Im pulling out my HAIR with this water issue, need HELP

Do you think the captain of "The Spa" is doing everything right to find his water lea

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zielke

zielke

Member
Jul 8, 2009
80
West Coast Wisconsin - LaCrosse.
Boat Info
1998 400DA
Engines
3116-caterpillars
Ive got water in my AFT footlocker. I have a 1990 310 dancer. 10 yrs with this boat. noticed water in the footlocker 2 yrs ago. it would come & go with rain & washing. figured it was the chaulk around the window frames (not) oh, rubrails need new chaulking (not) oh, the old style slider windows need new schlage from taylor, ordered it through kim(she is the best) redid the windows this spring, that should do the trick (not). I have checked the water fill hoses running into the boat. even the water tank looks dry (sits next to batteries & the floor compartment is dry) pulled the aft apart and the back storage lockers(covered wit plywood) are dry. the water pump that is located in the rear by the steps does'nt leak & is dry. Shower/AC hoses that run to the boxed sump pump works great and the foor is dry. this mother AFT locker is seeping in water the last 2 weeks, and it hasnt rained in 3 weeks. i have washed the boat a few. i even thought the water line/lines are leaking somewhere. i go through alot of water in 1 day on the river, and we hardley turn it on. I've exhausted almost every option, and my wife (i love her so much) is at her witts end with me, cuz i know & fix everything with this boat. Please help, i love this boat!!View attachment 25613
 
Caulking around a drain hole near the water line?

Long shot but maybe put toilet paper in the bow locker, just to make sure its not coming from there. My shower drain goes directly into the mid locker, perhaps something from the head area?
 
chandalen, i need to look at the drain hole, but i have let the boat sit for 2 weeks (away on weddings,ect) no rain in the forcast & still footlocker is full of water. bow locker is dry. shop-vac'ed water out of lockers on wed,friday, saturday & sunday. went down today (mon) both were dry.
 
OK, some thoughts...

1) Turn your fresh water tank on and leave it on - but do not use any water. Make a note as to where the level is and check back in one or two days. Possibly even just check later the same day.

2) Expanding on the paper idea... Tape a thin strip (about 2") of paper towels all the way around the inside of the aft locker - on the (4) vertical walls. Tape the towels about 2" off the floor and tape them such that water will drip over them as it runs down the wall. This should at least give a direction as to where the water is coming from. Although, if you look close enough, you might be able to see a tell-tale discoloration where the water has been seeping in.
 
Don't know about your layout but my 340 had a leaking fresh water tank that filled my aft locker
 
Lazy Daze, when i shop-vac out the water when its high "1-2", i will paper towel the floor really good & i can watch SLOWLY the water coming up through some small pin holes in the locker floor. toward the aft side of the floor locker.
 
Another way to go about it is to run your fresh water tank completely empty (all faucets, both hot and cold) and see if the seeping eventually stops.

If it was me, I'd enlarge those holes with a 1/4" drill bit to allow faster seeping. They can always be plugged back up. I do not know if there is any wood used in the affected area, but that would also be something I'd be concerned about - especially since it's been going on for years.

Just don't drill too far!!!!
 
Try this, it worked for me. You can start with an empty tank (try Dennis' advice of draining it completely), then if you can't tell or if the water just won't leave, put 5 bottles of food colouring (you choose the colour) and then fill it half full. Turn your water system off, you are testing the tank, not anything else. Watch for the colored water to start running.
Be patient, it may take a while if it's a pinhole(s).
If nothing shows, fill it up full. If it starts leaking after fillup it could be a sender fitting or something like that. If nothing still, turn system on and watch. Could be a leaky fitting after the pump that you just can't see.

Good luck,
Grant
 
toecutter & lazy daze, thank you for your input. I will try these things tomorrow after work. does anyone know on this yr. and model if there is a false floor at the foot locker? or is the botttom of the boat at the base of the locker? I heard somewhere there's space between the locker and bottom of boat, so i could drilla large hole to let the extra water escape & shop vac up, once i found the cause of my leak. ?????
 
I had the same issue and after fixing several things that didn't stop the leak, I finally found the a/c condensation pan drain line wasn't draining and the condensation was overflowing the pan and draining into the cabin bilge area. I think you mentioned that yours was ok but that is what caused my problem.
 
zielke said:
toecutter & lazy daze, thank you for your input. I will try these things tomorrow after work. does anyone know on this yr. and model if there is a false floor at the foot locker? or is the bottom of the boat at the base of the locker? I heard somewhere there's space between the locker and bottom of boat, so i could drill a large hole to let the extra water escape & shop vac up, once i found the cause of my leak. ?????
Click to expand...

Because the floor is flat, it is a false floor. Otherwise, it would have an angled floor that matched the angle (deadrise) of the outer hull at that spot. The port and starboard edges of the floor, however, are very close to the hull - basically the edges are in direct contact with the hull.

Something else to think about (and maybe you already have)... water tends to find it's own level. Meaning, if you end up with 2" of water in that storage compartment, there is probably 2" of water on the outside of the compartment walls, as well. Even if you find and stop the leak, it may take some time for all of the water to find it's way into the compartment, depending on where else it is trapped. Hopefully, it's being contained in a relatively small area. I'm not mentioning this to be a downer, but just something to be aware of.

If you're thinking of a drilling even a larger hole than 1/4"... sure, go for it. I would, too. I was going to wait to suggest that until I saw how you took the suggestion of the 1/4" hole. Not knowing your skill set or level of comfort with drilling into a boat, I didn't want to suggest it right away.:smt001
 
I been working late the last few days (4am-7pm)trying to stop by the boat everynight to check on my progress!! Docof thebay, great looking boat!! Wednesday morning til night i ran the A/C, even ran a hose to the shower floor and watched my shower bilge do what its suppose to do!!! So I know thats good(ski lockers are dry since sunday(last time i shop-vac) LAZY DAZE and the others, went to boat on monday(day off) first off, boat locker was dry. Drained the water tank, pulled the galley steps off, took a hose and ran it over the windows went back inside and checked the area under the stairs to see if any water was coming in. Nothing. Next filled water tank to full and went back the next day. ski locker DRY. Hoping it was one of the connector hoses or a ' T '. Could'nt even find any damp places. Worked to late last night, so afterwork today, i went down and checked again. Nothing still DRY. I turned the water pump on, and im letting it stay powered up till tomorrow afternoon, then i"ll check again. FYI-before i drained the water tank after pulling the steps, i powered up the water pump and did a quick check on the hoses and fitting under the galley steps and nothing was leaking!! If there is no water tomorrow, im drilling a 1/4 to 1/2" opening in the locker!!!! Any other sugestions????????
 
OH, forgot. I will drain the water tank tomorrow and im pulling it, just to take a peak at it. My water tank is under the AFT couch and is made of PLASTIC not metal, so it was upgraded over 10yrs. ago cuz im on season 9 with her.
 
Im pulling out my HAIR with this water issue, need HELP!!!!

I posted this thread on the maintance forum, but alot of people dont look at them. Ive had some great response, but i'm hoping i can get some other suggestions. ( i hope im not offending the "CAPTAINS" who have already gave me great suggestions. Please keep racking ur brains, cuz i need the help). I've got water in my AFT footlocker. I have a 1990 310 dancer. 10 yrs with this boat. noticed water in the footlocker 2 yrs ago. it would come & go with rain & washing. figured it was the chaulk around the window frames (not) oh, rubrails need new chaulking (not) oh, the old style slider windows need new schlage from taylor, ordered it through kim(she is the best) redid the windows this spring, that should do the trick (not). I have checked the water fill hoses running into the boat. even the water tank looks dry (sits next to batteries & the floor compartment is dry) pulled the aft apart and the back storage lockers(covered wit plywood) are dry. the water pump that is located in the rear by the steps does'nt leak & is dry. Shower/AC hoses that run to the boxed sump pump works great and the foor is dry. this mother AFT locker is seeping in water the last 2 weeks, and it hasnt rained in 3 weeks. i have washed the boat a few. i even thought the water line/lines are leaking somewhere. i go through alot of water in 1 day on the river, and we hardley turn it on. I've exhausted almost every option, and my wife (i love her so much) is at her witts end with me, cuz i know & fix everything with this boat. Please help, i love this boat!!
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Re: Im pulling out my HAIR with this water issue, need HELP!!!!

So you have eliminated a lot of stuff,and there is only so many more places to look.

I vote for running the water tanks bone dry for some hours.
 
Re: Im pulling out my HAIR with this water issue, need HELP!!!!

Does the water have a color or particular smell. Is it fresh (rain) water or could it be lake or ocean. Not sure if you are on a lake or sea. I am guessing lake by your location. Is the boat in the water when water builds?
 
Re: Im pulling out my HAIR with this water issue, need HELP!!!!

the water tank is plastic, i will have her drained & pulled out by tuesday. (hoping) .The water has been kind of brownish in color(the river water is clear) i don't know about smell, cuz i never smelled it. i do know its darker then the river water, im guessing the cole is from the water sitting or passing through plywood. The boat is in the water when i see the water in the footlocker. Lately the water has been clear in the footlocker(fresh water maybe)i have'nt had any water in the boat since i have posted this!!
 
Re: Im pulling out my HAIR with this water issue, need HELP!!!!

I had a leaky t fitting on my water system. Couldn't find it so I filled my water system with red food coloring and lemme tell you I found it in 5 min. Just one way to figure out if it's the water system, rain, or sea water. If the water in the locker turns red it's the water system. but remember if you use to much and don't dilute the food coloring enough it will stain. Good luck. Also check your forward anchor locker make sure the drain is not clogged. if there is a leak in the anchor Locker it will run water from the tip of the boat all the way to the aft bilge collecting water every place it can.
 
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