Intex Mariner 4 modifications and Tips

[Brusac]

@Desode - Tube #2 will loose pressure when I have it inflated in my garage during the middle of the day so I am comfortable that it is not temp related. If I let it sit overnight the other 3 tubes are still full (passes the thump test) but tube #2 will be about 1/2 empty. If I get some time I will try to check around the seams where the tube attaches to the floor as that is the only place a hidden leak may be present (at least that I can think of off the top of my head).

 

[flukesofnature]

Brusac
One thing that helped me find a similiar leak was to fill the boat up with air a little higher than full...then cover the floor with water from a hose or in the lake, etc. If the air is escaping from the seams the bubble stream will show itself. You might also sit on the tubes at the time to increase the pressure out of the source...you could mix the dawn soap in this water also, but the water itself should allow the bubble stream to be detected.
(I mean it is a raft , after all, and designed to have water in the boat on the floor, and all that) I also , one hot day, inflated the boat on the lake and got some goggles and went under water to inspect the boat and lo and behold..there was another of those bubble streams!
As a last resort, there is a product called "Bixler's Tube seal,designed especially for inflatable boats which acts like "green slime" Tube repair for tires.It coats the air leak, including inter- tube leaking(between the tubes at the place they are joined together) from the inside.
The company states that the product is unlike green slime in that it dries inside the tube, once cured , so that the inflation and deflation process is not affected. Green Slime stays a "gooey Latex " consistancy in the tire, as the tire is not deflated and the centrifugal force keeps the slime fed into the hole, plugging it, Check them out, they also sell to " WEST MARINE" under that company logo. A little spendy..but comes with good reviews.
One other thought, the green slime is about 6 bucks at walmart...I am wondering if a coating of that ,on your boston valves, each time you inflate would stop the leak, if that is where you are pretty sure it is coming from.
Just wipe it off when you are done for the day and repeat as necessary.......might work.

 

[Slayer33]

Hey everyone, see some leak issues lately, I sprung a small leak with my fishing hook last week, ended up patching it up with a piece of PVC and PVC glue. probably overkill for the pinhole, but better safe than sorry.

On another note, what going on with the composite mount??? I've noticed that it isn't available at all anywhere now, all ebay auctions are out of stock, all online stores as well. Even Amazon says its like 3-4 months before delivery (which probably means never)...

I am hoping to pick one up over the off season...

 

[BigNickShooting]

Hi there ... I am new on this forum ... I recently got an Intex Mariner 4 and looking at photos on this forum, I made some changes yet. I took 2 pieces of 1/2" plywood put them right next to each other, contoured the plastic floor that came with the boat and cut 2 halves. After that, I put some indoor/outdoor carpeting that I bought from Home Depot and put it on the top of the plywood sheets. I used some adhesive that I also bought from HD. Carpet was bigger than the plywood so I turned it over the sheets and secured it to the back with staples. I used then some 2ft*2ft pieces of plywood and I put a pedestal and a swivel with a quick disconnect for the back chair. The front chair will be mounted in the same way. I also got an almost new Honda engine (2HP) 4 stroke, that I can't just wait to try this coming week-end. I bought a Humminbird fish finder (cheap at Cabela's at the bargain cave). BTW ... the chairs I got them for 1/2 price on sale for about $48/pc. I am eagerly waiting for the motor mount to come and we're all set-up for fishing some Kokanee Salmon on Riffe Lake in WA. Got an 8 lbs anchor, a small (ATV) battery to power my fishfinder ... all the rope for mooring, etc. Got an "air pig" pump ... wooohhoooo ... more to come after the first test.

 

[flukesofnature]

Nick
Looks Good ..welcome to the mariner Mod maniacs. I have been fishing my mariner 3 at Merwin and Yale out of Vancouver WA. all summer.
Kokanee a plenty! Hope that fishfinder gives you accurate readings......! FISH-ON!
BTW the Kok's were well below 50-60 feet at Yale last week.....Hot weather and jet skis drive em to the dark' n deep.
If you get a chance..could we see a close up of your plywood quick connect!
Also.. the M4 is a little "windy"...let us know how the 8 lb anchor holds for you. I was drug around on the M3 with a 15lb triple tang river anchor....

 

[flukesofnature]

@Brusac
Discovered an interesting way to find an inter chamber leak. Fill only one chamber all the way up, and listen with your ear at the junction of that chamber and the one it connects to. You will hear the air gush from the filled chamber to the empty chamber.Also leave the boston valve off of the empty chamber, fill the other chamber ( the one you are testing) as full as you can and then shut the boston valve tight( on the chamber you are testing.) You will see an immediate decrease in pressure from the filled chamber as it flows through the hole(s) between it and the empty chamber, and out the hole opening for the boston valve not screwed in, on the empty chamber.....ask me how I know this to be true???
My slow leak( inter chamber) was working against the pressure of the other filled chamber,which although was leaking badly, did not show quickly because the air equalized itself between the two chambers, even though they were shut tight by boston valves on both chambers.My norm was to fill # 1 (1/2 way), then fill #2, and then the floor( I have the M3),insert wood floor YAda YAda...I happened to be near the junction of chamber 1 and 2 while filling #1.....definite gush between the chambers. Left the Boston off #2 and watched the filled to the brim #1 deflate to about 90 % in a few minutes........
Discovery is a wonderful thing!!!

 

[Brusac]

@flukesofnature - I should have time to try that out next week. I will let you know how it works out.

 

[Brusac]

No Title

@flukesofnature - Gave your technique a try this morning and the only thing I heard was silence. I wanted to measure something for the seat mod I am thinking of so I fully inflated the M4 after that. I noticed the tube was soft in about an hour so the leak seemed a little faster than before. Since I had convinced myself it was leaking from the valve I decided I needed to prove it so I re-inflated the tube and took a piece of cling wrap and covered the valve and taped the edges down. My theory being that if the valve was leaking the escaping air would push on the cling wrap and cause it to bulge outward. after a couple of hours the tube was soft again (still firm enough to go out just need to have the pump with me) but the cling wrap was still caved into towards the valve and not bulging out. Might be time to spring for some of that $50 tube sealant instead of a seat mod for now.

 

[flukesofnature]

@brusac
By this time in the season , I am used to pumping 15-20 pumps every two hours in each of the 2 upper chamber of the M3...it keeps my awake when the fish are slow. It will make me heed the warning " do not over inflate " should I ever purchase another one...LOL....How valuable is that stupid vinyl measuring guage now all you scoffers!!! LOL
Some engineer at INTEX is wringing his hands and laughing hysterically at the thought of all those PVC boats going soft in the middle of a lake due to his planned failure of unreachable, undetectable seams way in the dark recesses of the Mariner 3's and 4's around the world. Maybe his air filled dragon went flat when he was 2 AND HE VOWED TO RETURN THE INSULT, some where some how.......it's sick I say...pure evil!!!! LOL

 

[mrdrh99]

Bittersweet day.... Selling my M4 today.... I just don't use it after getting a Saturn. Getting $200 for it and it'll be used instead of sitting around! I will continue to post and contribute to the thread since this got me started in boating all together

 

[flukesofnature]

MRDRH99
After all is said and done, considering the propensity towards leaky Mariners after the two year mark, how would you honestly rate the M4
vs the Saturn...in your opinion ?

 

[mrdrh99]

With MY experiences with both ..... $ for $ it's about equal.I never had any problems with my mariner though... Response may be different if so.

 

[mrdrh99]

Remember what you're buying the boat for though. When I lived in the mountains the mariner was perfect, but we have moved close to the beach and that is where I use the Saturn a majority of the time plus I needed a much larger motor. Now I have the Saturn and a Johnson 14 and couldn't be happier, however, now I'm getting jealous of the guys running their larger skiff and center consoles so.....

 

[sadarahu]

Rule 6 - . You may not post in the forum to promote any personal enterprise, advertise a business or product, or to solicit responses for contests, polls, or similar. This includes directing members to social networking sites.

 

[Brusac]

I have been debating with myself if I wanted to do a floor mod or just a couple of seat mods. After taking the M4 out today and really doing some serious fishing while standing I have decided I need a floor mod. I've stood in it before but never for more than a minute at a time. So now I would like to know of you guys who have done floor mods how many of you use only the floor you made versus putting your mod on-top of the stock floor? I don't want to have 2 floors so I want to make mine to use without the stock floor so any tips would be appreciated.

 

[flukesofnature]

brusac
see most recent posts on floor mod #1263-1266

 

[180drft]

Hey guys,

I just started working on my floor mod and need some advice on the following:

For pipe insulation on the edge would foam or rubber be preferable?

Also I plan on putting carpet then foam. What adhesive would be best in order to install the foam over the carpet?

 

[flukesofnature]

180
The foam insulation is about $ 1.65 for a 6-8 foot piece at H DEPOT. I use the foam because if itg gets damaged it is cheap and easy to replace.
I used a glue gun for it..the insulation..but liquid nails, or any DAP squeeze adhesive will work.
Some folks use a garden hose ,split in the middle to cover the edges of the floor, and that means extra effort to secure it..usually a staple gun..which I don't want the loose staple next year finding their way into the inflatable floor. The foam, rubber, what ever is just an extra buffer between rough wood edges of the floor and the inflatable . Some used the same carpet( over lap) they used to cover the floor. Good Luck

 

[Brusac]

Thanks for the feedback Flukes. I was dreading the thought of going back and reviewing the 1300 posts to the thread to re-find the info I needed (it took me 2 months to read through all the posts before my first comment) so that helped out. Now I just need to find the time to make the build. Thinking I'll do it as a winter project since I won't be out on the water anyways, or outside much for that matter (Wisconsin winters can be harsh, specially for this relocated Southern boy).

 

[180drft]

180
The foam insulation is about $ 1.65 for a 6-8 foot piece at H DEPOT. I use the foam because if itg gets damaged it is cheap and easy to replace.
I used a glue gun for it..the insulation..but liquid nails, or any DAP squeeze adhesive will work.
Some folks use a garden hose ,split in the middle to cover the edges of the floor, and that means extra effort to secure it..usually a staple gun..which I don't want the loose staple next year finding their way into the inflatable floor. The foam, rubber, what ever is just an extra buffer between rough wood edges of the floor and the inflatable . Some used the same carpet( over lap) they used to cover the floor. Good Luck

Thanks for the response Flukesofnature. You make some good points and think I will go with the foam for the edges. As far as gluing it on I think I will try the same adhesive that I will be using on the carpet first. If that doesn't work then I will try something else. Thanks again