Water in core above the main salon

Mike McDonald · May 07, 2012, 05:59:22 PM

Hello again,
I am having some water leaking into the core above the cabin. The previous owner capped off the holes for the Dorade vents and also had two deck plates covering 4" holes, one in the head, and the other above the seat in the rear cabin. Is accumulating in all 4 of these openings. I am suspecting the main opening Bomar hatch above the dinette table. The seal at the deck looks questionable and someone has put some sealant on top of each of the deck screws on the hatch frame. The boat is still in the cradle on the hard and is sitting with the bow up a bit, which would cause the water to travel aft. Any thoughts on this? Any other likely spots to look at? Any potential water entry points above the sliding hatch cover that would run to both sides of the boat? I'd like to get the water infiltration stopped before launching if possible. Thanks again for all of your help.
Mike......

scotty · May 07, 2012, 09:09:26 PM

Good luck following the water leaks. They can be tricky. (sorry that I don't have any suggestions). Are you a new owner, if so, welcome aboard.

mel low · May 07, 2012, 10:27:19 PM

I have had leak in this area. It turn out to be the the bolts that hold the traveler. There has been several write up on this. It will require you to remove the traveler and rebed. If your boat does not have the traveler bolted through the cabin top you should do this as part of this project. I have several of the 9 inch bolt available if you need them.

Mike McDonald · May 08, 2012, 05:24:31 AM

Scotty,
Yes I am a new owner. I bought the boat last fall, and it is also my first boat. I'm fairly handy with most projects, but this is a whole new learning experience for me. I really appreciate all of the support that this forum provides. It was one of the many reasons I chose the C-34. Thanks.

Mel,

Quote from: mel low on May 07, 2012, 10:27:19 PM
I have had leak in this area. It turn out to be the the bolts that hold the traveler. There has been several write up on this. It will require you to remove the traveler and rebed. If your boat does not have the traveler bolted through the cabin top you should do this as part of this project. I have several of the 9 inch bolt available if you need them.

Thanks for your suggestions. I'll try to find the articles on re-bedding the traveler. I did have a drip on one of the traveler bolts in the cabin ceiling. I think I'll have to re-bed just about everything over time. Thanks.
Mike......

Ted Pounds · May 08, 2012, 08:17:12 AM

Before re-bedding check out Mainsail's thread on using butyl tape instead of caulk.

Mike McDonald · May 08, 2012, 08:35:48 AM

Thanks Ted. I bought 4-rolls of butyl tape from mainesail for re-bedding a lot of the deck hardware. I appreciate the tip.
Mike...

Stu Jackson · May 08, 2012, 10:30:06 AM

Mike, you don't need an article on rebedding the traveler, 'cuz there isn't one called that. Just back off the bolts, raise the traveler bar, bed and reseat. IIRC, I had responded to a way old question about leaks like yours, and found water entering my port dorade. It wasn't the dorade but it was the traveler track, opne of those threads that wandered.

I've had some recent leaks at my Bomar (the one with the heavy frame and hatch). I removed the sealant around the frame between the hatch and the deck and resealed that. More recently I found the sealant between the lens and the hatch was deteriorating and will have to reseal that, too, better than just the single corner spot I did last month. Best thing owuld be to remove the hatch and clean it all up.

Mike McDonald · May 08, 2012, 03:13:31 PM

Thanks Stu, I'll give the traveler re-bedding a try and see if things dry out before attacking the hatch. I appreciate the help!
Mike....

Mike McDonald · May 09, 2012, 04:48:57 PM

Well, I spent a fair amount of time trying to get the traveler off today, but several of the phillips head screws (5) are completely frozen. The ones I did get out seemed to have bedding compound on the threads. I tried heating the screws with a torch, but the heat doesn't seem to travel far enough down the screws to free them? I've tried spraying a form of liquid Wrench on the screw heads (several times), hoping that some might travel down the threads, but I think think the heads are too well sealed to let it travel. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. (I did get the 3 port side shroud chain plates re-bedded with Butyl Tape today, 3 to go as weather permits)
Mike.....

Stu Jackson · May 09, 2012, 06:10:33 PM

Mike, it SS screw in AL, dissimilar metals. PB Blaster overnight, impact screw driver.

Stu Jackson · May 09, 2012, 08:29:41 PM

Mike, doesn't answer your ? but here's some of the history I mentioned earlier.

Woops, sorry forgot to provide the link:

http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,1913.0.html

Mike McDonald · May 11, 2012, 05:28:55 AM

Hi Stu,
Thanks for the suggestion. What kind of impact screwdriver do you suggest? Pneumatic, hammer drill? Not sure what to get. I applied PB Blaster several times yesterday, not sure if it will travel down the screw, but hopefully it will. Also, the "history" part of your previous post didn't show up for some reason. Problem could be at my end? Thanks again.
Mike.....

Mike McDonald · May 11, 2012, 06:15:04 AM

I may have found the answer to my previous questions regarding the Impact Driver. Seems like the "manual" type might work best in this case, to prevent stripping the heads. One is already partially stripped.
Mike......

Stu Jackson · May 11, 2012, 10:15:54 AM

Mike, you'll notice by now I fixed my goof. Yes, I have a manual one. Even though the width of the screw head thread is way wider than the bit on the impact screwdriver, it worked for me. Maybe you can get a wider and thicker bit.

Mike McDonald · May 11, 2012, 11:45:44 AM

Thanks Stu. I just got home from the boat. I got a manual impact driver and gave it a try after using PB Blaster overnight and multiple times today. None of the bolts came free. The heads on 2 of them snapped off. At this point I'm going to try to drill the heads off the remaining bolts and remove the traveler bar. I'm hoping that I can free up the bolt threads using more PB Blaster closer to where the threads go through the fiberglass and the backing plate. I guess I'll try to turn the bolts with vice grips. I'm looking for a local source for the bolts (2-1/2" and 9") and guidance on drilling out the heads on the stainless steel bolts.
Do you know for sure if the 9" bolts fit in both positions? There is one long bolt on each side. Is that enough? I have a feeling that the PO put bedding compound on the threads, which is keeping the PB Blaster from reaching the threads. Or, as you said earlier, it may just be the dis-similar metals? I will definitely put lanacote on the threads this time if I ever get the old bolts out. Thanks for your help.
Mike.....