Finding water leaks

[DougLas]

In a car dealership when a car has a water leak one of the methods to find the leak is to turn the heater blower on high. Shut the car up tight soap it down good and look for soap bubbles.
Taking this into consideration if one was to seal off a boat cabin and pressurize it with something like say a high power vacuum cleaner and taking the air from outside. Using the outlet side to pressurize the cabin. Then soaping the outside of the boat down and looking for soap bubbles. It would seem as though this same principle could be used on a boat to find a water leak.
Granted it would take a while to pressurize a bigger boat or just do one area at a time.

 

[wileecoyote]

In a car dealership when a car has a water leak one of the methods to find the leak is to turn the heater blower on high. Shut the car up tight soap it down good and look for soap bubbles.
Taking this into consideration if one was to seal off a boat cabin and pressurize it with something like say a high power vacuum cleaner and taking the air from outside. Using the outlet side to pressurize the cabin. Then soaping the outside of the boat down and looking for soap bubbles. It would seem as though this same principle could be used on a boat to find a water leak.
Granted it would take a while to pressurize a bigger boat or just do one area at a time.

I'm not sure you'd ever be able to get enough air to pressurize the cabin, not only that, but I'm almost certain that the cabin isn't nearly as sealed as vehicles are. With the volume that large any vent, drain, or passthru would have to be sealed. IMHO it wouldn't be feasable.

 

[Four Suns]

Cabins are nowhere near airtight...

 

[DougLas]

According to what has worked in finding a leak in boats from what I have learned lately. The pressure theory can be used by doing it in this manner. The area that is found to have the water leak is isolated off by sealing around the area where the leak is at. This is done by tapping the area with duct tape and plastic to make a plastic in closer where air pressure can be introduced. I was also told not a lot of air pressure needs to be introduced just enough to pressurize the en closer. Then soap down the outside of the boat and look for soap bubbles.
To elaborate further the areas that this works in are solid areas not large elaborate openings.

 

[dickventura]

best i have heard. pack toilet paper around windows or anywhere you suspect the leak. Then go outside and hose er down. better still have a mate do it while you check the paper. it'll go soggy where the water is.

 

[tobnpr]

Ditto what Gary said.
Sliding cabin doors and windows that aren't airtight (and weren't designed to be), hatches, bulkhead penetrations...
I don't think it's practical except maybe in the case of small boats. Leaks are a pain in the ass- my boat leaked like a sieve from the windows to the windlass to the rubrail to the dash when I bought it- but with some common sense and persistence I found all the little bastards and sealed 'em up.

 

[chelepop]

Cabins are nowhere near airtight...

hmm lets just assume shall we???


Our procedure for running cables from the aft fire wall from the motor well to the cabin is this.

A hole cut about 4" diameter circle, then either install a plentum with a lip to screw to the wall, or run flex around the hole for chafe protection. Once you have routed all your cables thru, we use a pneumatic caulk gun (not necessary but saves on your hands) and shoot about 3 tubes of clear silicon around the wires in cabin and then again in the motor well, using rubbing alcohol sprayed onto the silicon and pat it into the holes making sure of a tight seal, using the alcohol will prevent the silicon sticking to your hands as you manipulate it into the small cracks and holes.

Once all these steps have been achieved we will use a fog machine, stick it into the motor well, and use 2.5 ft width of 3M protective tape over all open holes like deck vents and speaker holes and windows (if they haven't been installed) to create an air tight seal. Then we will put a big round fan into the 20x20 hatch (escape hatch in v-berth) to draw the fog from the motor well into the cabin and with the entry door closed and using a flash light at the point of the new wires, we check to see if any fog gets into the cabin, usually more applications of the silicon are used until no fog appears, usually 6 cycles of the fog machine. I hope this helps you out, if you need additional info please feel free to check back with me



sounds good to me!!!
sorry you have had some mishaps but THEY are all not that, we take pride in our jobs.............