new to me 2005 320 Sundancer - a couple of issues

Sea++

Member
Oct 14, 2014
39
Westbrook, CT
Boat Info
Sea Ray 320 DA 2005
Engines
twin 350 mag mpi's w/ v-drive
Hi all. We just upgraded from our maxum 2300sc to a beautiful 2005 320! Will be a great boat for the 2 kids, wife & I. But like all 'new' things, this one needs some work. I'm looking for suggestions as to where to track down a couple of leaks. And please forgive my lack of terminology and knowledge on this boat, still learning!

I seem to have two leaks in the boat, these may be related to each other. I observe a very wet carpet in the rear berth area on the floor, the floor that is sunken 8 inches or so from the rest of the floor. I also find water in the floor compartment just behind the forward berth, and the carpet at the floor level on the forward starboard side is wet.

My first thought was the water holding tank. This boat was only put back in the water a couple weeks ago so we only recently filled the water tanks, got the system working (it needed some part for the hot water heater, work performed before I purchased). But for the forward compartment below the floor, where the water seems to come from the right side floor area, I don't think there are any water tank hoses run in that area. So perhaps this is salt water (I didn't want to taste it!). We also had a large rain storm, so perhaps this is simply a leak from the deck somewhere. And no idea on that aft berth floor area, but these two could be related.

Any ideas/thoughts welcomed! Thanks.
 
Check the air conditioner drain pan for the leak in the aft berth area... seems that is common. Welcome to the boards and congrats on the purchase...
 
Oh and I love the name... though I hate C++
 
May very well be related. Check you shower sump box at the foot of the steps. The A/C drain hose comes in there as well as your shower drain. Otherwise, it could be a leak in the fresh water holding tank for the rear berth area and clogged A/C drain pan tube for the forward area.

Congratulations and welcome to CSR!

(and I like C++! :smt024)
 
Thanks for the suggestions. My thinking is two separate issues, but not sure. I'll be checking the fresh water holding tank today, that is my top candidate for aft berth leak. Front one is a mystery since the carpet is wet on the starboard side. But I'll check the pan of the AC unit. The shower sump area is totally dry.
 
Given that it's an 05, which style plumbing connections do you have?

The ones that are 1/2 and can be finger tightened like a garden hose are sealed by an o-ring are notorious for leaking...
 
Hi all. We just upgraded from our maxum 2300sc to a beautiful 2005 320! Will be a great boat for the 2 kids, wife & I. But like all 'new' things, this one needs some work. I'm looking for suggestions as to where to track down a couple of leaks. And please forgive my lack of terminology and knowledge on this boat, still learning!

I seem to have two leaks in the boat, these may be related to each other. I observe a very wet carpet in the rear berth area on the floor, the floor that is sunken 8 inches or so from the rest of the floor. I also find water in the floor compartment just behind the forward berth, and the carpet at the floor level on the forward starboard side is wet.

My first thought was the water holding tank. This boat was only put back in the water a couple weeks ago so we only recently filled the water tanks, got the system working (it needed some part for the hot water heater, work performed before I purchased). But for the forward compartment below the floor, where the water seems to come from the right side floor area, I don't think there are any water tank hoses run in that area. So perhaps this is salt water (I didn't want to taste it!). We also had a large rain storm, so perhaps this is simply a leak from the deck somewhere. And no idea on that aft berth floor area, but these two could be related.

Any ideas/thoughts welcomed! Thanks.

look close at the A/C option for the forward leak...On the rear lower floor mid birth mine was rain water from a clogged main deck drain plus no cover on the boat for over a month during some bad rain storms.
I pulled the fresh water tank filled it up with water and found no issues... then kept looking and found the clogged drain main and thought about the past months weather remembering some bad storms. I will not leave the boat uncovered anymore between outings.
 
So for the rear, two things to check then: fresh water tank, and main deck drain (I'll to figure out where that is then).

For forward leak, not so sure on the A/C option. I can't see based on the leak, how A/C causes this. I'll attached a pic soon illustrating this forward starboard side leak. Seems like rain water getting in somehow as the little step is wet on the under-side, then down the side, then onto my floor carpet, then into that hold area under the floor.
 
Yea, so that's not the A/C drain pan. Must be a stanchion or a deck window/hatch leaking. I've got a small deck window just above there... not sure about your model.
 
What is in the hole where you say the water ends up? (shower sump or anything like that) More than likely it starts there and wicks its way up the carpet and ends by the stairs. Is there any carpet inside the hole in the floor?
 
Do you have rails for a sunpad on the bow deck? Check that. I suspect your shower sump is bad or needs cleaning, when it overflows it goes to the bilge pump right behind it. But if that is not working then you could get a wet aft area floor.
 
My skylight leaked on the starboard side. I had a friend come out that does windshield installations and had him recaulk with the thick black goop and all was well.
 
My skylight leaked on the starboard side. I had a friend come out that does windshield installations and had him recaulk with the thick black goop and all was well.
Yep, I need to do both of mine...
 
My guess is rain water coming through skylight like Kreole Kid mentioned, I had to recaulk mine as well. For the water in the rear area behind steps, I had a problem in the same area after each rain storm, water would collect in the compartment under a seat cushion right behind steps also carpet would get wet. After a year I found that the rain water was coming in through the port side window in the head compartment, removed the window and there was no seal or gasket so I used some 4200 caulk and tightened window frame and it has been dry ever sence.
 
Update: Looks like only one leak, no issues with the water tank. I was able to trace a narrow path of water from up front where I indicated on the photo, along the table/seat area, and back to the rear sunken floor area. So I'm considering this good news, no water tank issues. Which makes sense since I had the water tank full for at least a week and would have noticed the leak sooner if that were it. So, now to figure out where that water is getting in...
 
I don't have the same boat but I did have the same symptoms. My boat had water coming in the starboard side by V-berth and worked it's way toward the rear, always finding it's way down hill of course. In my case the source was rub rail screws. I ended up pulling part of the rub rail off and re-caulking each screw.
 
Update: I believe the leak mystery has been solved! My wife pointed out to me that when I closed the portal windows, I pinched the curtain in both on the port side. Neither window was closed correctly. The storm that caused the leak was a strong southerly wind, blowing rain right in. As an experiment, after the window theory, we closed everything up correctly this time, and got lucky and had another rain/wind storm. No leaks at all! Boat has been dry for over a week now, no issues. So I feel a bit stupid now, but the good news is there is no permanent damage and no problems. I was able to use my steam cleaner to vacuum up most all the water, and let things air out. Bad news is the boat comes out of the water the end of this week. So at least I can focus on cleaning/polishing this winter, and not on fixing stuff!

Happy Boating all.
 
Won't be your last boneheaded move. I certainly wish I could go back and erase a few posts from the past - but I learnt.

First time the site saves you a few bucks, think about making a donation.

Welcome to CSR. 320 is a great boat.

Scott
 

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