandon ship and scuttle this thread.
>>780482
For real?
>>780467
>normal for an old boat
stop with the bad/b8 advice. You could kill anon here.
OP if that boat has a bilge pump it is OK to take on water. A bilge pump is an electric motor that pumps water out the side of the boat.
If it does not have a bilge pump it is not the type that can take on water.
There will be a switch on the dash board that says bilge if you have one.
You should also use teflon tape for the drain plug. Make sure it's in good and tight.
>>780491
I have a bilge pump switch but when I turned it on, I didn't hear anything happen and water didn't drain from around the battery. But I only waited for like 10 mins, does it take longer than that?
Could OP not just epoxy over the rivets to seal them up?
>>780492
Try to activate engine. Battery might be ded
>>780499
Engine works
>>780501
Pump might be broke
>>780506
If I can get the boat out of the water can I check for that?
>>780508
Yeah
>>780511
Will see it coming out of side? Do bilge pumps work while in the water?
Also could it be he drain plug because the boat has no rivets. The drain plug seems old but it fits really tight
>>780491
okay mister naval expert. name one old boat that doesn't leak
>>780513
Not an expert but the one I had shot out the side. You might see it on the back. Only do a short test while out of water
>>780514
>doesn't leak
His has a bilge, it's OK designed. Stop being an ass.
>>780492
Bilge will turn on instantly and you'll hear it and see water pissing out the side.
No need to take boat out of water to check pump. Wont make it any easier. Find bilge outlet, trace back to bilge pump, run normal electrical tests, ie, if switch is truned on, do you get power at pump, then pump bad. If no power at pump, start diagnosing electrical.
Thats pretty much normal for an old boat. Install an automatic bilge pump so itll pump the water out if youre gonna leave it at the dock for any period of time.
Since there are no rivets could it be the drain plug???
>>780538
Bump pls halp
>>780444
The best way to check for leaks is drydock it. Put it on a trailer and have someone stand on the outside of the hull with a flashlight. At night. And someone inside with a paint pen (pic) and any area light comes through to circle it. Then you can wait until the boat is dry and patch all the holes.
Apprentice shipwright.
>>780575
Could it be a bad drain plug if there are no holes?
>>780586
If thats what you think it is, why are you even still here asking? Go replace it!
>>780586
>remove drain plug
>inspect drain plug
>>780444
Dry dock it, drain it, inspect it, etc. Also, get a small bilge pump if you don't already have one.
>>780586
>bad drain plug
No such thing. There are improperly fitting drain plugs or stripped drain holes but a hunk of metal can't be bad or leak.
>>780598
Its a small boat. His is most likely a rubber and plastic drain plug. And they can be pretty craptastic. But op should still inspect his craft with a flash light and marker anyway because its the right/safe thing to do. Nothing worse then having a tiny crack open up to a big crack 5 miles away from home dock.
>>780444
Has it been raining overnight?
>>780602
>>780610
Nah it didn't rain, and it is a plastic drain plug. But when I pulled drain plug out, a bunch of water came out. So if the drain plug was holding back that much water then there must not be anything wrong with it right? It seems like if the drain plug was letting water in it would also let water out once pulled out of water.
If it isn't a drain a bad drain plug then it has to be a small hole somewhere right? I didn't see any.
>>780489
No...
>>780575
I could do that on a boat lift right? How would I patch an aluminum boat?
Thanks all for help btw,
>>780621
Does engine have to be cranked for bilge pump to work?
>>780626
I don't believe so. It might vary from boat to boat, but my 1980's seaswirl and if I recall I can run the pump without the engine on. You should hear the pump running
Guys I found a hole by where the engine is bolted on, could the water of risen and gone into the boat that way?
>>780670
Here's another pic hole is where y fingertip is
Which one of these is best for an aluminum bass boat?
>>780805
We all start somewhere
>>780723
I like the T handle type in the middle. Weeds and snags and the like don't trip them like the cam type.
>>780902
is it raining?
>>780905
Nope. I wish it was that simple
>>780902
Do you have an intake for the live well? If so, check there - I mean these are usually connected to a pipe connected to a bilge pump then to live well (intake seen from under the hull as a small covered opening). They also sometimes have a manual valve inline before the pump. Anything along that setup can be leaking...hopefully after the value so you can just shut the value and the problem is solved.
Other than that, you have a leak around the plug or a seam/hole problem - take it out of the water and examine closely.
>>780916
There is a separate hole on the boat besides where the drain plug goes, is that what you mean? I'll take a pic tommorow
here are two holes by drain plug, could start be getting in from here? Do they go to a bilge pump or live well?
>>780622
theres a number of ways to patch it. depends on how bad it is leaking.
find the leak, you can also fill the interior some with water and trace the drips. a much easier method than the light.
3M 5200 boat caulking works okay but isnt permanent
GLUVIT..is a thick 2 part epoxy that is a permanent fix. it is also flexible which you need for a tin boat.
theres also epoxy putty. which works but is not permanent (I use a product called alumaweld)
these 3 are the best to use and will last the longest.
You can also rebuck the rivet but thats a lot of work or you can drill out the leaking rivet and replace it with a new rivet. make sure the rivet is a closed end rivet.
>>780444
OP, despite what some people might tell you.
Boats were not built to float.
