Put water in boat on trailer?

[TVZ]

My 1970's-vintage 14-foot aluminum boat seems to have a small leak. I have applied Gluvit sealer to all seams and rivets on the outside of the boat, and don't know where it might be leaking. Can I put water in the boat (on its trailer) to see where it comes out? I would not have to fill it, but fill up to the level that would be under water.

 

[KJM]

That would be awful heavy on your trailer! I would be more inclined to put her in the water completely dry inside and then just wait for water to make an appearance and track it down from there. Or even have someone inside the boat and you spray all the seams with the hose and get then to look for leaks.

 

[TVZ]

That would be awful heavy on your trailer! I would be more inclined to put her in the water completely dry inside and then just wait for water to make an appearance and track it down from there. Or even have someone inside the boat and you spray all the seams with the hose and get then to look for leaks.

Thanks KJM, but this little boat has a plywood floor, seats, etc.. You can't see to do what you suggest. I took it all apart & replaced needed items last year and it was a tricky job I don't want to do again.

 

[KJM]

This will sound like a dumb question, but how do you know you have a leak and how much does it leak? Any chance its just from spray when you are hitting waves and such?

 

[TVZ]

There is a cut-out in the floor by the drain plug, where you can see all the way down to the aluminum bottom. Sometimes when I take the boat out, an inch or 2 of water appears there. Also, when I leave it floating at dock. I really don't think it's spray, etc.. Seems to happen even under calm conditions.

 

[KJM]

Hmmmm, that does present a problem. I still would be wary of filling the boat with water. The weight is one thing, getting the underside of your floor and everything else down there waterlogged is another consideration. What are the floor stringers made of, are they waterproof?

 

[Lectro88]

Just a different twist to adding water while on trailer.
"I myself" would be leery flooding boat several inches deep with water while on bunks.
I think 1/4"-1/2" across bottom if its there it should show. you could tip boat front to back and do a smaller areas across bottom. if the bottom has a rise use this to your advantage.
And if it doesn't show on the bottom. Then you could pull one tire or each side up on a block tipping the boat to 1 side and the amount of water needed at this point is a fraction in corners only,. if that makes sense. like rolling a drinking glass in your hand.
This may take a little longer.. You could burn several days doing this and you may have several very small leaks. and some may be hidden by bunks another reason to not have too much water to shift sideways on bunks by hand. and with less than 30 gallons 1 should be able to do this.
if you have 1" across the entire bottom. I figure it will be too heavy to slide/shift. (just my thoughts)
I would go light and give it time to show.
If it's coming in,. it should go out..

I think if you take care and don't get too crazy, you could pull this off without too much water and undue stress on the vessel and the trailer.
hope this was helpful.

 

[TVZ]

It's just plywood that rests on its perimeter against the hull. Below that is styrofoam. I don't think there is anything that will be hurt by this.

 

[TVZ]

Just a different twist to adding water while on trailer.
"I myself" would be leery flooding boat several inches deep with water while on bunks.
I think 1/4"-1/2" across bottom if its there it should show. you could tip boat front to back and do a smaller areas across bottom. if the bottom has a rise use this to your advantage.
And if it doesn't show on the bottom. Then you could pull one tire or each side up on a block tipping the boat to 1 side and the amount of water needed at this point is a fraction in corners only,. if that makes sense. like rolling a drinking glass in your hand.
This may take a little longer.. You could burn several days doing this and you may have several very small leaks. and some may be hidden by bunks another reason to not have too much water to shift sideways on bunks by hand. and with less than 30 gallons 1 should be able to do this.
if you have a 1" across the entire bottom. I figure it will be too heavy to slide/shift. (just my thoughts)
I would go light and give it time to show.
If it's coming in,. it should go out..

I think if you take care and don't get too crazy, you could pull this off without too much water and undue stress on the vessel and the trailer.
hope this was helpful.

Thnx Lecto. I will mess around w/ this along these lines. Will let you know how it goes...

 

[Lectro88]

Thnx Lecto. I will mess around w/ this along these lines. Will let you know how it goes...

You are welcome,
Be interested in how many leaks you find.
I don't like the idea of getting wood wet... It will dry if given enough time.
Thought it was all aluminum.
you could spar varnish wood later and add a few years life after things settle down.
Also I figure/hope its marine Ply, so there's that too.

 

[CaptnKingfisher]

I put a garden hose in a 16' aluminum boat, turned the hose on and found my leaks. Worked well but agree with other posters.. a lot of weight on the trailer. And it takes a lot of water to get the bottom of the boat covered. Make sure you lower the front of the trailer so the bow isnt raised super high above the stern. You want to fill the bottom using as little water as possible. Then I walked around with a sharpie and circled all my leaking rivets. Good luck

 

[TVZ]

You are welcome,
Be interested in how many leaks you find.
I don't like the idea of getting wood wet... It will dry if given enough time.
Thought it was all aluminum.
you could spar varnish wood later and add a few years life after things settle down.
Also I figure/hope its marine Ply, so there's that too.

Ok, so it's kind of funny. When I put water in, certain rivets on the bottom appeared to be slow-leaking. However, the hose water was of course cold and it was a warm day, so there was a thin layer of condensation on all the aluminum surfaces where the water was on the inside. So I waited til the water warmed and the condensation disappeared. No drips anywhere! (except one; see following post). Guess I'll try hard to get all water out; then see how things look when I put her in the water.

 

[Lectro88]

sorry just now replying.
Were you able to check higher up on sides by tipping the boat sideways.
Sometimes these kinds of things take a little persistent investigation.
Like cars going to a mechanic, sometimes they don't find what you describe 1st, 2nd, 3rd time... sometimes it takes a different mechanic.
same goes for alot of things. Don't give up. pretty sure your problem can be found and stopped.
fingers crossed for ya.

 

[TVZ]

sorry just now replying.
Were you able to check higher up on sides by tipping the boat sideways.
Sometimes these kinds of things take a little persistent investigation.
Like cars going to a mechanic, sometimes they don't find what you describe 1st, 2nd, 3rd time... sometimes it takes a different mechanic.
same goes for alot of things. Don't give up. pretty sure your problem can be found and stopped.
fingers crossed for ya.

Yes, I did check everything quite thoroughly, and did not get any leaking. This boat is a real mystery--what goes on under the plywood floor. Maybe it's just that whatever water does get in, by rainfall or whatever, gets trapped in certain pockets; then subsequently finds its way to the back where I can see it in the cutout by the drain. I'm going to zig-zag up a hill on the trailer w/ the drain open to get all the water out; then put her in the water and see what happens. Thanks for your help and support!