Hey, the Kapt'n is back!! Welcome, friend.
Hey, the Kapt'n is back!! Welcome, friend.
Hey Kraig, glad you're back! As for the neighbor kid. If you do that, make him send you a pic of the boat each time from his phone (to make sure he actually goes over and checks on it).
if what you are saying is correct about a possible wakeboard wake, park the boat at the dock with the bow toward the boat path. knowing those boomerangs are real low in the water, you might have some additional protection from the bow taking the brunt of wakes vs the back end?
other than the redundancy, not much else you can do other than having a good boat insurance policy :)
I keep getting this vision in my head of a couple douche bags in their Dad 's sacked out boat purposely sending rollers over the back of your boat and watching it fill with water.
The Boomerang has such little freeboard and sits so low in the water that I don't think I'd leave it in the water unattended.
Lift or trailer option , but extra battery and pump might help the leaks but not the waves. Won't pump fast enough. A good cover will deflect some.
My .02
So this thread makes me nervous as all hell.
I moor my 2008 Outback while on vacation for 3 weeks. Of course I see it and use it daily but of course not through the night. I can't imagine waking up and just seeing the top of the tower. But the talk of the shaft seal begs me to ask some questions.
How do you check it ?
Also when I hook my boat up to the Fake A Lake and start it up I get water that appears to run out through the shaft area. Is that normal ?
Last year was my first with an inboard so sorry if these are dumb questions.
Best advice -
1. Get the seal replaced at least every 100 hours - probably every 50 is better.
2. Learn where the seal is, how to access it, and how to tighten the jam nut. There are several threads on this board regarding that.
3. On your long trips - Carry the necessary tools with you to tighten the jam nut. You can overtighten it - it is supposed to leak a little. You must be out of the water to replace the seal and you don't find the packing material at just any hardware or auto store.
4. Learn where the bilge pump is and inspect the area around it for debris. Use your hands, not just vision.
5. Consider going to a dripless seal - I have not yet - but am considering it.
I used to leave mine in the water for the weekend and we would notice that the bilge would always be kicking out water - frequently and on a predicatable schedule. So moor where you can see the bilge exit from shore. If it runs after it has been moored for more than 10 minutes - you are probably taking on water. It does nto mean you are going to sink but deserves some attention. I don't think a bad seal is something that just suddenly starts gushing water while unattended. In otherwords - the leak through the seal should be about the same when you shut it off as it is after sitting for 20 minutes or a day. I have noticed that a leaky seal may increase leak while operating and decrease while sitting - but that is random.
Unfortunately in my 99 Mobius DD you can't see the seal coupling directly without pulling the clamshell and a small part of the floor. You might be able to see it with a flashlight and a mirror if you open the clamshell and peer back toward the shaft. Never tried that. A severe leak in the seal is very obvious if you can see the jam nut. Should only be leaking about one drop per thirty seconds - not a steady stream.
Sometimes the float switch will stick and and the bilge will never come on as the water enters the boat.
Sometimes the bilge intake may get debris around it, leaves, sludge, plastic bag, etc.. In this case the float switch may activate and continue to call for bilge but nothing gets pupmed out. So the pump runs continuously and kills the battery while the water continues to get deeper.
If you are near the boat, check ever so often to see if you are taking on water. Run the bilge manually, you should hear the pump. But remember - no water coming out can mean there is no water, or the intake is blocked. Inspect the motor well for increasing water. Listen - you may hear it. Watch the bilge water for movement.
You will never have a dry bilge unless you pull the drain plug so don't freak - but pay attention to rising water.
HTH
Dave
I have to ask what the heck is your motor bolted to......looks pretty sketchy.....
Appears to be 2x4's