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View Full Version : Where in the heck is the water coming from?



Livindadream
06-08-2004, 10:22 PM
I cannot get the water out of my boat....ever. Took it out Sunday, just checked it and there was about an inch of water in the front ski locker. Nasty, dirty, greasy water that was not there when I got home Sunday night. Also, a little water in the bilge compartment, and some in the engine compartment. If this is normal water from people getting in/out of the boat, why is it so dirty? If not, where in the heck is it coming from? I have both intake valves for the sacks turned off at the main valves and had to remove the front sack because it stunk, obviously from an extended period of sitting in this nasty water. I also don't get why this water doesn't drain out? I have the T plug out and the boat is sitting to where the water should drain. Any tricks I don't know about? This is very frustrating and I can't seem to isolate the source. Why isn't the bilge pumping this out? Come to think of it, I am not even sure the bilge works. Guess I better check that ASAP.

HELP!!!! I am going on a week long trip in two weeks, and have to get this figured out before then.

Yellowmobius
06-09-2004, 08:21 AM
Livin,

My guess is the water is coming in around the gland packing nut, as for oily water check some of the fittings around the engine. My tranny lines had a small leak at one time.
To check the gland packing nut you have to have the boat in water, I check it with the engine running. Lift the engine cover and look back at the driveshaft, assume you have a d-drive, not real sure on v-drives. There are insructions for adjusting the gland packing nut in other posts. I pull my t-plug as soon as I get out of the water, you are able to get more water out of the boat when you are driving, the start/stop moves the water around. If you are pullng the plug after you park you will not get that effect. Not sure how you are doing it but just a few thoughts.

MEDIC151
06-09-2004, 09:40 AM
I have noticed that it takes awhile for the water that is in the carpet to make its way to the hull once I am back home. I have always had a little water left in the hull unless I am off the water for a week or so. I have a block of wood that I use to hold the engine cover up about 4 inches that allows more air circulation and evaporation when it is parked at the house. With all the rain we have had lately, I can't seem to get it to dry out completely, but like you, I always have some in the front ski locker. On rare occasions I have disconnected the bilge for the front ballast and used that to get the water out. Be careful of any trash that might clog it up though.

Medic

BOOM-BA
06-09-2004, 03:01 PM
I have this problem as well. I found that the ski locker collects alot of water during the time on the lake. I made it a point to check the gland, tighten the plug, and pay extra attention as to how much water was going on the floor around the ski locker. I found that the plug was not leaking by, the gland was not the source. Bilge pump comes on very seldom but, I always had water in the locker. I have a steep drive at my shop so I took my boat there and let it sit on the inclince. There was no water in the bilge. After approx. 3min. water began to come out. The ski locker drained completely. I then put a fish tape through the drain hole in the ski locker and I felt what seemed to be a blockage. I could not get it cleared and cannot get to it from the engine compartment(V-drive). It does drain somewhat quickly on an incline.

The source of the water turned out to be the water coming in the boat from the passengers. I usally have 6-8 teenagers running back and forth to the front and the glove box to the stereo and after boarding. Hope this helps?

Livindadream
06-09-2004, 06:12 PM
OK folks, now I am really stumped. Spent 1/2 hour last night sponging water out of the ski locker, and it was bone dry when I quit. Just to clarify, I am speaking of the in-floor locker in the center of the boat. Get home from work, more water in there. The thing is in my garage, and we've had no rain. Has to be coming from the plumbing for the sack(can I say that on a family internet site?), right? While I removed the sack, the pumps are still hanging open into the locker. What baffles me is that I have the valves turned of inside the engine compartment, the main valves. Is there another one somewhere I don't know about? I have the two inlets coming in, one for the front and one for the back, and have both shut down.

seanpatsdad
06-10-2004, 10:28 PM
I put a post on here somewhere,all my fittings on the bags were loose.I had to put thread tape on them all and tighten them.Also,I don't know what boat you have,mine is a 04 Mob LSV,my center locker had 4 long bolts that could have pierced the bag.Take your bag out and fill with water and check for leaks.I cut the bolts back and covered them with silicone.Also i found the fitting that joins the 2 exhaust manifolds loose.It looks like a regular garden hose.Hope this helps.
John

Livindadream
06-11-2004, 06:59 AM
I have a Mobius LS. Thanks for the response. I thought the bags were leaking as well, so I have removed the one in the front. I noticed in an exhaustive search that there is a small opening where the drain for the front locker goes through the stringer into the bilge compartment. Not sure if this is supposed to be there? Not talking about the drain opening itself, but it looks almost like a split has opened up, which would be akin to having a crack in the locker itself. Appears that water is pooling a little bit in that split, but I have no idea how much as I can't get to it. The split is about 1/2 inch wide at its widest point. My question is, has anone ever seen beneath the ski locker? Is there anything under there? I am sure there is some space. I could fill the opening with silicon or some type of sealant, but the issue is I have no way of getting that water out of there, do I? Not sure that there is anywhere for it to drain, and I can't get to it unless I had some sort of elongated, flexible syringe that would fit in that opening.

BOOM-BA
06-15-2004, 02:11 PM
Dream, I am going to try and explain this without making myself look like A fool and you to be able to understand what the heck I am talking about...

Well I thought I knew where the source of my water in the locker was from, well, I was wrong! This may not apply to your boat, but it seems that my particular hull has a
"deep v" that is approx. 6' long; the length of the ski locker. If you look at the 2004 moomba brochure in the colors/paterns section (side view of the boats) you see what I am trying to explain. This section of the hull is lower than the rear part of the hull and where the bilge is, thus it holds water. After sitting, traveling, and moving, the water pools and seeks its own level back into the locker. I know that some mobius's and supras have this type of hull. If this applies to your hull, sorry to say this, it is a design flaw and the only way you can drain the water is by putting your boat on an incline for awhile.

If you stand next to your trailer wheel and look under your boat where the ski locker is located, you should be able to see the "deep V" part of the hull(sorry do not know what it is called) and how much lower it is than the rest of the boat. It holds water even if the bilge is dry.

I do not know your make of boat but it is the same issue I am having and your post got me to looking further and my dealer and I have come to this conclusion. I sure hope this helps. One way you may be able to stop the water is plug the hole and get a small wet/dry vac and vac it out when you clean up your boat after use. Just a thought it is a pain but should keep it dry.

Livindadream
06-16-2004, 09:32 AM
Thanks Boom, and yes, that is exactly what it is. I have an '02 Mobius LS, and it also has the elongated hull. My solution was to take a turkey friar syringe and stick it in there and syphen the water out. I then took a piece of plastic and caulked it over the hole, as well as use a plastic pipe fitting to bridge that area and get the water from the locker directly to the bilge compartment. Not sure how much water will get in there from normal use, nor am I sure where/how the water drains. Maybe that split was there to allow the water to get out? If so, maybe I need to take that caulk out. Anyhow, I now have a dry boat. Hopefully I didn't make a bigger problem by my resolve. Just don't see how water could get in that area? Should drain through the floor into the locker, and into the bilge. Thanks for the suggestions.

rgreene91
06-23-2004, 02:38 PM
I had a water problem in my 02 outback ls. After searching and searching I finally located it. Apparently, when Moomba was installing the intake cover on the bottom of the hull, they drilled a hole for the screw in the wrong spot. Instead of filling or repairing the hole they just left it there and put the intake cover over it. It took forever but I finally found the water slowly seeping into the boat. It was hard to find since the inside of the hull is black and the hole did not come all the way through the hull. SInce the intake cover was installed I couldn't see it from the bottom of the boat either.

Something to check into for those with a mysterious leak.