Slow leak into the forward bilge

[Quench]

Hi - new to us 28 TE is collecting water in the bilge area under the cabin. I think it's a few gallons of water over a week, but it's difficult to estimate. We don't think that it's rainwater as it hasn't rained that much. And it's collecting while sitting in the slip. The thru hulls (raw water cooling, a/c, discharge, etc) all seem to be sealed and dry. We think there might be a trickle coming from underneath the engine, but I would have expected that to accumulate in engine room bilge area rather than moving forward (please correct that if I'm wrong). The rudder plate looks a bit wet around the edges, but again, I would expect anything coming from there to stay more aft rather than all the way up to the cabin. Also, the source would have to be from between the stringers, correct? Seems like it would have to be a LOT of water to come over the top of the stringers and it's not that much. Where should we look?

[Jkraft]

On the 28, any accumulating water will run all the way forward as it is the lowest point in the boat. It is typical to have bilge water accumulate there due to rain and or washing down. If eveything is bone dry on the thru hulls it is coming from somewhere else. It could be the rudder that needs to be repacked. Dry it all down well and put paper towels down around it and a flash light and see.

It could also be a slight plumbing leak. Does your fresh water system hold pressure? When you get to the boat and click on your fresh water pump, does it cycle on? If it does, you have a fresh water leak somewhere.

Another consideration is AC if you have it. The factory setup drains the AC condensation to the bilge and you would be surprised how much water accumulates because of it. Most of us have plumped the AC condensate to the shower pump box and it helps dramatically.

On my 28, I installed a dry bilge system in the forward bilge and it was a big help keeping it dry. Good luck and hopefully I have you some starting points

[gmberkley]

I also installed another bilge pump in the forward bow section under my table top access lid, and I placed hinges on the wood plate the table mounts on, with a latch to keep it closed, when I want to maintain the pump, I just undo the latch, and flip the entire table top up. It doesn't get all the water, but good enough until I get underway and the water goes to the back of the boat and the bilge there gets rid of it. I also mounted the pump on and angle, I made a wedge from a block of wood, three coats of epoxy, and epoxied the wedge in the bottom of the bilge and mounted the pump on it, there''s some space under the wedge so I can assure it's clean under there.

[Quench]

On the 28, any accumulating water will run all the way forward as it is the lowest point in the boat. It is typical to have bilge water accumulate there due to rain and or washing down. If eveything is bone dry on the thru hulls it is coming from somewhere else. It could be the rudder that needs to be repacked. Dry it all down well and put paper towels down around it and a flash light and see.

It could also be a slight plumbing leak. Does your fresh water system hold pressure? When you get to the boat and click on your fresh water pump, does it cycle on? If it does, you have a fresh water leak somewhere.

Another consideration is AC if you have it. The factory setup drains the AC condensation to the bilge and you would be surprised how much water accumulates because of it. Most of us have plumped the AC condensate to the shower pump box and it helps dramatically.

On my 28, I installed a dry bilge system in the forward bilge and it was a big help keeping it dry. Good luck and hopefully I have you some starting points

Thanks for this info. I browsed through several pages of this sub and found a similar topic from a couple of years ago. I'm pretty sure that you posted a pic of that bilge system. Also found that it's not uncommon to have water up there, so that's strangely reassuring.

We'll check on the fresh water system, but we "emptied" it a couple of weeks ago. I'm not sure how much would be in the tank after that, but I think we're getting more in the bilge than there should be after emptying the tank if it's the source.

We just replaced the A/C, so that's not it. The old unit wasn't working.

We think that it's too much water to be the raw water cooling system.

So that seems like it has to be a thru hull. If the water will run all the way forward, and we're getting a trickle from under the engine... well, that has to be the best indicator. We'll have to investigate that further.

[gmberkley]

after a rain event I get a lot of water up front, when the boat sits, all water goes forward, which I was tired of, and installed the bilge pump which empties into the shower bilge and goes overboard. Last year I replaced every thru hull fitting, the existing ones are plastic, and I was concerned with the plastic getting brittle, so I replaced every one of them with 316 SS thru hull fitting, and all new hoses. One of the many projects and upgrades I undertook last year. I've also ordered new sealant material for the hatches on the deck to help alleviate water infiltration.

[jrhess3]

My stuffing box connecting the propeller shaft to the transmission is leaking and water is accumulating in my bilge. In my boat (1995 Peninsular) the leak is directly under the engine.

20230518_115720.jpg

To get to this you have to remove the panels in the deck storage box and look under the engine. You need long screwdrivers and a hammer to tighten or to loosen it for repacking.

[Ben423]

I took a different approach and filled in the bilge from just forward of the bilge pump near the shower box, about 4" high, then glassed and gelcoated it. I sloped it just enough so that any water that could get there will drain aft. Now the water that collects through rain/washing doesn't flow forward to that hard-to-reach area under the table and beyond, and the area around the bow thruster is always dry. That lowest spot in the boat is also where dirt and gunk collect, but now that area is pristine.

Because of the way this boat is built, there is usually some small amount of water in the bilge due to rain and washing.

[gmberkley]

I like that, especially since my bilge pump is acting up...........what did you fill the 4" gap with?

[jms02050]

There's a PVC pipe going through the bulkhead which connects the aft and forward bilges. Lift the cabin step, open the plate below the battery switch and you'll be able to see it. Might be quick and easy to just plug the pipe...