Transom or Stringer Rot issues, 88 Weekender

Q

QT1

Active Member
Oct 20, 2016
648
Belair, MD
Boat Info
1990 350 Sundancer, "Quality Time II".
Engines
454 Mercruisers, performance parts modified by PO.
Has anyone had problems in this area? Ran across some articles www.the hulltruth.com had many post in regards to 80's Sea Ray's.
 
There was a problem with some pre-1989 boats where the limber holes that drained the water in the bilge to the bilge sumps were lined with PVC pipe and sealed with silicone. Silicone has a finite life in this type of environment so when the seal failed, water could work its way into the stringers. Eventually the stringers would rot. Most owners knew or read about this and fixed their problems by removing the PVC pipe sections and glassing the holes thru the stringers with resin and fiberglas cloth, which is a permanent fix.

This is one of those things than can happen and should be checked on any boat you are considering buying. It isn't a huge systemic problem affecting all models or even a large number of boats......unless you happen to have one that has rotten stringers. Repairing a boat with rotten stringers is a huge job. I've seen it done on a mid 80's 300 and a 1987 390EC. The bilge and interior was essentially gutted on both boats, but they were repaired and are in the water today.

Rotted transoms are a different problem......the transoms are cored with plywood put there for stiffening during construction and to give the factory something to fasten various things like trim pumps, wire looms, etc. to. It is pretty to break the transom seal between the outdrive housing and the gelcoat, or any screw hole in the transom. The leak occurs where it is very difficult to see so a lot of transoms are damaged because the owner found a little unexplained water in the bilge and just decided to watch it. This is a big repair that gets expensive, but it is pretty easy to avoid by resealing the transom assembly, the garboard drain fitting, trim tab screws, etc. as a part of your usual maintenance.
 
Frank, thank you for your very in depth explanation of this situation. I have close contact with the last 2 owners, neither of which mentioned any problems, but I have come to believe they have enjoyed the boat while in their ownership without any major problems. For me, this is a starter boat, to move onto something bigger later, but I want the boat to be in good shape for the next owner, especially if they request a survey.
 
Just sharing the thread transom repair thread I started.
Pictures near the beginning show a few signs of what to look for.
http://clubsearay.com/showthread.php/23289-1985-SRV270DA-Restoration

As a note this damage was started from previous owner not resealing swim deck and trim tab fasteners on the outside of the transom.
Once the rot started it spread all over and turned to mush.
 
would have loved to see the pics, but they wont show
 
QT1 said:
would have loved to see the pics, but they wont show
Click to expand...

Make sure you are"logged in"and try"refreshing" the page.
Pictures are stored on an outside website and with this forum sometimes that has to be done to see them.
Not sure why.
 
i will try again. thanks
 
i am on here almost every day. how long is a membership good for?
 
QT1 said:
i am on here almost every day. how long is a membership good for?
Click to expand...

/Hijack start...

As far as I know, membership lasts forever (unless your kicked off)... the sponsorship has to be renewed annually, but you don't need that to see the pics.

Hijack end/

Now back to your stringers...
 
Almost every boat made will develop rot somewhere. It because they drill holes improperly .Anytime you find wood you need to resin fill this new hole so it soaks into the wood, then redrill the hole and use a quality sealant.Lets say your installing clamps for a transducer cable on the transom. Drill a 1/4 inch hole and fill with resin and install a oak dowel. Now drill the correct size hole for the screw and resin coat that hole, redrill and install screw with sealant.The dowel becomes the primary rot item not your plywood transom
 
Thank you for that very helpful info. This past week and a half I have been cleaning the bilge area by hand with all purpose cleaner I use for detailing and plenty of paper towel rolls! It is starting to look like something I own! It seems it has not been cleaned in a very long time. Once I get pass the generator hatch, I plan on doing a full inspection back towards the transom: boat is supposed to launch by the end of the week.
 
QT1 said:
Thank you for that very helpful info. This past week and a half I have been cleaning the bilge area by hand with all purpose cleaner I use for detailing and plenty of paper towel rolls! It is starting to look like something I own! It seems it has not been cleaned in a very long time. Once I get pass the generator hatch, I plan on doing a full inspection back towards the transom: boat is supposed to launch by the end of the week.
Click to expand...

Did you get her launched? Got any pics of the boat and your cleanup work?
 
Got here launched Thursday at 1:30. Worked on her today, putting canvas on, stainless anchor. Have to get fuel, she tips a little to the starboard side, 1/2 tank there, 1/4 tank port. Moved seats in cockpit to port side and aft bench. Set here a little more level. Concerned about too much water building up through exhaust ports. Will download some pics tomorrow. Will provide email. Have problems posting pics here.
 
KC_Sundancer said:
Make sure you are"logged in"and try"refreshing" the page.
Pictures are stored on an outside website and with this forum sometimes that has to be done to see them.
Not sure why.
Click to expand...


If we can get some pictures with your write up kc_sundancer it would be much appreciated.
 
Very common problem for the 1980's Sea Rays. The bilge drain hole was not properly sealed in many of them, so bilge water slowly soaked into the transom any time water sat in the bilge. That bilge drain hole should be lines with a metal sleeve. Stick your finger in the drain hole and feel if it is has the metal sleeve or not. Another big problem was water leaking into the swim platform through bolt holes.
 
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