Official 1998 Sea Ray Sundancer 290 Thread

Thanks. I suspect its the fuel pump. If i squirt fuel in carb it starts but dies
Had a very similar issue on my Westerbeke genset, after many attempts to start, found wire disconnected under the left side of the carb. Check that before going crazy troubleshooting.
 
Joakim,
Don't let these people tell you that crap! That copper paint will peg a moisture meter. Any metal pegs a moisture meter.

To get a better reading, do it from the inside of the hull. The glass is thinner in there anyways and it gives you a better reading. Also, stay at least 4 inches away from any screws otherwise the meter will read high.

I completely rebuilt my 268 DA (Transom, stringers, supports, bulkhead, etc) and our 290's are built exactly like them with the exception that the stringers on the 290 are isolated from the transom which is a very good thing! I also have my own moisture meter and have experimented a lot with it. Internal readings are much better than trying to read from the outside through 3/8" inch thick fiberglass + gelcoat. You really cannot read get a reading through older antifoulant paint anyways due to the metal content.

Also, you cannot have your superstructure, the laminate fiberglass, "waterlogged". It does not happen that way and those comments are absolute BS. Like Strecker said, if you get water intrusion through the gelcoat, you will get osmotic blistering. If your hull is not blistered, you are moisture free period. SeaRays have an excellent fiberglass layup and gelcoat. Blistering on these hulls is actually not very common, but easily fixable.

Worse case on your boat is the transom is probably wet. I'm willing to bet your stringers are probably fine. The way these are built, a wet transom is less of a safety issue because the stringers are what holds the engines in place and they are isolated from the transom. The transom holds the lower units in place and must be strong enough to not flex under heavy load. If your transom is flexing, you will see cracks in the gelcoat propagating from the transom bracket screw holes. Look for cracked gelcoat in the transom area. Grab your lower units and lift up and down and look to see if your transom is flexing. Also look for "tea stains" on the inside of the transom around through bolts, trim tab mounts, transom bracket mounting holes etc. "Tea stains" are a good indicator that water has worked its way into the wood and started dripping on the inside of the boat.

A quick check to see if your stringers are wet is to try to take a tightening turn on the big motor mount screws that go down into the stringers. If they feel "stripped", then the wood is probably rotten. If they are tight as heck, you are probably good. Also, do a quick hammer test. A dull "thud" is wet, a sharper "ting" is dry.

Your 35 MPH top speed is right on the money. That is what I run with 5/8 tank of fuel and loaded with fishing gear and fresh water.


Sorry for late reply but many thanks! And it also seems you are right. Had real surveyor come by today.
Scraped of antifouling and indeed we got other readings. Can post his report once I have it, maybe we learn something.

Also had a sample of transom drilled out. It is wet according to the meter but not to the touch.
Readings from the inside also confirm the same.

Wont be cheap but will have transom replaced this winter. They say the can make the transom in solid glass instead.
Heavier but I guess bullet proof.
 
(Under) the step into the cabin fills with water. I've been chasing this for a couple summers now. I've blamed the shower sump, the AC drip pan and the shower drain, but never with conviction.

This spring I found soaked towels in the galley cabinet with the roll-away doors, and equally soaked towels under the sink in the head. I'm guessing rain is entering through a fitting? On deck there not much in the area to be suspect of. I guess hosing it down and observing might tell the tale.

Has anyone else had this problem? Or better yet, diagnosed and solved it?
 
Sorry for late reply but many thanks! And it also seems you are right. Had real surveyor come by today.
Scraped of antifouling and indeed we got other readings. Can post his report once I have it, maybe we learn something.

Also had a sample of transom drilled out. It is wet according to the meter but not to the touch.
Readings from the inside also confirm the same.

Wont be cheap but will have transom replaced this winter. They say the can make the transom in solid glass instead.
Heavier but I guess bullet proof.

Joakim,
What was the moisture meter reading? Did he do a check from the inside or just the outside?

You can also have a little moisture on the outboard part of the wood and yet the wood is still intact and strong. That is why I'm asking if he checked from the inside of the boat too. If the inside readings are better (sub 25%), then you may be ok. You may just need to seal everything back up good and forget about it. That is, as long as the stringers are dry and solid.

The solid epoxy/glass transoms are definitely the way to go!
 
Joakim,
What was the moisture meter reading? Did he do a check from the inside or just the outside?

You can also have a little moisture on the outboard part of the wood and yet the wood is still intact and strong. That is why I'm asking if he checked from the inside of the boat too. If the inside readings are better (sub 25%), then you may be ok. You may just need to seal everything back up good and forget about it. That is, as long as the stringers are dry and solid.

The solid epoxy/glass transoms are definitely the way to go!

I will post his picutres but was unforunately on the red side o the meter.
I beleive it is worse on the sides where the tabs are mounted as it started dripping during sanding.
But you may be right on the actual transom.

Question is how bad is it? Cant really know until I tear it down I guess.
 
(Under) the step into the cabin fills with water. I've been chasing this for a couple summers now. I've blamed the shower sump, the AC drip pan and the shower drain, but never with conviction.

This spring I found soaked towels in the galley cabinet with the roll-away doors, and equally soaked towels under the sink in the head. I'm guessing rain is entering through a fitting? On deck there not much in the area to be suspect of. I guess hosing it down and observing might tell the tale.

Has anyone else had this problem? Or better yet, diagnosed and solved it?

My bet would your rail stanchions. They need to be Rebed periodically. All of the are accessible by removing panels throughout the boat. Lossen the nuts, remove old caulk, bed in 4200 or similar
 
I probably say this every year but good lord these boats are fast. I have my 19” vengeance OEM props on right now and did a WOT pull. ~4500 RPM fully loaded water and fuel, 2 adults, not even playing with trim and nearly hit 46mph. It had more in it too if I let them wind out. Pretty flat day with a little chop, 6kt head wind

it’s cool to move this much weight at those speeds!
 
Just put the boat in today. YAY. running through all my systems and only thing not working is AC. It turns on but the pump in the motor compartment is not working. So no water is flowing through it. Opened sea cock and that is good. Checked all fuses and do not see one for the pump. It looks like the pump is wired into a small blue box. Any clue were i can start to check? Already plugged and unplugged shore power so dont think its that cause everthing else is working. Any help would be great.
 
Just put the boat in today. YAY. running through all my systems and only thing not working is AC. It turns on but the pump in the motor compartment is not working. So no water is flowing through it. Opened sea cock and that is good. Checked all fuses and do not see one for the pump. It looks like the pump is wired into a small blue box. Any clue were i can start to check? Already plugged and unplugged shore power so dont think its that cause everthing else is working. Any help would be great.

Sorry for your troubles. I wonder if there's a relay or sensor in the system that might be dead.

Have you already did a control panel reset?
 
No. How do you do that. Only thing that changed was when the genny repair guy was working on the genny he did not disconect the battery. He touched something under it and got a spark then disconected the battery. That blew the little ceramic fuse in the genny but nothing else. Just not sure if there is a in line fuse to that pump. I looked in fuses under steering wheel and by door in back and nothing there. What is a control panel reset. It is working and blowing air. Just not pumping water out the side of the boat
 
Heading to marina now to see what i can do. After reading a bunch of posts on this i think either i had it on fan only or i have a air lock. Ill keep ya informed. But happy she is finally at her summer home
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Thanks ducky. The boat gods were on my side today. Put it on and nothing and shut it down. After reading several awesome posts on this site figured it out and is working again. I did not wait long enough to let condensor kick on. Pump only works when that kicks on. Probably only needed about 30 seconds more. Boom. All fixed
 
Thanks ducky. The boat gods were on my side today. Put it on and nothing and shut it down. After reading several awesome posts on this site figured it out and is working again. I did not wait long enough to let condensor kick on. Pump only works when that kicks on. Probably only needed about 30 seconds more. Boom. All fixed

Love stories like this. Happy boating.
 
Gosh I love these boats!

They catch fish too. :)

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Question to the 290 group. New to running my genny. Do you guys keep the blower on the entire time your running the genny? I know its on when i first start it but do i leave on the entire time
 
Question to the 290 group. New to running my genny. Do you guys keep the blower on the entire time your running the genny? I know its on when i first start it but do i leave on the entire time

yep, although I think the genny blower switch (on the panel) only turns on two of my 4 blowers so it’s stays a bit quieter. Not positive on that though.

definitely run it the whole time, same risks as the mains as far as fumes go. Replace your CO detectors if they’re original, mine were toast. The new version was about $90/ea I believe
 

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