The rains have been relentless the past two weeks and though my boat has a cover on it i did not realize that it was leaking. Also, like a fool I did not have the drain plug out and the rain accumulated in the boat well past the bilge and flooded the boat. The boat on it's trailer is at quite an angle and the water had reached the steering wheel, making the stern filled up a good 6-8" above the floorboards. There is oil everywhere now, I"ll have to replace the carpet for sure but I'm wondering if I've done permanent damage to the engine and what steps I need to ensure I'm protecting it as much as possible.
Any advice is greatly appreciated!
Thanks,
Nick
Hi Nick,
Welcome aboard!
Sorry to hear this! If it hasn't been sitting for long, after draining the entire boat, drain the water from the engine and replace the oil filter
Once you get the water out of the sump, refill the sump with clean oil, remove the distributor and turn the oil pump manually so you can ensure that all the water is purged out of the engine oil passages before turning it over.
Then you can remove the spark plugs and turn the engine to purge the cylinders of water. (did the water level get above to the carburetor?)
Unless the fuel tank was above the waterline, you may have to drain the fuel tank and purge the entire fuel system to include the fuel lines and carburetor.
Once you get the water out of the engine and the oil replaced, you can get it to the point where you can run it. I would pull the starter and alternator and dry them out by putting them on a heat register in the house (if you have forced air heat with floor registers)
Depending on what kind of boat this is, you may have water intrusion into the under-floor area that you cannot get out unless you pull up the floor.
Leaving water in there aside from increasing the total weight of the boat, will cause eventual rot in the floor and stringers.
If it's a newer boat, your insurance may cover the entire thing.
The above things are essential to do pretty soon.
(And the guy in your screen name once said
The worst calamities that befall an army arise from hesitation
Other members will likely jump right in with additional suggested things I may have missed.
Sorry about that! It sucks to have to leave a boat outside during off season!
Regards,
Rick
