1998 290 Sundancer bilge pump running every 1-1/2 hours

Herrickjde

Herrickjde

Member
Jul 28, 2019
68
Jacksonville, FL
Boat Info
SeaRay 290 Sundancer 1998
Engines
2 Mercruiser 5.7 350 EFI 310 HP - Drive - Alpha 1 / Gen 2
Hi, I have noticed my bilge pump runs for just a few seconds every hour and 1/2 or so. Someone mentioned I may have a small leak on the transom. I have twin 190 Merc 4.3 ltr I/O drives. Any ideas on where to start looking is appreciated
 
Transom would be the likely culprit, through the drive or shift bellows if they have haven’t been done recently. What’s the maintenance on the boat been?

You need to address it quickly or get out of the water if it’s bellows. They can sink the boat
 
Thanks Just purchased a boat past the survey the outdrives or recently re-built and installed on the boat both engines have been also rebuilt
 
Might be a little more detective work then. Shop vac it dry and get down there armed with a phone and a flashlight. Look under the motors, seawater hoses, transom assembly, even fresh water tank and plumbing.

I have the same boat, the bilge is tight but you can actually reach the transom wall under the motor if you wedge yourself down there
 
You don't say what drives you have but I'll assume Alpha with the 4.2L. I know the Bravo drives were bad for the steering pins to leak... not sure if the same goes for the Alpha. For a steering pin leak, from the bilge, look at the back side of the drives, near the pivot point, for water/rust.

Best of luck, and welcome to CSR!

Your "official" thread(s):
http://www.clubsearay.com/index.php?threads/official-1998-sea-ray-sundancer-290-thread.34545/
http://www.clubsearay.com/index.php?threads/official-290-sundancer-thread.17005/
 
As others have mentioned, this can be a serious issue and needs to be addressed ASAP. If you're getting enough water in within 1-1/2 hours to kick the pumps on, that's a pretty severe leak. It should be easy to find. Do you have any recourse/warranty through where you bought it?
 
Thanks, after further review with my marina neighbor the transom seems good and the water is clear and not brown (St.Johns River) may be my water holding tank.
 
One thing to keep in mind is that sometimes the color of the water can be deceiving. Meaning, a few inches of river water in the bilge can look quite clear. It could take more depth to show color. But, you can easily figure it out by running your tank dry and seeing if the issue goes away. If it does, then you'll need to figure out if it's the actual tank that's leaking or possibly a burst line/fitting or maybe just a fitting where the line wasn't inserted fully after a winterization (if where you are located is a cold climate, that is).
 
I had that when I first got my boat it was a pinhole in the upper exhaust tube.and was a little tricky to find as the trace amount quickly evaporated from the heat in the engine compartment. Once I found it I ordered all new exhaust tubes and shutter valves as a package and also changed every cooling hose on the boat to be safe. When I removed the leaky part I was able to rip it completely apart with my bare hands so glad I caught it before a catastrophic failure.
Suggest getting her up to operating temp and finding the problem. If engines were rebuilt and the problem was assembly I would have a talk with the shop that did the work .These are really critical systems that you dont want to neglect
 
Great feedback everyone. We did fine the clamps on the elbow exhaust starboard engine were a bit lose and tightened them up. Transom where outdrives mount seemed ok. (new drives instilled months ago) See the 2 attached pictures and I am replacing the rule shower sump pump and you will notice water in the shower sump and 24 hours ago I pumped this area out and cannot see where water would come from the stern area. Also see the forward cabin picture with water and this area is also tight. I don't see where water can go from the stern to bow. Maybe water is coming from the head sink or toilet.
Picture1.jpg Picture2.jpg
 
Those two areas are sealed off from the engine room. are you getting water in the ER as well or just there? The under stair one is likely the AC or shower drain overflowing that sump. The middle storage area could be your galley or even a leaky stanchion on the deck, I had to Rebed all of mine last year

Does the fresh water pump cycle without opening the faucets?
 
Strecker25 said:
Those two areas are sealed off from the engine room. are you getting water in the ER as well or just there? The under stair one is likely the AC or shower drain overflowing that sump. The middle storage area could be your galley or even a leaky stanchion on the deck, I had to Rebed all of mine last year

Does the fresh water pump cycle without opening the faucets?
Click to expand...
No it doesn’t but is good information
Would the toilet cause this as when I push handle down it runs 10 to 15 seconds after. Also are you referring to the area where the cabin door closes on the outside. The boat has a good storage cover and not exposed to ran
 
probably not the toilet actually leaking but it’s possible. Look at the fittings around the bowl and the waste hose. They’re pretty solid though, my money would be on the AC hoses or overflowing the sump

We also had leaky port hold windows that I re-bed. The water will come in the window and run all the way down the wall to the bilges.
 
That's a good bit of water where it shouldn't be.

Where are you in the world? Someone might be able to lend another set of eyes.








<--------- Place your location in your profile.
 
Sarges12 said:
Currently my 290 has a custom mattress in the v-berth. This was put in by the previously owner.
I’m looking to restore the v-berth with cushions. Is anyone parting out a 290 or where I can get cushions for my 2001 290
Click to expand...
The thread you are in is another person's thread about a leak. If you can start your own thread, that would be more effective and efficient.
 
I had a phantom leak I couldn't find last year. It ended up being water coming in around the block where the trim pump lines come out of the transom assembly. I had to change the O rings and seal that up.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
113,182
Messages
1,428,059
Members
61,088
Latest member
SGT LAT
Back
Top