possible leak? howbig of deal?

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jasperpso2

Petty Officer 2nd Class
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Aug 2, 2009
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welll, i have a 1987 sweetwater 20' pontoon that i just got a few days ago.. had a great couple of days on the river....

when i got home tonite, and went outside, i looked and i saw a drip coming from the front of the right pontoon.. not allot, but a drip.. so lookin closer, i find a little weld, about 3 inchs long that is were the drip is comin from, it is definitely a after production weld.. tapping on the pontoon, it is obviously not full of water..

how serious is this?? i havent pulled the plug from the rear of the pontoon to see just how much is in there.. is it likely a leak like this will get worse? or should i just keep a eye on it and see?? is there a compound or anything like jb weld that i might just use to try and seal the area around the weld? or would this be futile in a marine application? i use this rig on the mississippi, and it is no joke, and i want to be safe.. what would u do?

thanks
jason
 
J

jasperpso2

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

i pulled the plugs, the left one had no water in it.. thats good i guess.. the right one had some water in it.. it drained out in about 5 min though, and it was by no means full.. if i had to guess i would say between 10-20 gallons.. i have had the boat out each day the last 3 days, for 4-5hrs a day.. i didnt drain it at all, except for the dripping, so i have to imagine i didnt get that all in one day, but i dont know.. i couldnt tell any adverse effects at all by the water, i didnt notice anything tell i saw it dripping 2 hrs after coming off the river.. are these things repairable? i am a little distraught by this, i dont like the idea of a leak..

what are the chances of a leak like this causing the boat to sink? is it possible?? a friend said he didnt think it would cause it to sink, but i want some more opinion on the subject.. thanks for all info
 
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pnwboat

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

Sounds like the leak is not enough to sink you right away, but that depends on how long you keep it in the water. You probably should get it fixed. The best way is to get it welded. If that's not an option, you could probably get away by using some JB Weld or another product called Gluvit. Just scuff up the area around the leak so that the epoxy has something to stick to.
 
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EGlideRider

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

As mentioned above, welding is the best solution. Check in your phone book for welding shops. Most all them can weld aluminum.
 
lncoop

lncoop

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

A competent aluminum welding shop can easily pressure test and repair both toons for a reasonable fee. I can't say what it will cost you since I have no idea where you are (hint), but in my neck of the woods it's around a hundred bucks unless they're about to fall apart, in which case you have bigger problems any way. Pretty cheap peace of mind. Get 'em welded up and enjoy your barge!;)
 
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robert graham

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

On my old riveted aluminum canoe I've used 3M Yellow Weatherstrip Adhesive(comes in a tube from Auto-Zone) on small pin-holes, cracks, old rivets,etc. Clean the area with a wire brush or sandpaper, apply a small blob, let dry to a rugged, flexible little seal that's good for a year or 2. It's a lot cheaper and easier than welding. J-B Weld is another alternative. Of course if you have a real structural crack or hole then the best thing is have it welded. I wouldn't be very comfortable with a leak in a pontoon where you can't see how much water is coming in, like maybe the crack really opens up when you're 15 miles down the river!
 
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jasperpso2

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

thanks for all the responses, i think i have definitely identified the leak, there isa 3 in weld, i am guessing that patched a small hole, and the first inch of this weld isnt seated well, and has cracked away from the boat.. the 2nd 2 inches of the weld look great. i am thinking i could get away with jb weld or similar, but it could be grinded down and re-welded very easily.. i think i will inquire with a welder i know about fixing it proper.. i will post a pic in a lil while of the proplem weld, maybe you guys could give your 2 cents about it..
 
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jasperpso2

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

here is the pics... any new opinions after seeing it??

picture.php


picture.php
 
Water logged

Water logged

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

My opinion is that's one crappy looking weld:eek: I would get that ground down and rewelded.

Glenn
 
5150abf

5150abf

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

Been an aluminum welder for 23 years and Water Logged is right, that is a crappy weld, yikes.

Grind off the bad part of the weld and have your buddy pull the plug before welding, as the air heats up in the tube it expands and tries to get out the hole you are fixxing if you don't and the worst thing for a weld is oxygen.
 
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lmuss53

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

I would suggest you let the welder grind it, my aluminum welder specifically warned me about grinding anyplace I wanted him to weld. He said the wrong or contminated abrasives could make his job much harder. That looks like the leak I had in my tube, which we thought was caused by water accumulated in the keel freezing and tearing the weld away from the tube, thereby tearing the tube and creating the leak. I would guess that is a less that $100 repair, and I certainly think you should get it fixed properly.
 
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mike243

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

looks like a torch job to me,i tried some of the alum welding rods years ago made for use with a torch,they had a very small window of use & vertical wasnt 1 of them,a mig or tig will fix it up quickly,mike243
 
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robert graham

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

Yep, you can patch it up for a while, but that crack needs to be welded up right. It really should be an easy fix for a good welding shop. You might consider getting him to weld on some small aluminum angle pieces on your leading edges as reinforcement, especially if you're beaching your pontoon in rocky areas that may wear on those spots. Good Luck!
 
Thad

Thad

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

Where are you located at? If you are/were around my area, my best bud could weld that up in no time flat and it would only cost you a 30 pack:)

Of course the down side is he expects you to drink some of it with him so it can't be called "payment";).
 
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jasperpso2

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

Thad said:
Where are you located at? If you are/were around my area, my best bud could weld that up in no time flat and it would only cost you a 30 pack:)

Of course the down side is he expects you to drink some of it with him so it can't be called "payment";).
Click to expand...


Dixon is quite a ways, i am from Burlington Iowa on the southeast corner of iowa on the mississippi.. minus the gas, the price would of been right! i appreciate the thought too.

it so happens i am a dish network installer for my family business, and i have installed satellites and other various things for a ton of people around here.. i happened to be at the welding instructor house from the local college, which i do quite a bit of work for. i told him about my problem, and he told me to bring it out today.. i have to work, i hope i can get there early enough.. i have no doubts of his ability, i have seen a plate boat that he built 15 yrs ago when he was my welding teacher in high school.. so it looks like it i got it figured out.. good timing too, cause steamboat days started yesterday, and i want to barbeque and watch the music from the deck.. and i dont want to sink! ; )

on a side note, i took it out yesterday, and that little crack takes on quite a bit of water? only on the water maybe 2 hrs, it took on at least 10 gallons.. on the other hand, i didnt notice it effecting floatation at all.. but certainly couldnt leave it on the water overnight..
 
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jasperpso2

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

well, i took it to my friend today, (not yesterday - worked later instead) and he first took a slag hammer and hit the old weld, after a couple whacks, it just fell off, revealing about a 1/2in crack behind it.. the weld hadnt penetrated at all, and was just allowing water to pass through.. this time my friend grinded it down, heated it up with a torch to remove any water, brushed it with a wire wheel and then a stainless steel brush, and then proceeded to add material to the area with a aluminum rigged mig welder with argon gas.. he added puddles of material top and bottom, and then went back and laid a bead through the middle.. cleaned it up with the grinder, and it looks great.. i asked him what he wanted for the job, and told me in no way would he accept payment.. what a great friend.. this evening i went down to the mississip, and launched, cruised fo about a hour, pulled outside the port and anchored.. watched a country music concert at 'Steamboat Days' festival, and barbeques burgers, when the show was over, cruised a few minutes, and then loaded her up... i get home and pull the plugs..................................................NO WATER, NOT A DROP! WOOOOHOOOOOOO! man it feels good to know it is safe now.. thanks allot for all your suggestions folks.. i feel better



tonite while anchored, it was fairly rough water, and at the festival, hundreds of boats cram tight together.. a 25 foot baja's anchor slipped, and rather then start it, he just let it run into my bow.. i was sooooo mad, but after inspection, i didnt see ant damage to my boat.. it hit right on the reinforced point.. put a fairly large hole in the Baja... is it wrong that it made me happy to see his damage.. i am the newbie boater, and he is the one that runs into me.. figures huh..
 
lncoop

lncoop

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

Outstanding. Glad it worked out for you. Enjoy your new leak free rig.
 
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lmuss53

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Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

Enjoy your newly dry boat, but try not to take too much joy in the other boater's mistake. Unless you are a very lucky guy you will get your chance to be the one saying "Oops". :D
 
J

jasperpso2

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Aug 2, 2009
Messages
100
Re: possible leak? howbig of deal?

yeah, i know... it was just stressful, i got it fixed yesterday morning, and got hit last night. but your right, it could have been me.. thanks again guys
 
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