bilge maintenance

Mooner

Mooner

New Member
Nov 6, 2008
68
Warren, OH
Boat Info
268 Weekender
Engines
260 Alpha I
Hi there...

I've searched this topic but haven't found what I'm looking for. I have a 1986 268 Weekender, which I bought from the original owner a few months ago. The bilge area seems to be in very good shape and I want to keep it that way. There is, at times, a bit of water there sometimes, but I like to keep it dry. I'm wondering what maintenance I can do to keep everything in tip top condition. What can you recommend?
Thanks for your help,
Mooner
 
Keeping it dry and oil free is the best thing you can do. After you get it dry, clean up all the oil residue (if there is any) and apply a good coating of BilgeKote if it is needed. It will look new after that. Its a real good idea to keep it as clean as possible so that if/when you have a real problem, then the tell-tale signs of water or oil will be readily evident. Plus, it looks impressive when you open the hatch with buddies around. Most boats out there have pretty raunchy bilges. I have a frriend with a 2 year old 35-ft Maxum that has a disgusting bilge. At least 4-5 inches of oily, smelly river water in there. He does not see a problem with that. Doh!
 
Thanks for the info! Is Simple Green OK to use to clean up any oil residue? Also, what's best to soak up any water? Bilgecoat....I need to get that at a Sea Ray dealer or does someone else carry it?
Again, I appreciate the help.
Mooner
 
Hey Mooner.
I know I replied to your PM, but others may be wathing this. I use Simple green in mine and exclusively. It's a great degreaser and keeps everything nice tidy and clean. It's good to get in there and clean it to remove any dust, or debris that can possibly clog your bilge pump, garboard plug. A diluted solution works fine, but for tough greasy spots spray it on full strength and let it sit for 5-10 minutes. A handheld scrub brush or toilet cleaner brush works great.
BilgeShelfandstorage7-17-083.jpg

I always try and keep mine dry and clean, so I can do a quick visual inspection and know that all is in good order.

If you have pics, please post them. I've heard some good things about Bilge coat but never have used it or seen it applied.
 
BilgeKote is made by either Pettit or Interlux. It is a very tough and fast drying enamal made for the conditions in your bilge. It drys fast and looks good. Although the gray they sell is not the exact color we have in our bilges, it is close. The sell gray, white and dark red. Very easy to apply.

I have a few areas in my bilge where the paint has come up and bare fiberglass is exposed. I am coating that with several coats of BilgeKote now. Now that I have a dry bilge that is. Sometimes, that is most of the battle.

Simple Green works great. If your in the water already, put about 1/4 gallon in your bilge, along with several gallon of fresh water. Go out and run your boat for a day or so like normal. Come back and wet-vac it out. Rinse a few times and wet-vac out again. Wipe down and viola! Time to paint!
 
Awesome info! I'll be working on it this Friday. Wahooo! Can't wait. lol. Seriously, though, I enjoy this kind of preventive maintenance.
Thanks again!
 
hello guys.
i have a 2006 240 sundancer that always has water in the bilge from the a/c condenser line
can i hook this up to the shower sump or just let the bilge pump take care of the water?

thanks guys,eddie
 
OK, is it just me or did the subject change here? Shouldn't your question about bilge water from the a/c condenser have been a new topic?
 
Shop VAC guys. Shop VAC. This is the first time I cleaned the bilge as I just got the boat about 2 months ago and I would just run the bilge pump to get the water out but while doing an OIL change, I noticed all the sludge and dirty river water in there. Super Nasty.

Anyways a shopvac did the trick and it looks very clean. I can still detail it with a degreaser or someone suggested simpleGreen which is eco friendly.
 
Welcome Sid.

If there is consistently water in your bilge and it appears to be river water, to the point you need a Shop Vac, you may want to check your bellows for leaks. I keep and eye on my bilge, keep it clean and don't accumulate any water.
 
I use a shop vac to keep mine clean and dry to, just be cautious about what you are doing as the shop vac is obviously not spark enclosed. There is more than one story out there about guys that have blown themselves up with a shop vac sucking up somthing explosive... like gasoline.
 
Blowing up while on your boat whilte trying to do the right thing, keeping your vessel clean and maintained....now that, would suck. Fish bait...
 
Related question....

What do you do with a Shop-Vac full of oily water?

When Sea Ray did my annual maintenance, they left me a little red ring of transmission fluid in the bilge water (water comes in regularly from the rod holders). I used oil absorbent pads, but if I'd had more to deal with I wouldn't have had the pads to deal with it.

What do you all do with your contaminated water?
 
rmr911 said:
Related question....

What do you do with a Shop-Vac full of oily water?

When Sea Ray did my annual maintenance, they left me a little red ring of transmission fluid in the bilge water (water comes in regularly from the rod holders). I used oil absorbent pads, but if I'd had more to deal with I wouldn't have had the pads to deal with it.

What do you all do with your contaminated water?
Click to expand...

Thats a very good question, and am anxious to hear the answers from others. I have never gone to the extent of getting my bilge _that_ dry.

On a lighter note, you may have thrown it in Lake Washington last weekend and perhaps increased the times of those Hydros on slick water:grin:

I flew out on Sunday and got a spectacular peek at the lake with some Hydros racing from the air. Just Awesome!
 
J Levine said:
I use a shop vac to keep mine clean and dry to, just be cautious about what you are doing as the shop vac is obviously not spark enclosed. There is more than one story out there about guys that have blown themselves up with a shop vac sucking up somthing explosive... like gasoline.
Click to expand...

Very Intresting..... Are these true stories?

They had this exact thing on Mythbusters.
They had a very hard time getting anything to blow up.

The motors in the vac are seperated from the intake/tank/discharge.

Maybe a topic for another thread, but I wonder how many ppm it takes to get a combustable mixture. Is it something like above 22-1 it is to lean for an internal combustion engine to fire?


I'm really intrested is what you are supposed to do with the contaminated water.
 
William,
I'm very interested in any responses about what to do with the contaminated water also. This is one of those things that we'd read about and wonder how the heck someone could be so stupid, but....it's a real problem and possible dangerous situation. I've been satisfied cleaning my bilge the old fashioned way...Simple Green and sponge. I've found owning a boat keeps me flexible, able to bend parts of my body I didn't think possible, reaching to all the nooks and crannies in the engine compartment. Wahoo!
 
I use a little Mr. Clean when I get a stain (mostly from shoes) and place absorbent diapers from a marine store under major systems to make sure there are no leaks.
 
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