Sprung a leak

[Bruce & Sandi L]

I just launched my 1986 hull after7 months on the hard, and it started leaking. It was coming in through a thin skin over a hollow section just forward of the rudder shaft housing. I put the boat back on the hard, and found a little soft spot at the base of the prop shaft strut. I started digging and found a whole area of water penetrated filler around the strut, but it is really outside the hull itself, and perhaps too far forward of the hollow area to be leaking into it. Any ideas or past experence?

[Ken Juul]

2 haul outs ago I noticed the caulking at the top of the strut looked cracked.  Dug it partially out and resealed.  Next haul out I noticed that the strut was damp after about a week on the hard.  Caulking looked ok.  One of the projects last year was to add a small skeg in front of the rudder to prevent crap pot lines from fouling in the rudder.  When I drilled into the hull, I got about a quart of water out the hole.  There is a void between the hull and the liner that water can become trapped in.  I let it dry a couple weeks before I installed the skeg and really dug out the sealant around the strut and let it dry before resealing.

[RV61]

Bruce
Three years ago or so I found a leak from a crack is the skeg just aft the strut as it was hollow and some water had migrated and froze over the winter causing the  crack in the skeg . Drilled out and got over a quart of water . Dried it out over a couple weeks using heat lamp . Then filled skeg with a foam product as well as from the top side just forward the steering pedestal ground down a little and filled with epoxy so no more water can get down there. I reccomend doing this unless you can remember to put antifreeze there in the winterizing process. Not sure it is same issue just that water decidied to migrate differently.

[Footloose]

Rick,

I was just at my boat sponging out the indent at the skeg and the idea of filling it came to mind.  What did you use and how did you ensure that it was sealed.  I don't want water where I can't get to it and worse yet to have it hidden by a foam filler.

[Bruce & Sandi L]

Update:
After five days on the hard, no water drained out of the skag, so I decided the leak was not coming through from the strut, which is lower then the trapped water in the skag. So, I believe the water is coming through the rudder shaft housing. My rudder is out, and in looking up the hole I see an inserted bushing or bearing if you prefer, and although most of it is sealed at the bottom with some kind of filler, there is a crack showing around one side. I called Catalina, and was told that there was no bushing in the original hull. It has been added, probably as a result of the original fiberglass housing wearing with age. So, I have glassed in the ground out strut area, and sealed the bottom of the rudder bushing with Sikaflex 291. After I am back in the water (perhaps next Wednesday), I will let you know if I am still slowly sinking or have solved the problem. One problem I do not have is ice. Just one reason I sail in Mexico.

[Stu Jackson]

This may help some visualize the rudder post:  http://www.c34.org/faq-pages/techdata-rudder-packing-gland.html

[Jon Schneider]

Glad you seem to have found the source of the leak.  I can't really imagine how the PO got a bushing in there.  Do you have any pix of the installation?  And is the crack between the rudder post tube and the bushing, or can you actually see the crack in the tube itself?  If the former, I'm not sure you've actually found the source of the leak (though it was probably a good thing to seal it anyway); if the latter, then the post tube may need better reinforcement than just caulking the crack.  Sikaflex is of course flexible, but that's not necessarily a benefit in this circumstance.  You really want to limit the amount of flexing in that crack, and I suspect the best way would be to stiffen the tube by glassing it more thoroughly inside the boat. 

BTW, was the leak persistent when the boat was in the water (i.e., you could see water coming in or notice it after a period of time when the boat had not been used and it had not rained)?  Or did it occur after using the boat, especially after motoring?  If the latter and if it turns out that the rudder tube is not the culprit, check the raw water exit hose. 

[RV61]

Dave,
I do not recall the name of the foam sealent we injected  into the skeg. I do recall it took to aerosol cans and was made to fill marine voids and was recommended by two fiberglass boat repair folks. We used glass mat and epoxy to seal up the top so no more water was going to go down thru the  indentation to the hollow skeg now filled with foam just forward the pedestal. Used epoxy to seal up the area we drilled and ground out the crack  in the skeg from underneath.
Have had no problems since and run a moisture meter on it every fall to be sure it is dry in that skeg area.

[Bruce & Sandi L]

Jon,

I don't know how it was done either, but I can sure see the composit tube inside the fiberglass housing. The gap was between the bushing and the housing. The leak was persistant, and salt water. Unfortunatly the picture I took did not turn out well enough to see the bushing, and I didn't look at it on the computer screen untill after I had put the rudder back in. The good news is I have been back in the wate for a few days, and it is dry as a bone. Now we will see how long the sekaflex holds up. I will be pulling the boat again in March, and if it starts leaking again before that, I won't worry about it, as I at least now know where it is getting in, and I know it can't get too big too fast, unless I clobber something with the rudder, and that is usually avoidable.