98 250 Sundancer water collects in aft cabin (cannot find leak) Going Crazy!!!

[Emcguinness]

I have a 98 Sundancer that appears to have a slow leak somewhere on the port side with water collecting towards the port back side of the aft cabin. carpets are damp on that side as well from the moister/wwater. I have checked the usual suspect and cannot locate the source of this water. Does anyone know of any know issues with this problem that could direct me in a more informed direction? MAny thanks. Ed

 

[oops!]

Re: 98 250 Sundancer water collects in aft cabin (cannot find leak) Going Crazy!!!

ed....i dont know of a problem with the dancer....there is a ray forum down below on this site, and a ray forum at searay....(the one at searay is not very good ata all compaired to theis one)

you say youve tracked all the "uasual" things........

what kind of situation are you in when you notice the water ? when boating?

is it calm or rough?......is the craft in the rain when it happens?

are there any thru hull openings in the cabin area? do you have waterlines around there?

any more info would be helpful

 

[Emcguinness]

Re: 98 250 Sundancer water collects in aft cabin (cannot find leak) Going Crazy!!!

Water only comes into cabin when it rains. IT is not a through hule fitting issues. When it rains or when the boat is washed. Takes a while for the water to accumulate.

 

[oops!]

Re: 98 250 Sundancer water collects in aft cabin (cannot find leak) Going Crazy!!!

take a garden hose to each section at a time.......top deck......wait a day....look......portholes....wait a day look.....you can find it in one day by adding a dye to the water....different dye, different area......but the food coloring dye will color the carpet......but that can be cleaned out



thats a real pita you got goin on there

 

[erikgreen]

Re: 98 250 Sundancer water collects in aft cabin (cannot find leak) Going Crazy!!!

Baby powder is your friend. Put out around the puddles, it will show which way the water comes from when you spray the deck with a hose. Follow that trail back.

You can vacuum up the unused powder after, and it smells ok too

 

[gstanton]

Re: 98 250 Sundancer water collects in aft cabin (cannot find leak) Going Crazy!!!

I just replaced the cover on a 230 Sea Ray and it cured the problem I was having with water on the floor. Obviously, the cover was allowing rain to come in to the lower cabin area.

Having said that... Do not go to Great Lakes Boat Tops (Sea Ray original equip. supplier) to get a new cover. If you do, make double sure you are ordering the EXACT correct top, as they will not honor their 100% guarantee.

 

[Mischief Managed]

Re: 98 250 Sundancer water collects in aft cabin (cannot find leak) Going Crazy!!!

I'd be willing to bet it's the screws in your hull to deck joint. Remove enough rubrail screws to get to the hull to deck screws without fully removing the rubrail (in other words, do it in sections). Pull every single hull to deck screw out, one at a time, and re-bed it with 3M 4200. Re-bed the rubrails screws with 4200 too. It's gonna take a few hours and I highly recommend using a caulking gun and a big tube of 4200, not small, toothpaste-style tubes.

Most folks/shops would just caulk the rubrail, and that'll work for awhile, but I prefer to leavethe rubrail uncaulked and actually attack the root of the problem.

If you bought the boat used, I bet it has caulk on the rubrail already from the last leak.

The windshield screws may also cause leaks, same treatment works there too...

 

[kbs]

I have the same problem with water in the aft cabin along the port and stern side. Did you find the solution?

 

[Mel Taylor]

This thread is over six years old. You need to start a new thread for your problem instead of posting to one that has seen no activity since the day it was posted.