electrolysis on a 2005 16prov tracker hull

Joined
Aug 22, 2015
Messages
7
my hull has never seen salt water and yet it looks like its deteriorating from the inside out.1 small seam leak-[2in] and half dozen pin prick size holes in bow???all below the water line..the boat is trailer ed......only once a year in a marina,,???it has a on board battery charger grounded..is there a fix??? tracker marine says too bad soo sad..never heard of this issue...........sooooo..can this be reversed???call i patch the leaks with p-11 and live with it???not sure what to do..the boat is less than 10yrs old ,bought new from bass pro shop...thanxs in advance.john
 

Watermann

Starmada Splash of the Year 2014
Joined
Jan 12, 2013
Messages
13,747
Is the boat kept covered and or inside a garage? Not sure how that could happen on a trailered boat unless it was wet inside Does the motor have a sacrificial anode on it? The flotation foam could be causing it if soaked with water.

To repair the damage it will have to be done from the inside unfortunately.
 

Bondo

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Apr 17, 2002
Messages
70,465
That was the first thought I had too.

Ayuh,.... If the hull is used for any kinda electrical "Circuit", it'll turn the hull to dust in short order,.....

All electrical circuits Must use it's own dedicated ground wire to the battery's ground,....
 

Scott Danforth

Grumpy Vintage Moderator still playing with boats
Staff member
Joined
Jul 23, 2011
Messages
47,300
welcome aboard.

agreed, if you have your onboard battery charger bonded to the hull, you just destroyed the hull.
 
Joined
Aug 22, 2015
Messages
7
battery charger knot mounted to hull..going to try and run a ground wire from neg on crank battery to boat...anode on engine seems fine..any other thoughts???
 

jbcurt00

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 25, 2011
Messages
24,829
Ayuh,.... If the hull is used for any kinda electrical "Circuit", it'll turn the hull to dust in short order,.....

All electrical circuits Must use it's own dedicated ground wire to the battery's ground,....

battery charger knot mounted to hull..going to try and run a ground wire from neg on crank battery to boat...anode on engine seems fine..any other thoughts???

I dont think you caught what Bondo said....
 

Watermann

Starmada Splash of the Year 2014
Joined
Jan 12, 2013
Messages
13,747
battery charger knot mounted to hull..going to try and run a ground wire from neg on crank battery to boat...anode on engine seems fine..any other thoughts???

Is your charger hooked up ground to the TM battery? If so that's how it should be..

Some ideas I have are to check your TM's ground cable to be sure it hasn't grounded itself to the hull anywhere and do the same with the ground cable to the main motor.Check any rigging pass through closely for cables sheaths that may have been worn or nicked to the cable. If you have a multi meter you can use it to check for connectivity on the ohms setting between battery ground cables and the hull.

Not sure if you saw my other question about if the boat is kept covered or inside a garage? Some pics of the boat overall and the damaged areas would be good too.
 
Joined
Aug 22, 2015
Messages
7
there is no master ground ,,,all ground wires are brought to neg on the crank battery.minus the trickle charger and that is connected to the neg of the trolling battery
 

Bob_VT

Moderator & Unofficial iBoats Historian
Staff member
Joined
May 19, 2001
Messages
26,019
I have a bit of "tin" knowledge too. I will name a few offending items that "tracker marine" ground to the hull........ running lights, bilge and livewell pumps too

Not being overly impressed with the quality of mass production......change it....... run independent grounds to the battery, use some PC11 or Gluvit to repair the pin holes...... and the problems should vanish. The problem you have now took 10 years! Be sure to check your hidden wood, deck and transon for soft spots on a 10 year old boat.

Have fun!
 

Silvertip

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Sep 22, 2003
Messages
28,758
If the engine is bolted to the hull there is a connection to the hull. The negative battery cable connects to the engine block which gets connected to the hull via the mounting bolts.
 

Bondo

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Apr 17, 2002
Messages
70,465
If the engine is bolted to the hull there is a connection to the hull. The negative battery cable connects to the engine block which gets connected to the hull via the mounting bolts.

Ayuh,.... The hull needs to be Bonded, but if circuits are grounded through the hull, it'll rot away,....
 
Joined
Aug 22, 2015
Messages
7
thanxs for the input...ill check for more grounds to the hull.... if that would cause such a fatal issue why do such shoddy work????
 

64osby

Admiral
Joined
Jul 28, 2009
Messages
6,799
After the warranty has expired the mfg has no responsibility. After 10 or 15 years most would scrap the boat and look to buy another. Maybe the boat owner would be foolish enough to buy the same brand.
 
Joined
Aug 22, 2015
Messages
7
No Title

the boat is covered when knot in use..going to apply some p-11 to the big crack areas and see what happens
 

Attachments

  • photo229158.jpg
    photo229158.jpg
    136.7 KB · Views: 0
  • photo229159.jpg
    photo229159.jpg
    127.4 KB · Views: 0
  • photo229160.jpg
    photo229160.jpg
    130 KB · Views: 0
  • photo229161.jpg
    photo229161.jpg
    104.2 KB · Views: 0
Joined
Aug 22, 2015
Messages
7
after checking and re checking all of the wire harnesses i surrendered and traded the boat in for a 2015 LOWE 1810 fish and ski.took a beating on trade in value,butt got a great boat in return with a lifetime hull warranty..thanxs for all your inputs
 

fishin98

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Nov 28, 2009
Messages
521
Sorry for the beating you took, glad you got a new boat.....Future Reference for all. Nothing on the boat should be used for the electrical system ground. The common ground should be off the battery or a ground bar(mounted independent from the hull) to the battery. If you installed a on-board battery charger, it should be mounted onto a piece of wood or composite material, then affixed to the boat.
 
Top