Removal of pvc limber holes in stringers

[300 Ray]

I have a 1986 300 WE. The limber holes in the stringers have sections of pvc pipe inserted in them. I read that these should be removed and the holes fiberglassed before rotting of the stringers occurs. My stringers are still perfect but I want to make sure they stay that way. Wondering if any one has done this procedure themselves and what the material list and procedure are? Thanx for any help. Dan

 

[fwebster]

Yes.........I used thickened West Systems epoxy to seal the wood then inserted a piece of fiberglass tube and sealed it with more West Systems. Finally I coated the repaired area with Sea Ray Bilge Gray gelcoat to match the engine room interior. My boat was a 390EC and there weren't that many but getting to them all and cleaning out the ols silicone was a royal PITA....this wasn't a one Advil job.

 

[NorCal Boater]

Wait a minute. I think I am missing something. Are you guys saying that the PVC tubes should be removed from the limber holes??? I thought I read a few weeks ago that some of the older Sea Rays did not have sealed limber holes at all. After I read that, all I could think about is the 4 strainers that are leaking. I expected to go to the marina last weekend and see the back end of the boat at the bottom. Our '89 340 DA has the tubes and they seem to be well sealed. The strainers are being re-sealed this weekend.

So what is the final word....pull the tubes or leave them?

 

[sbw1]

The pvc was put in witlh a dab of silicone and was mostly cosmetic. It did little to keep water out of the raw wood. The shaft logs on the early boats leaked a lot and the combination was not good. A Dremel tool can cut through the pvc and be used to clean out the hole. I used some glass mat strips saturated in epoxy seal things up. Added dripless shafts too.

 

[HavnFunYet?]

Okay, so a silly question from a newb...what is a limber hole? :huh:

 

[sbw1]

They are holes in the stringers at the bottom that let water drain to the low spot in the bilge where your bilge pump sits. Some builders payed little attention to important details in the 70s-90s and structural rot became a huge problem. The word got around and improvements such as glassing raw wood were adopted, but not until consumers paid for expensive repairs.

 

[300 Ray]

Thanks a lot sbw and fc can always count on you guys for directon in an issue. Although FC u honestly have me nervous about my buddys 270 with the broken transom assembly bolts. I will let ya know what we find and once again thanks for your quick replies guys. Dan

 

[HavnFunYet?]

Thanks sbw...I had a feeling that might have been what we were talking about. Being very new to boating I have sooooo much to learn! I think I ought to take a look below to see what mine look like.

 

[fwebster]

Sea Ray actually did a decent job of sealing the PVC in place with silicone. The only thing is that silicone has a relatively short useful life for caulked seams like this. Expect the seal to begin to break down after 5-6 years......much more than that and you are on borrowed time.

This is not one to mess with either. Packing glands are designed to lead and if the limber hole seal breaks down and the stringer gets wet, it is very hard to keep it from rotting. Once it rots, "major surgery" is a gross understatement in describing what has to be done to fix the damage.