How much water is normal?

[hucka003]

I have a 1993 Glastron with a 3.0LX Sterndrive. We've had it for a several years, nothing but minor issues so far, has been a great boat. One thing that I haven't figured out is how much water is normal to have in the bilge (area underneath the motor where the bilge pump is). Question I have, after a day on the lake, generally doing some tubing, skiing and wake boarding, when I take the plug out, water will run out of the hole for about 10-15 seconds at a pretty steady flow (I have not measured how much water is actually coming out yet). Its not enough water for the bilge pump to run (its a manual switch and I usually turn it on several times, you can hear it running, but the water level in the bilge is not high enough to pump anything out). Is it likely this is just splashing coming in through the sides/people getting on and off the boat wet, or is it likely a bigger issue?

Thanks,

 

[Scott Danforth]

assuming no holes in the boat, no leaks in the engine plumbing, etc...... none

water running for 10-15 seconds out of your transom plug would be about 2-3 gallons

even if your kids cam out from swimming and peed in your boat, you wouldnt get that much.

you have a leak from somewhere. suggest you tie the boat off to the dock, get in the bilge with a flashlight and mirror and start looking.

it usually takes about 5 gallons of water or more in the bilge for a pump to get enough of a gulp to push any out.

 

[adangelo77]

Was the bilge dry before launching the boat? (dry and was it tilted enough to have the water in the bow come out the plug?) If the boats been in the water for a few days its normal to have that amount of water (rain etc). If it was dry and you just put it in, you definitely have a leak coming in from somewhere, you wouldn't get that much water from running it for the day. Try and locate the leak and patch it up shouldn't be a hard fix since it doesn't sound like the leak is significant.

 

[hucka003]

Thanks guys, it does come out of the water each time, we have had heavy rain this summer (cover does leak a bit, so I made sure to completely dry it out after the last use and parked it in the garage, will test it this week and see if that is the issue or if I have a leak somewhere else. Thanks.

 

[tpenfield]

Maybe see if the cockpit drains lead into the bilge. A day on the water and peeps going on/off the boat from the water could put a bit of water there . . . otherwise, it could be a slow leak coming from 'somewhere' :noidea:

 

[briangcc]

I can count on one hand the number of times I had that happen and I know the causes...all on my Four Winns....

First the exhaust bellows were never tightened correctly by the selling marina and those dufus's couldn't figure it out. Once tightened by a competent marina, the bilge was dry.

Second some wonderful wildlife filled the discharge tube with a nest. During a heavy rainstorm I had to pull my boat and when I pulled the drainplug it drained for a good 30seconds or more. After the clog was cleared the boat was bone dry for the remainder of my trip.

Third I had maybe 10-15 seconds of water, like you're describing. Not enough for the bilge pump to clear. Was due to my boat being THE platform for vacation so I had lots of people going in/out of the boat while swimming/tubing/whatnot.

Finally there was about 10-15 seconds of water drainage after a week's use on the water where it should have been dry. Bellows were leaking and needed replacement. Got 10 years out of OEM Volvo parts - not shabby.

Your mileage may vary...dramatically. Given the age of your boat, I'd start snooping around to see what's going on.

 

[Captain Caveman]

10-15 seconds sounds like a bit much for just general swimming. Not much comes out when I've got all of my nieces and nephew jumping off the boat and then climbing back in over a weekend.

If you want, you could put a water hose in your bilge and then let your boat partially fill up with water for a bit. Of course, be careful not to soak your foam! By putting water into your bilge while on the trailer, you might be able to spot water leaking out somewhere. Drain the boat into your lawn so the water at least goes back into the aquifers!

 

[southkogs]

^^^ I'll recommend against that. No offense.

I'd say next time you're out, keep sticking your head in the bilge and lookin' for water coming in. Filling the inside of the boat increases the risk of damaging stuff that's not supposed to get wet.

 

[Grub54891]

^^^ Never put water deliberately into your boat while on the trailer! ^^^ It stresses the hull, and overloads the trailer and suspension. It can also submerge the starter, or damage done electrical down there.
simply launch the boat and look with the motor off, if no leaks start her up and look. Be carefull of moving parts.
Edit
Southkogs beat to it, I type slow...

 

[southkogs]

Southkogs beat to it, I type slow...

yeah ... but you took the time to tell 'em why :thumb:

 

[Captain Caveman]

I suppose that I should have paid attention to it being a fiberglass boat and also that not all bilges are the same. Putting 20 or 30 gallons of water in the bilge of my aluminum boat wouldn't hurt a thing. There are no electronics down there except for the bilge pump. That's what I was thinking about.

Trailers are generally made to hold a couple hundred extra pounds of gear. Last summer I hauled 2,300lbs of concrete in my boat for four hours up to my lake (yes it was still under the trailer's max weight including boat/motor/batteries/gas/gear). It didn't hurt a thing on the boat or trailer, but again, I have a different setup. Sorry for giving less-than-stellar advice!

 

[hucka003]

Had the boat out today, boat was fully dry. I checked inside the engine bay several times and there was little to no water inside it. Still when I pulled the boat out, it ran pretty steady for about 10 seconds or so when I pulled the plug. Noting that I check the engine bay even when we pulled up to the dock before pulling out, again little to no water. I'm taking a guess that this might mean I have some hull damage that a professional needs to take a look at. I've patched some gel coat spots over the years below the water line, but nothing seems large enough to let that much water in.... Thoughts?

 

[tpenfield]

Yes, you have a leak somewhere . . . does not mean hull damage . . . it could be the engine that is leaking water. Best thing to do would be find the source of the leak.

 

[southkogs]

The drain is at the bottom of the stern - almost perfectly down the centerline of the boat. If you put your finger in there, it's the bottom of the bilge and should be directly beneath the back of the engine. There should be nothing between the bottom of the engine, and your finger at that point. ... My point, is that there shouldn't be any way for you to open the drain plug and have water flow for 10 seconds and not see it by looking around the engine bay. The water is coming from directly below the engine in the bilge.

You need to see where that collection is coming from. It may mean using a mirror, cell phone camera, light, contortion, what-have-you, but the water is coming into the bilge from a direction that will help you narrow down what's going on.

I've had water leak in through the bow eye before.

 

[four winns 214]

This was mentioned earlier, but check to see what in the boat drains into the bilge. On my Four Winns 214, the anchor locker, cup holders, and two in-hull drink coolers all drain to the bilge. Early on in my ownership of the boat, I was puzzled by the intermittent nature of the amount of water draining from the bilge. I eventually traced it to the ice melt from the in-hull coolers. Some times I had ice in them, some times not.

If that’s not your problem, run the engine on the hose and see if water collects in the bilge then. If that’s dry, then back it in the water and run the engine. That might reveal a leak in the bellows or various engine-sterndrive pass-throughs.

Good luck.