Water leak

[PIPER]

HELP!!!! I have a 2006 280 cruiser. the last 2 seasons, I have been trying to track down a water leak that ends up coming into the interior of the cabin on the port side. Whenever it rains, water seems to work it's way into the cabin along the shelf that is on top of the cushions that are mounted to the inside wall around the V-berth. The water damaged the very first cushion on the port side nearest the upright compartment. The water manages to seep under the vinyl covering of the shelf, runs down the side of the hull underneath the vinyl wall covering and pools in the small compartment on the port side, underneath the upright compartment nearest the V-berth. Last season I ran water over every screw, light, windlass, clete trying to find the where the water may be coming from. NO LUCK....This spring i had the boat on the trailer and ran water again, for more hours and more gallons than i care to think..NO LUCK.....this past Saturday, i put her in the water for the season.....Sunday it rained and on Monday there was water, again, under the vinyl covering and in the storage compartment, approx. 12oz of water. I can't help but wonder if water might leak into the boat at the rub rail......some say the rub rail is atteched to the outside of hull....I have caulked the port s ide light, the windlass, anchor controls, and the s.s. rail supports and i had the hatch pulled apart and re-sealed when the problem first started.....any ideas, thoughts, comments are most appreciated........PIPER

 

[Lazy Daze]

It's like water torture trying to find a leak, isn't it?

Well, you're on the track to figuring it out... Port nav light, rail stanchions, rubrail, etc. What is perplexing is that you can't duplicate the problem with a hose as it sounds like you've used enough water. The only thing I can offer is to try again and try your best to duplicate how rain would fall on the areas.

Rubrail attachment: Think of your hull and deck as a shoebox and lid. The deck (lid) overlaps the hull (box). The two pieces are epoxied together. Now, there are times when this epoxy "goop" isn't applied perfectly and that could lend itself to leaks, although in this case the leak would be more likely to come from water moving upwards at the joint - like spray from the water as the boat is moving. The next step to rubrail installation is that the vinyl base is screwed into this overlap area. The insert (the SS part) is then screwed into the base and the overlap... so... you've got a bunch of holes going through that deck-to-hull joint where things may need to be re-siliconed (if the "goop" is missing and the silicone job was not very good, this is a likely cause to your problem). However, don't start pulling the rubrail apart (not really a hard job, though) until you verify that's where it's coming from.

The forward-most portlight (on the port side) is aft of the water problem, correct?

 

[PIPER]

You are correct about the portlight and yes, they have been sprayed, watered, doused and deluged too. Thanks for the speedy response!!

 

[majmacv]

I'm having this exact problem on my '07 280. I've also tried the same water replication scenario's, to no avail. It's frustrating to have issues like this on a boat with the reputation Sea Ray is known for.