240DA AC Design Flaw

RiverRat said:
TurtleTone said:
Great, something else for me to worry about. now I have to check where my AC drains :smt021

On a positive note. when i dumped a gallon of waste in my bildge, I noticed that the trash bin let the stink into the cabin. So I put some weather stripping around the edge to seal it better. :lol:
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Somebody really needs to show you how the pump out works!!! :lol:

BTW, your ac drains into the shower sump under your newly sealed trash bin! :wink:
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:lol: :smt043 :smt038
 
Dave S said:
I think some pictures will be very valuable. I will take a level over to my boat today and put it on the floor of my mid-cabin just to see how mine sits at rest in the water because it probably is draining from the front of the condensate pan as well. I certainly hope this isn't a widespread problem but I can see how a mounting like you are describing could cause leakage. Conversly if you had a boat with a generator and were running your A/C while underway, I would think the condensate water would definitely head to the back of the condensate pan and probably overflow if the outlet plumbing wasn't at the back. :smt021
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No question Dave, especially given the added weight of the generator and the exaggerrated aft angle while the boat is up and running.
 
I checked mine out yesterday and no signs of moisture intrusion on my 260DA. My cushions are nice and dry and show no signs of water marks or stains. The floor sits level as well.
 
jg, Have you gotten any answers yet from searay?
 
No answers yet. I sent pics of the damaged cushions to the dealer to help expidite the warranty claim.
 
I have an after market A/C and it currently drains into the bilge, which I am not happy with as I like a dry bilge. When I asked the installer why he didn't route the drain hose into the sump pump, he said I would probably get water overflowing into the aft cabin as the drain hose would have to be located on the forward end of the pan and natural trim of the boat would cause an overflow. He was very right as some of you have discovered. I am going to install a Mermaid condensator to eliminate the problem completely. Its a venturi device that sucks the water out of the pan and into the cooling water that exits from the side of the boat when the A/C runs. The web site is: http://www.mmair.com/marine_division/accessories/mermaid_condensator. I'm still going to leave the drain hose into the bilge as a safety, but from feedback I've recieved from someone who uses it, I won't need the hose.
 
Interesting Idea and a sound principle, BUT, the part I have a problem with is that the only thing separating the raw cooling water under pressure and the interior of your boat is a plastic check valve. Not sure if I would trust that. I assume that tee gets cut into the existing condensate line?
Looks like this condensate issue is more widespread than originally thought.
 
jg300da said:
Yes, mine is a 2007.
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We had water soak the carpet in the cabin the first time we took the boat out but never really found the source of the leak. Not even sure if it was sea water. It may have been water from the air conditioner? So the drip pan isn't sealed?
 
craig240DA ,

I had water come into my cabin only when I had a full tank of fresh water. Turned out to be a bad connection at the top of the tank and it only leaked when getting on plane due to the angle of the boat. Never leaked while sitting in the slip. You might try filling yours up and taking it out to see if you have the same problem.
 
So I still need to check the drip pan and make sure it is draining properly into the aft sump drain under the step waste can. Where can I get a look at the drip pan? Any one have any pictures of this?
 
Craig, you need to remove the access panel in the mid cabin in the starboard side just forward of the ac return grille. there is a large area just forward of the ac unit and you can see the pan from there.

Joe
 
I did some research on A/C condensation drain pans. The hose must run in a constant downhill direction. Sometimes they install the hose in a downhill direction, but then a little uphill and then back downhill to get to the sump pump and this is no good. You will create an air space in the slight uphill portion of the hose and your drain pan will not totally empty. It usually spills over into the cabin when you run the boat and get up on plane. I never have this problem because the A/C installer was careful about this, but had to terminate the drain hose in the bilge to keep it running constantly downhill. If he routed it to the shower sump pump, I would have the spill over problem. I will either install another sump pump in the bilge or install a mermaid condensator in the drain pan of the A/C unit in order to keep the bilge dry.
 
boatmailster said:
on a models from last few years there is no holes from cabin to bilge. any openings around wires, plumbing etc are completely sealed with silicone or expansion foam, any drains from cabin are direct overboard or to holding tank
I am not sure but I suspect that some regulations changed and that is reason for improvements. some models (not only from searay) are being recalled for some openings not being sealed.
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No Way! My air intake unit is not sealed at all, and sucks air in from the engine bilge and then into the cabin. I have about 2 inches between the opening (air return) and the actual air return on the system, so it sucks in bilge air. If this is supposed to be sealed, then the dealer has some work to do. I would encourage everyone with a new 240 look at the seal between the air intake filter and the air unit. If there is a regulation on this, I would like to see it.

In addition, we had soaked carpets after running the air overnight and the sump bilge didn't go off once, so add me to the list of boats that doesn't drain the AC properly.
 
Normal maintenance on our homes A/C system is to pour an once of Clorox Bleach into the overflow tube of the Drain pan. Mold can also clog these tube with their small diameter orifice. Al W.
 
Craig look closer. You need to remove that panel to the left to see into the ac compartment

DSCN0768.jpg


Look to the right beyond the AC unit and you'll see that the penetrations to the bilge are indeed sealed with silicon as boatmailster stated. The grill is separated from the unit but there is no other place for the unit to pull air from because that compartment is pretty much closed off so it pulls through the outer grill.

As for the drain, you need two things in order for the water to flow forward to the sump pump. 1. Elevation. The ac unit must be higher than the sump pump. 2. Pitch. The condensate drain line must be pitched downhill all the way to the sump pump. Make some observations and you'll find that one of those two things is not true.
 
jg300da said:
Craig look closer. You need to remove that panel to the left to see into the ac compartment
Look to the right beyond the AC unit and you'll see that the penetrations to the bilge are indeed sealed with silicon as boatmailster stated. The grill is separated from the unit but there is no other place for the unit to pull air from because that compartment is pretty much closed off so it pulls through the outer grill.
.
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Yes, I pulled it and you are correct, except in my case where they slopped the silicon around and failed to seal it properly, which is easy to fix. Thank you very much for the help.
 
Just a follow up. I just received my new aft cabin replacement cushions under warranty. Not sure what to make of this because they sent me the cushions without question or without looking at the boat. Nor did the factory follow up with a call regarding their testing of this layout. I appreciate the fact that they made good on the cushions, but I wonder if they didn't question it because they are aware of this problem?
 
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