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Aft bilge water?

Discussion in 'Carver Yacht' started by Washopay, Jan 27, 2012.

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  1. Washopay

    Washopay Guest

    3207 1985. Upon winterization, I found about 100+ litres of water in the aft bilge. The pump, is under the head (as far aft as you can go) The water pooled under the hanging locker. Can't for the life of me figure where it is coming from. Any ideas? Silly ass location for the aft bige anyhow as it's not at a low point.
  2. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    Is this an inboard or I/O? It could come from the engine room vents or stuffing box while underway, or through the deck hatches or joints from rain and washdown. Being under the head it could also be overflow from your shower sump if that pump isn't working. It could also enter through the screws in the hull/deck joint (check for rust at those screws). Really the only way to tell, since you're in fresh water is to dry it out good, catch it when it starts and track it back. A clean bilge will help. That way, if it's soapy for instance or contains antifreeze, you'll have a good clue where it's coming from although I'd probably open the sump and check that its pump is operating and that it's free of debris. Every boat gets water in the bilge. The problem comes from not evacuating it. 100+liters (26+ gals) is a lot for a boat that size. I'd check the location of my bilge pumps and that they're working. One should be located at the low point of the bilge while at rest, and near the low point while on plane. I'd also check the hoses leading overboard from the bilge pumps to see that they are still connected at the hull and that there are no holes.
  3. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    The bilge pump is located at the very stern, so that when you are running on plane all of the water will end up there at the transom and that pumps it out. The rest of the bilge water at rest usually runs to the foward pump. Is it working? Also, follow what NYCAP advised.....
  4. Fireman431

    Fireman431 Senior Member

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    Check anything that has water running to it, thru it, or from it. I was continually getting water in my bilge and I looked at all of the standard places. Finally figured it out. The was water leaking from the fresh water pump, but only when it was pressurizing. Never did it while off and pressurized.
  5. Beau

    Beau Senior Member

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    You're in a freshwater lake? To try to determine if it's freshwater from inside the boat, try keeping your water tank pressurized for a few day without using it to see if the water level drops (and there's water in the bilge). If not, check for rain or wash down water coming in from the outside. Just a couple of ideas. Good luck
    Last edited: Jan 29, 2012
  6. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    Water on white can be hard to track. If you're having trouble determining where the water is coming from tape a piece of colored paper below suspected locations. It will make it easy to spot.
  7. RAY DELINE

    RAY DELINE New Member

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    Can anyone please help me in fining out where the hose run out of the bilge pump on a Carver 3207 1983? As one of my bilge pump hose has been cut and is hanging. I been looking for it and can't find it
    Ray
  8. Oscarvan

    Oscarvan Senior Member

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    Is there a Carver forum?
  9. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    The hose should go to a thru hull as close as possible to the pump. Look outside for the nearest thruhull then look at it from the inside and see if it goes to the pump.
  10. RAY DELINE

    RAY DELINE New Member

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    Thank you , should I have two different hoses going to the outside of the hull?? can I put a 3 way in on the two hose to one outlet of the hull
  11. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    Each bilge pump should go to its own outlet 1) to shorten the run from each, 2) in case you have a severe intrusion so the one outlet isn't overwhelmed, 3) so the flooding isn't pushed from one pump to the other, 4) so that if the outlet from the aft pump becomes submerged the others can still dewater. The thought of a cut or eliminated bilge pump hose is alarming to me as I once almost sank at night in heavy seas due to a broken bilge pump hose that became an inlet. Little on your boat is as important as your bilge pumps except maybe your fire extinguishers.

    Oscarvan this is in the Carver forum.
  12. Norseman

    Norseman Senior Member

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    Water in my bilge comes from rod holders on the coamings (Rain) and air conditioning compressor tray under the V-berth.
    When it is too low for the bilge bumps, I use a manual “sump pump” with a suction hose to the lowest V shaped point in the bilge. (I also pour a little soap, like Simple Green in there to keep the water from developing life forms and to lube the pumps)
  13. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    There are so many designed and accidental ways for water to enter a bilge. Good idea with the Simple Green. A cup of bleach would also be a good idea to work on any mold.
  14. Norseman

    Norseman Senior Member

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    Yeah, I do a few drops of bleach now and then, but it may corrode parts and pieces: My “sump-pump”, Uh, pumps the low bilge water into the shower-box where it is again being pumped, this time overboard. Some of the components may be flimsy and not able to eat bleach too many times.
    The Simple Green however is “Environental Friendly” and should cause no harm on its way from my bilge to the ocean.:cool:
  15. Norseman

    Norseman Senior Member

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    I prefer to have a mushroom thru hull for every bilge pump, kind of redundancy.
  16. echo charlie

    echo charlie Member

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    The you tube inexpensive ARID BILGE system may work .
  17. rtrafford

    rtrafford Senior Member

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    Three way fitting will allow water you are discharging to flow back through the second pump on your plumbing T or Y. You could do this as a stop gap measure using back flow preventers, but those eventually stick and fail. Best path is to discharge each independently.
  18. Rusty Mayes

    Rusty Mayes Member

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    I'm in the middle of buying a 200 506 and noticed that the bilge in the engine room retains several gallons of water as the pumps and float switches are mounted on raised platforms 1.5 inches above the floor of the bilge. How is that a good design. I will be installing a dry bilge system of some sort as I personally like to maintain as dry a bilge as possible. I prefer the have my boat sitting in water not the other way around.
  19. mapism

    mapism Senior Member

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    Hose directly connected to the outlet with no valve in between, I suppose?
    It's amazing how many builders, also reputable ones, skimp on outlet valves just because in normal conditions they are unnecessary.
  20. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    Unless I'm misunderstanding what you're referring to I've never seen such a valve. In this case it it was a 45' crew boat with about 1 1/2' of freeboard. The bilge hose broke just inside the hull. We were in about 10' seas. We dropped a pump through the deck hatch with the hose coming out that hatch which brought it's own problem since the deck was awash. We had to seal the hatch with ropes.

    Rusty Mayes, It's not unusual to have 1.5" of water in parts of the bilge. The pumps are to keep you from sinking, not to keep your bilge dry. That's what sponges, rags and wet vacs are for. Remember you need the water to reach a certain point to activate the float switch. Your bilge pump is probably a little raised to keep it from continually running and driving you nuts.