Leak at rear drain plug. Help !

[markpasquariello]

Hello. I have a 2000 searay sundancer 340. Had boat in shop to fix a leak with the exhaust bolt and with my luck the drain plug now leaks. I have no idea how to replace it besides watching couple videos on YouTube. Can anyone please give me an idea on how I should do it so I don’t mess things up. The boats being pulled out tomorrow.

I’m attaching a pic of the drain plug I ordered from Amazon. Kinda looks flat but when I look at the area from the inside the boat it looks like there’s a white tube passing into the transom. Is the tube part of the boat or should I have ordered a different plug
All input would be greatly appreciated!

 

[highslice]

Hello. I have a 2000 searay sundancer 340. Had boat in shop to fix a leak with the exhaust bolt and with my luck the drain plug now leaks. I have no idea how to replace it besides watching couple videos on YouTube. Can anyone please give me an idea on how I should do it so I don’t mess things up. The boats being pulled out tomorrow.

I’m attaching a pic of the drain plug I ordered from Amazon. Kinda looks flat but when I look at the area from the inside the boat it looks like there’s a white tube passing into the transom. Is the tube part of the boat or should I have ordered a different plug
All input would be greatly appreciated!

I had this happen. I can't speak to the white tube. But my drain plug was leaking. When I was removing the screws, I found that one of them was stripped from the factory. I got 3 new screws and silicone. I loosened up the plug and got silicone behind it. Then I put silicone into each of the 3 screw holes and installed the bigger screws. The plug bedded nicely and I never had another problem with it. That was 7 years ago.

 

[Lazy Daze]

The white tube may be a piece of PVC glued into the transom creating a "tunnel". Teh garboard drain plug should just be as simple as you see in the picture. HOWEVER... you may have ONE of the "screws" actually turn out to be a thru-bolt with a grounding wire attached to it on the inside.

Are you sure the plug just doesn't need to be a tightened a little more?

 

[highslice]

The white tube may be a piece of PVC glued into the transom creating a "tunnel". Teh garboard drain plug should just be as simple as you see in the picture. HOWEVER... you may have ONE of the "screws" actually turn out to be a thru-bolt with a grounding wire attached to it on the inside.

Are you sure the plug just doesn't need to be a tightened a little more?

I should have said that is how I found out one of the screw holes was stripped. Tried tightening them first. After I found the stripped screw/hole I decided to re-bed the whole thing.

 

[markpasquariello]

The white tube may be a piece of PVC glued into the transom creating a "tunnel". Teh garboard drain plug should just be as simple as you see in the picture. HOWEVER... you may have ONE of the "screws" actually turn out to be a thru-bolt with a grounding wire attached to it on the inside.

Are you sure the plug just doesn't need to be a tightened a little more?

No I’m really not. And there is a ground wire connected to it. I’m lost . I can try to tighten more when I pull it out. Would u be a butcher just to seal around the garboard plate if it is tight? Is removing that ground wire even possible from its location ?

 

[markpasquariello]

No I’m really not. And there is a ground wire connected to it. I’m lost . I can try to tighten more when I pull it out. Would u be a butcher just to seal around the garboard plate if it is tight? Is removing that ground wire even possible from its location ?

 

[Lazy Daze]

Before you pull it out... just take a breath

I wouldn't be opposed to using something like Life Caulk that will cure under water, either (let it sit at least overnight, though, before moving the boat). I can't imagine it's leaking THAT bad... nor would it start to leak bad, either. If it's minor right now, I'd probably just caulk it till you haul out for something else. It's your boat and you're one that has to be comfortable with it, though.

How do you get to that bolt? I think you know what you got to do - there's no magic But there ARE 14-year kids walking around the docks that would be happy to make $20!

 

[markpasquariello]

Before you pull it out... just take a breath

I wouldn't be opposed to using something like Life Caulk that will cure under water, either (let it sit at least overnight, though, before moving the boat). I can't imagine it's leaking THAT bad... nor would it start to leak bad, either. If it's minor right now, I'd probably just caulk it till you haul out for something else. It's your boat and you're one that has to be comfortable with it, though.

How do you get to that bolt? I think you know what you got to do - there's no magic But there ARE 14-year kids walking around the docks that would be happy to make $20!

 

[markpasquariello]

Does that stuff really work ?

 

[highslice]

Does that stuff really work ?

If it didn't, Lazy would not have recommended it.

 

[Golfman25]

Why are you pulling the boat? Something else being done?

How bad is the leak?

First thing to try is a quarter turn on the plug itself. Can be done in the water.
If you do pull the boat, do a complete rebedding. Pull the old fitting off. Clean it up and reinstall with 4200. You may need to clean, fill and redrill the screw holes. Marine Tex is your go to here.

 

[DaveKamp]

So... the biggest concern of a leak in that plate, is that water coming in, particularly though the screw holes, or the cutout for the plate, will be an opportunity for ingress into the transom core wood
I would recommend doing whatever you can to temporarily address the leak, and once you can haul it out, remove all three screws and the plate, and look into the wood, and see if it's been saturated... if so, you'll need to do some remediation... perhaps as simple as injecting penetrating epoxy (like Git Rot) into the screw holes, or through the exposed areas of the cutout, letting it cure, then pilot drill new holes and secure the plate... and make certain the plate has adequate sealant applied prior to reinstallation.

 

[markpasquariello]

Why are you pulling the boat? Something else being done?

How bad is the leak?

First thing to try is a quarter turn on the plug itself. Can be done in the water.
If you do pull the boat, do a complete rebedding. Pull the old fitting off. Clean it up and reinstall with 4200. You may need to clean, fill and redrill the screw holes. Marine Tex is your go to here.

 

[markpasquariello]

Hi. The bilge goes off every 2-3 hours

 

[markpasquariello]

So... the biggest concern of a leak in that plate, is that water coming in, particularly though the screw holes, or the cutout for the plate, will be an opportunity for ingress into the transom core wood
I would recommend doing whatever you can to temporarily address the leak, and once you can haul it out, remove all three screws and the plate, and look into the wood, and see if it's been saturated... if so, you'll need to do some remediation... perhaps as simple as injecting penetrating epoxy (like Git Rot) into the screw holes, or through the exposed areas of the cutout, letting it cure, then pilot drill new holes and secure the plate... and make certain the plate has adequate sealant applied prior to reinstallation.

You mean temporarily seal from the outside like others have suggested and wait till I pull it out of the water at the end of the season?

 

[Hoplite808]

This is a relatively easy repair to complete.

Remove the old drain plug assembly then let the area dry out. Then mix a small amount of fiberglass resin to fill the old screw holes with. The resin should be mixed with a bit of filler to give it the consistency of peanut butter. Use a resin syringe to fill the holes then let it set. After the resin has set then lightly sand the area to clean and smooth it. Take your new plug and line it up and use it as a stencil to drill the new pilot holes for the screws. Apply some 5200 to the back of the new plug collar and then screw it into place and clean the excess 5200 off. Lastly apply some new bottom paint to the area and you're done.

 

[Bill Curtis]

That plug / pvc pipe looks like it's been "Bubba'd" already. I'm with Hoplite on this one. Remove it, clean it up and and re-install properly.

 

[Lazy Daze]

Kicking the pump on in 2 to 3 hours is faster than I had in my mind. Yes, you could still do the LifeCaulk and likely be just fine - it certainly won't make it worse - and there's a very good chance it gets better... certainly enough to get you by.

BUT... the first step is still to try tightening the plug.

 

[Hoplite808]

Also, that pipe was probably added to help protect the transom core wood from getting wet in the hole there. It should be fine to leave alone.

 

[Scott215]

Like said above unless pulling boat for a different reason