Mystery leak in A25 aft cabin

[homesteady]

We've had the Sandcastle in the harbor and uncovered longer than we wanted this winter. She's been fairing ok in the sub-freezing temps, record rainfall and multiple dumps of snow...BUT there is one area of dampness in the aft cabin I haven't been able to track down the source of.

I'm attaching photos of where the water ends up, but I can't find any telltale hanging droplets or clear track of water so far. I assumed it was a window seal but they're all dry and tight. I'll probably have to tear out the interior to track this thing down but wanted to put it out to the group in case this is a known phenomena in the A25.

PXL_20220108_220518302.jpg

PXL_20220108_221142057.MP.jpg

You see the plywood that is soaked but the carpet hull liner is only wet at the sill plate where the plywood was attached. My guess right now is that the handrails need to be re-bedded, which I assume requires removing interior plywood, cabinets and such to access anyway? Water could be getting channeled along the sill tab and wicking into the wood, which makes the source more elusive.

Any tips, stories, experience shared are greatly appreciated! Thanks

Happy New Year all!

[dkirsop]

Before I replaced my back window and seal there was a leak at the under side of the seal, near the center of the window, that travelled down to the curved edge where the cabin roof curls under and forms the rear deck. It then flowed along this surface to the corner, where your leak appears, before dripping down onto the corner of the bunk support. It was hard to see the water flowing along the surface but a wipe with a paper towel quickly revealed its presence.

[SalishAire]

Some tricks we have tried with mysterious boat leaks in the past that have worked with varying success: 1) If you have a suspicion of the entry point try putting some food coloring there and adding water to see if the colored water reappears inside. 2) Try talcum powder to see if it will stick to the water track and make it more obvious. 3) Try old-fashioned modeling clay to see if you can make a dam or plug for a suspected entry point before you commit to something more permanent (we always kept a supply of colored clay on our previous boat/home as an emergency leak repair tool and to entertain visiting children who loved the stuff as it was a new experience for them but it is hard to find nowadays (check hobby stores)).

Good luck!!
Norman

[DesertAlbin736]

Could it be just excess condensation? RE modeling clay, there's always clay used to make fillets in molds for fiberglass layups.

https://fiberglasssupplydepot.com/Chava ... -Clay.html

SalishAire,

It's warm and dry down here. Come on down!

https://www.windfinder.com/weatherforec ... sant_south

Note: As much as I'd like to keep my boat up in WA full time, this is one reason besides the tax situation why I hesitate leaving my boat up there over the winter 1,500 miles away from home. With fuel prices being what they are (we tow with a diesel truck) a return trip this summer will hit close to $1,200 for truck fuel alone.

[homesteady]

Thanks for the tips everyone! I need to take some more time investigating the window seals. Also I wouldn't be surprised if the grabrail bolts are channeling a few drops and I'm sure they could use new bedding and tightening all around. There's not any condensation to speak of on the fiberglass.

Yeah winter boat storage is a thing up here. With this being a boat from the fjords of Sweden, I wonder what folks in that part of the world do with their summer boats... Does the government give everyone free indoor boat storage?

[WillieC]

Maybe I should spread some gravel on my property and store A25s off season. Then maybe I could afford an A27!

[dkirsop]

Another reason to haul and cover your boat in winter

viewtopic.php?f=28&t=10571&p=68316&hili ... ver#p68316

[Burton]

Our A25 aft cabin in Slow Motion was so bad we gutted it. Rotten ply, mold, etc… These cabins are poorly ventilated and any moisture going in has a good chance of staying there. The handrails leaked some, but the worst was the transom light fixture. Original deck hardware bedding on these boats should be replaced. To seal these well and also be removable, use Bed-it”. It is a lot like chewing gum in consistency. It is best practice to first create a solid plug in the core where each hole is located. Drill an oversize hole, say one-half inch— through the deck surface, vac it out, tape closed the hole underneath in the liner, then fill hole in deck with thickened epoxy. After the epoxy cures, remove tape on liner, re-drill the hole up through the cabin liner— this aligns with the original hole in the handrail or whatever. Then use Bed-it under the handrail, etc.,when reattaching. This system is what has proven to work well for many years. We did over a hundred holes in our deck this way due to original holes plus many added holes by the previous owner and all bedding was bad. It is a bit like a house—fix the leaky roof before fixing up the inside.

[WillieC]

Good call on the repair procedure using Bed-It. I did much the same on the WillieC but haven't got to the rails yet. Want to coordinate that with a repaint of the deck.

Marine-How-To has a great description of the process, but its owner, Mr. Collins has suffered serious health issues and is recovering. His website is pretty much shut down, but I recommend checking it out. He has been a great help to me over the years.

https://marinehowto.com/

[trakus]

While I have an A27, I too have some persistent aft cabin leaks. One was the non-opening porthole - fixed that with new sealant. The others, however, I suspect are from the aft rail through-bolts. I know A25s don't have aft rails, but I'd go carefully over the deck to see if there are any cracks or openings - water will get in anywhere it can.

[WillieC]

Plenty to search here. The trick is using a good search term. I found over a thousand posts using “leak”. Hmmm. Not so good

Try this one:

viewtopic.php?f=28&t=9860

[Sookelarry]

Hello. I have recently purchased Albin 25 and have started a stern to bow refit. I was getting alot of water in the aft cabin. It cut down considerably after running small bead around window seal. I sealed from outside and did bead inside and outside the seal for all three windows. I also caulked around the stern light. I think the vent will also need new caulking and of course the handrails. I have a small aluminum heater that provides some heat and circulation. I find the temp changes allows great deal of condensation and seems to drip from the turn of the fibreglass near all the windows. Good luck.