Water trapped between hull and ski locker subfloor

[brain_rinse]

Good info, thanks for posting. Good luck with the repair!

[gonracn]

How did you initially discover this issue? Is it common among one line or should we all be worried?

[mnpracing]

I initially discovered the issue from reading a post on this forum from several people that had this issue. Kojack was one of them, you can search for his posts and see how he is coping with it. He installed a deck fill port in the bottom of his locker floor and uses that access point to shopvac any water out of it periodically. That would have been my psuedo-fix too, if warranty did not cover the repair ($1,500).

I didn't notice the issue at first, even after specifically looking for it. I started looking for the issue by stepping into the locker and lightly bouncing up and down. I felt nothing at first, the floor was solid, so I thought all was good. But then a few days later, when cleaning out the boat, I stepped more forward in the locker, and there the floor had some give. I wasn't alarmed though, because on my 06 OBV the floor had some give as well. Well, then I heard water squishing under the floor. Then, I noticed when I bounced a little I could hear water squishing out waayy up front (in the locker) up where the locker floor meets the hull in the bow. I then got my head in there and pushed down just with my hands/arms and could SEE the water squishing out where the locker floor meets the hull in the bow.

I'm assuming that is where the water entered this space. I assume the water that gets into the locker from rollers or from the ballast bag sloshes up to the bow area then down through the gap in the floor/hull mating area, and viola, water UNDER the locker floor. It is also a possibility that the locker floor itself has some structural issues as there are a number of what look like air bubbles that have popped, so the black floor material (gelcoat?) has peeled off from the layer of fiberglass that makes up the locker floor. Water may be leaking down under the locker floor this way as well.

Hopefully reglassing and gelcoating the locker compartment and sealing off the locker floor/hull mating area will solve the issue. If not, I'll be installing the flush-mount deck fill port like Kojack did...but most of the time in the shop is just waiting for the darn foam to dry out....

[cab13367]

Well, I think I have water under my ski locker as well. When I put my foot in the ski locker, as far forward as possible, and bounce up and down lightly, I can hear water under the locker. Seems like a lot of water under there. But there is no obvious place that I can see where the water is going down in there.

So my question is, it's been like that probably since I bought the boat new 4 years ago - what is it hurting? Even if SC will pay for it, why should I have the ski locker opened up and the foam and water removed? What will it hurt if I just leave it alone?

I'll give the dealer a call tomorrow and see what they say.

Al

[mnpracing]

Cab, I'm wondering the same thing, what does it hurt?
1. I know there's some different opinions (maybe it's been verified) as to whether there is wood anywhere in the hull. If there is, that would be bad to have it constantly wet down there.

2. The extra weight (I trailer mine). Don't know how much water is down there, but the space is about 5 inches deep, 4+ feet long, and 4 or so feet wide. Granted, it tapers based on the hull shape, but still a significant amount of water.

3. The floatation foam is useless when saturated.

4. It stinks in both senses of the word (smells and it just shouldn't be there).

5. A constantly saturated state has to be doing some long-term damage to the hull/locker floor, stringers, etc. in addition to mold growth. May not hurt anything in 3-5 years, but what about 10 years? How much is the life of the components, and the whole boat, shortened because of this?

6. On principle, it just shouldn't be there (or there should be a deliberately-designed way to get it out). I appreciate a value-priced boat without some bells & whistles, but it should be structurally sound. What good is a lower price if core quality is compromised? And just in case other brands have experienced this issue, I don't care about other brands. If I hit a deer with my car, and someone else says "it's OK, it's happened to me", it really doesn't make me feel any better....

[gonracn]

So how is the water getting into that area? Is coming up from the bottom or is it getting there over time from boards and people dripping water.

[mnpracing]

Gonrcn - see my post 2 up that describes where I think it's entering this space. Not certain, but it's all I've come up with so far.