Hi all,
Any info/ideas would be helpful.
I have just bought a Red Witch on a trailer, test sailed it once for 30 minutes ten days ago. Didn't check under the floor boards.
We struck the concrete launching pad at a low angle coming in, no drama.
Yacht was then kept on trailer.
A week later I found 3 - 4 inches of brown water in the bilge. Bailed it out, sponged dry.
Two days later I found the forward bilge compartment with 3 - 4 inches of brown water in it, maybe a litre or so. Sponged it dry. Left a bucket over it in case it came in from topside somehow. There had been no rain the whole time, though I did hose the deck down after the trial sail.
Same again 2 days later, about a litre of brown water, again I sponged it dry.
Tonight I found the same.
I'm thinking the water is being squeezed up by capillary action from the steel keel, which has some surface rust spots.
Has anyone noted this phenomena before?
Any ideas as to what may be happening here?
Luke,
[email protected]
Is the water fresh?
Never heard of water being drawn up out of a keel, and I don't think there could be that much anyways.
I would more likely think it's been held in another compartment which has a slow leak into your bilge.
Try this,
Dry bilge really well and lay paper towell to see if water is coming from
Or dust it with talcum powder, it is going to show the sneaking of the liquid's way and hopefully it's origin.
I've had a similar experience...
In my case on my aged yacht, the brown water was contained behind a (so called) water tight bulkhead below the anchor well (i've found how it entered). I noticed the bulkhead had distended slightly and subsequently found the plywood was rotten. As i was doing a full rebuild on the yacht when i breached the bulkhead (with a grinder) I emptied the compartment (behind said bulkhead) it was full of brown smelly fluid (about 30litres).
I'd say you have a similar compartment somewhere on board that has held water for sometime and is leaking from there.
I have a small amount of false floor from the blige to the mast, with no drain from the front section to the back bilge area. The water can get under the floor with a long period of water sitting in the bilge and in front of the floor from rain.
I sponge it out and behold the next day there is some more. There is a very tiny crack that lets the water very slowly leak out from under the floor. And lets it in when the bilge is full.
