Ski locker water

Hi to answer the question before is that I'm only in fresh water not salt water. I have also checked that nothing is leaking water out of boat while on the trailer figuring if water was inside boat it would also come out of the boat when not in the water. Nothing is showing any wetness on the exterior ie transducer, drain plug, any external fittings.
 
Also I am dealing with the dealer and they have been attentive however the problem has not been fixed properly and I was hoping from people here on this site with various experience might know where the most likely culprets are so I can get this fixed once and for all.
 
Too bad it wasn't salt water - it could make this easier! It may take some pressure for the "sea" water to push itself in. Meaning - checking for leaks while on the trailer is good idea and it can help to eliminate variables. It may have shown the leak, but it appears it does not. However, that doesn't eliminate the possibility of water pushing it's way in because of the pressure thing. Regardless - that was a good thing to do. Keep at it - I'll be curious to hear what happens when it's in the water. I wish a boat like yours on our lot right now - looking more closely at it might give me another idea.

Can you confirm that this mystery water definitely doesn't come from rain, washing or wet people?

I'd like you to look into your anchor locker. Look towards the bottom for a spot where two layers of fiberglass come together. Also look under the forward bow cushion for the same thing. Here's my thought - if the bow is heavy when running, could water be coming in through the anchor locker drain? If so, could it be making it's way between the liners if they're not sealed properly, instead of back out the hole? But again - this just a general thought since I'm not actually looking at your model. If the locker is not partitioned, still look for the same thing (gaps, cracks between glass layers).
 
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I thought it was fixed last year so I went ahead and caulked the holes in the floor of the ski locker so rain or surface water would not soak DOWN into foam. As far as the anchor or from seat cushions go they all drain in an open cavity at the bottom of each. I can see all the way down into the ski locker from all of those, so there is no drain issue as like I said I caulked the ski floor holes to eliminate this if that could be causing it. This year I am confident that the water came from below as when I removed the caulking on the plugs the water rushed up thru holes into the locker. Thanks for your ideas as any idea helps as to eliminate problems one by one. I have a feeling that the transducer needs to be rechecked as this seems the most logical but if anyone has had this problem let me know what the problem and the cure was. I could use the help.
 
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Built in cooler is in passenger dash and has a line that drains outside of boat. Drain line is hooked up and not plugged.
 
I have a 98 BR 210 and had something similar going on at one point as far as water/moisture beneath the ski locker, however mine never had that much water to the point of actually having anything to drain. My ski locker has the center drain that leads to the bilge, and 2 plastic plugs along the top sides. I believe the plastic plugs were access holes to where the floatation foam was poured. Somewhere along in time with the previous owners (I am number 3), the ski locker developed a dime sized spider crack in which water from beneath made its way into the ski locker. This was only evident by water stains left on the locker room floor.
(see picture of spider crack with previous water stains below)

uvrd.jpg


I contacted Searay customer support to inquire about the build of this boat stating i was worried about rotten stringers, etc and they assured me there was nothing beneath the locker that could rot as everything below was fiberglass and the flooring system was comprised of an integrated fiberglass liner. Any voids in between the hull and the fiberglass floor liner was filled with foam. They didnt have an answer as to how water could have made its way down there. In attempt to figure it out myself and to see how much water was beneath the locker, I removed the plugs at the top sides of the locker and used an inspection camera to slide into the access hole and down as far as i could to see what was beneath.

dgp2i.jpg


The inspection camera had a flexible 16" lead to which i was able to work all the way down along the sides of the locker until I made my way to the other side of the crack. What i found amazed me. At the other side of the crack below the ski locker were 3 stainless steel screws imbedded in a layer of foam. Speaking to a local boat restoration expert- his explanation was that while underway, the hull will flex under pressure pushing the stainless steel screws into the ski locker eventually causing the small crack. He said I could either carefully drill an access hole where the crack is to retrieve the screws or basically leave it alone. The area between the hull and the ski locker was dry as a whistle so i left it as is. He believes the screws were dropped there during assembly as there is no way anything solid can make its way to the other side of the floor liner.

(screw #1 in relation to the crack marked with the red dot)

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(screws 2 and 3 just beneath the crack)

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One thing im curious about is why there is a small void between the foam and the ski locker on that side. On the opposite side, the foam was so tightly packed that there was no room to slide the inspection camera through. I'm wondering if I should go ahead and and have it filled with foam. I'm thinking if i have that done, the amount of hull flex will be minimized since there is no longer any void between it and the locker.

JJ
 
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If you're sure there are no cracks (between the two layers of hull) forward in the bow/anchor locker area, than yes, we're back to the depthfinder. I figured the bow area was a long shot - but it was at least a possibility to rule out. There's other areas where these two hulls come together, but those spots are further up underneath the gunwhales and I very much doubt they would be the cause.
 
My ski locker looks exactly like that with the exception I have an additional three holes in floor of ski locker right down the center. The holes are spaced about 2 feet apart and have are the same size and have the same plugs as the two on the side as shown in you picture. The holes in my floor are where the water is coming up thru and into the ski locker.
 
As far as cracks by the bow/anchor area I dont see that as a possibility in this situation. I'm still thinking the transducer or drain plug. After caulking the ski locker last year I'm fairly confident that water did not soak the foam from above the floor leaking down but came from below.
 
mtcommander said:
As far as cracks by the bow/anchor area I dont see that as a possibility in this situation. I'm still thinking the transducer or drain plug. After caulking the ski locker last year I'm fairly confident that water did not soak the foam from above the floor leaking down but came from below.
Click to expand...

If you're sure, OK. But it is certainly a possibility. That's another area for water to get between the inner liner and the hull. I don't think you're completely understanding what I've been saying. I'm not saying water is getting into the foam from above. I'm saying it could be leaking into that area through a crack -- between the liner and the hull (this is the "foam" area). But, water has to get into the anchor locker first - and that's where I don't know if you have the drain, or not, and where the drain is in relation to the hull/liner transition point.
 
Thanks for clarifying I wasnt understanding now I got what you mean. As far as the anchor locker goes it is an open cavity and would drain directly into the ski locker. I dont see any signs of obvious wetness in that area nor any cracks or holes. The way water would enter is from the bow cover or rain dripping in the hatch door.
 
The inner liner goes all the way from the nose thru the ski locker into the engine compartment everything is designed to go thru the ski locker or end up in the ski locker. Thats why I caulked the three plugs on the floor because it seems like a screwy design to have non watertight holes in the floor where all the water is designed to go to.
 
Good. That narrows it down. Let us know what happens when back in the water. You can probably just keep those plugs removed and observe. You really don't even need to dry it out much - if water is coming in, it should eventually be obvious.
 
Here is the latest update. Last week Sea Ray sent a Tech out to my local dealer and took my boat for a few days to try and remedy this water issue. What he found was after taking boat out to lake and testing he found water coming in from the rub rail area where the top of the boat is connected to the bottom half of hull. He removed the rub rail completely and sealed the entire boat joint where both halves(top and bottom) are put together,. He also resealed the anchor locker area so water cannot seep between the subfloor and bottom hull. The Tech claims this will take care of the issue. Also he replaced the 3 plastic plugs in the ski locker and sealed those so water cannot enter foam below from the top such as rain water or wet skiis in the locker. Now if there is water it will be coming from below the floor. It should also be noted that he removed the boat from the trailer on A-frames and checked the entire boat for cracks or screws popping thru and he found none.
 
Thanks for the update, Commander. Did they mention the words "inner liner" at all? It sounds like the water entering through the rubrail was finding it's way down between the hull and the inner liner - although that inner liner should be sealed tight against the hull to start with. The inner liner is what you stand on - the floor, ski locker, etc - it's all one piece. It extends part way up the sides of the boat and is bonded to the hull. After that is installed, the deck (topsides - above rubrail, dash, bow seats) gets installed (like a show box lid). Those are the three basic fiberglass components to your boat -- Hull, liner and deck.
 
Yes, you are right he did mention inner liner and from what I understand the water was/is getting between the inner liner and hull. The true test will be when in the first part of Sept. when I pull the boat out of the water for winter and see if any water is in the ski locker area(under the inner hull). I will have to pop out those 2 plugs that are caulked in now in the floor of the ski locker.Thanks again for all your help and ideas.
 
Just curious as to what they did to get rid of the water that was already trapped in that area and what they suggested you do to dry out the foam?
 
I expected some big thing, however all they did was tilt the boat nose high on the trailer, then any water would go towards the rear/ski locker. Then they would shop vac any water they could get. After no more visible water was showing they dried it out with fans and a dehumidifier. After that they resealed the holes with the new plugs and caulked them into place.
 
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