Newbie in need of a LOT of help

[Davem5353]

Hello All,
my name is Dave, I'm from the Sweetest Place on Earth, Hershey PA and I'm darn glad I found this forum!
I'm a newbie to the site and a newbie to boating! I love to fish and been on boats but never owned one until recently. I bought a 1999 Lowe Fish and Ski Sea Nymph GLS 190 that was a PA Boat and Fish Commission patrol boat that I purchased through auction. The boat had been sitting outside for the past 4-5 years after the original motor an 1999 Evinrude 175hp FICHT seized up. I've since put a 2003 Johnson 150hp on it.
The boat seems sound and based on all the water that poured out once I removed the plug, the hull is sound. Cosmetically, well it looks like a boat that has been sitting outside not covered for 4 or 5 years. I'm anxious to get started with painting and installing new carpets, however it can get very cold up here and I need to be patient until spring. So while I wait, I'm trying to find out as much as possible about this boat however I can't find much info on the GLS 190 at all. And since I'm a newbie to owning a boat, and I have no clue on what I should be doing with this boat, I figured I'd ask all of you for the help!
I've also attached pictures (I hope) of the boat that may help with your advice.

Questions
1) Gas Tank - How can I tell if there is any sludge in the gas tank? It is a poly gas tank and I did pump about a gallon of gas before my hand pump tied. (Hope to get my mini electric Monday) Gas looked good and I ran it in my mower with no problem. I still plan on pumping all the gas out and fill with fresh gas but prior to doing so, I'd like to make sure the tank doesn't contain any sludge or water.
2) Wiring - Is there somewhere on this site or elsewhere that I can find a wiring diagram for this boat? I've searched for a manual and can't find anything. I hope to pull carpet and when I have it off would like to remove any unneeded wiring or run wiring I may need but it doesn't currently have. I believe boat had VHF and possibly other electronics based on wires under lefthand dash. (Picture attached)
3) ICU Injection - there are face plates in the front and back of boat. Not sure what they are. I did search the forum and someone posted a website but it is no longer valid. (post from 2010) I've attached picture below.
4) Re-enforcement plates - So the front of the hull has what looks to be pieces of metal at the front of the hull. Someone more knowledgeable than me stated they were re-enforcement plates? I've never heard of them and wanted to see if there is indeed enforcement plates for the hull?
5) Carpeting - Can indoor/outdoor carpeting be used on the boat? I've seen quite a bit of discussions on the forum on marine carpet vs outdoor carpet but it seems like there is not definitive acknowledgement stating outdoor can be used. (I'm on a budget and if outdoor will last for 4-6 years before I re-carpet that would work for me!)
6) Paint and Prep - what type of paint can be used on the hull under the water line? What type of paint for above water line? I do understand I should use a primer with zinc chromate, however is there specific paints I need for hull for above and under water line?
7) Water line - Is there a way to determine water line without putting the boat in the water?
8) Trolling motor - I have no idea what size and or what the front panel is for. (Picture attached) will 55/lb thrust work? I found one for sale with 60 inch shaft.

Hopefully pictures are attached below.
I appreciate any advice and help you can offer.
Dave

​

 

[joeanna]

hello and welcome aboard, Hersey, a nice place!
some wiring help is on this site under "electrical" look in the stickies.
on your gas tank, if its in the hull, there should be a pop out hatch cover, used to access the fuel sender.
I have an older sea-fox and not having a manual IS a real pain in the but.
my boat is a 16ft and moves very well with a 55lb trust trolling motor, it got me back to the ramp twice so far.....

 

[ondarvr]

1. Siphon or pump it out, not any other way to clean it.

2. Manuals don't have much in the way of helpful info about the boat, mostly just generic safety info. And rarely do they have any info about wiring, nor are there schematics available.

3. Pics didn't work, so no idea.

4. Same as 3

5. Anything can be used, the more you pay the better it works, most will last several years easily.

6. I assume the boat will be kept on a trailer, this means just about any paint can be used, from very low cost to mega $$$ stuff.

7. Unless there's a scum line on the hull, no.

8. 55# would be at the very low end of what you want, it will work, but you may be wanting more power. And it depends on how you plan to use it.

 

[Davem5353]

Thanks Joeanna, I will look for the pop out hatch!

 

[Davem5353]

Thanks ondarvr,
I appreciate all the information!
Not sure what I did wrong with the pictures! (I can see them in my post) I'll try again!

 

[jbcurt00]

Thanks ondarvr,
I appreciate all the information!
Not sure what I did wrong with the pictures! (I can see them in my post) I'll try again!

Because the pix are cached on your computer, so the pix load/showup. But dont for ths rest of us.

Pix help
http://forums.iboats.com/forum/forum-rules-and-guidelines/9938375-photo-upload-tutorial

 

[Davem5353]

No Title

Thanks JB! Hopefully these pics show up.

 

[joeanna]

after seeing the pic's of your boat, I would agree w/ ondarvr, 55lb trust would be min. Looks like a heavier boat then mine >1100lbs and you got a nice looking boat

 

[southkogs]

Welcome aboard Dave: ICU might be aerators for live wells. I think a couple companies used to call them that - literally using the term "intensive care unit" as it applied to aerating fish wells.

How much water was in the boat, and how long was it in there?

 

[Baylinerchuck]

Welcome aboard fellow pennsylvanian! I've used indoor/ outdoor carpeting on a past project boat with good success. It was a cheap alternative and was durable, and easy to lay down. I know there is much better stuff out there, but honestly the gray carpet I used worked well for my first boat.

 

[Teamster]

Make sure what ever carpet you use is "open loop",...

Closed loop will grab fish hooks and never let em go,........

 

[Davem5353]

thanks Joeanna and Ondarvr, once I figure out the shaft length I need I will use 55/lb thrust as a minimum for the trolling motor!

 

[Davem5353]

Thanks Southkogs, I did see that on an earlier post from 2010 (ICU for the live wells) but the link in the post is no longer available.
As for your question "How much water was in the boat and how long was it there" I'm not sure. I can tell you an officer at the boat and fish commission said he noticed it sitting funny a while back and he actually pushed the drain plug into the boat since he couldn't get it out. He said quite a bit of water came out when he did that. I pulled the boat home with no plug in (maybe 15 miles) but didn't see much of anything drain. However, when I poked the drain hole with a long screwdriver quite a bit came out. The hole was clogged and I would say a steady stream of water ran out 5-7 minutes before starting to slow down.

Could there be an issue with the water sitting in the boat for an extended period? Is there any indicators I should look for?

 

[Davem5353]

Teamster, thanks for the advice! Open loop carpet it is!

 

[Davem5353]

Hello Baylinerchuck, I appreciate the advice on the carpet. I was concerned since I've seen some posts about it being way to thin and the adhesive leaking through. I'll just make sure I use proper amount.
Also, I see your in the south central PA area? Do you boat on the susquehanna?

 

[SeaDooSam]

You got a nice boat there. At least in pictures it doesn't look like it's been sitting for 5 years outside IMO. Where do you plan to use this boat, a river?

 

[Davem5353]

Hello Sam,
most of the time I will more than likely run in the Susquehanna river since it is the closest body of water. There are some large lake like areas that I will probably stay in since I don't know the river that well, other than knowing if is very swallow in some areas. I do plan on trailering to some larger lakes (I.e. Raystown Lake) for long weekend fishing trips.

 

[southkogs]

As for your question ... Could there be an issue with the water sitting in the boat for an extended period? Is there any indicators I should look for?

Aluminum boats aren't built the same as fiberglass, so it may not be much of an issue at all. BUT - any wood (floors, stringers, etc) that's been sitting in water for any length of time is at risk. You may want to do some poking around the deck and under the deck (as best you can) to see.

The ICU fish well thing I recall from some article somewhere (what made it interesting to me was that they actually used "intensive care unit") that I've long since forgotten. There is another remote (and I mean VERY remote) possibility - there was some experimenting (may still be, I suppose) with air injection under the hull. By having some small ports to "shoot" air under the hull at certain points, you would decrease the amount of surface that was touching the water removing (in theory) drag. I don't know that it was ever used much if at all, but it was out there for a while.

 

[SeaDooSam]

Hello Sam,
most of the time I will more than likely run in the Susquehanna river since it is the closest body of water. There are some large lake like areas that I will probably stay in since I don't know the river that well, other than knowing if is very swallow in some areas. I do plan on trailering to some larger lakes (I.e. Raystown Lake) for long weekend fishing trips.

Sounds nice! If you are unfamiliar with waterways, and if you have a smartphone, consider getting the Navionics app

 

[Davem5353]

Thanks Southkogs!
I will for sure be poking around over the winter!