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boatless 4 now · 17-07-2012, 09:51

A while back I looked at a boat sitting on the hard. The bilge was filled with water as someone had left all the hatches open. I am thinking about. Urging this boat but have found out the the yard drilled a hole from the bilge to the hull to Drain the water. ?????? How would I proceed to fill this so it be water tight? I was thinking of grinding down the outside , removing some material from the hull, fill with thickened epoxy and than re-glassing the hull. Will this work?

**Cheechako** · 17-07-2012, 10:12

That will work. A threaded plug/set screw or etc put in after tapping into the glass will work fine and be much easier. I would coat the plug with 5200 or other sealant. You might want to open it up again if storing your boat!

Tony B · 17-07-2012, 10:50

Wouldn't it be kinda hard to open it up again after coating the plug with 5200 assuming you are talking about the threads.

motion30 · 17-07-2012, 10:51

No big deal I would drill both sides with a counter sink and fill with epoxy

**Cheechako** · 17-07-2012, 11:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony B

Wouldn't it be kinda hard to open it up again after coating the plug with 5200 assuming you are talking about the threads.

no , not at all, it'll come right out. 5200 really isnt a glue like some people think, yeah, it holds some things together like no tomorow, but screw threads will come right out. Boatlife would be fine too though. Some boats actualy have a bronze plug in the hull for draining.

biltong · 17-07-2012, 11:31

Fill and glass from both sides. You can always re-drill if you wished to open her up again, though, the fewer holes in you hull below the water line, the better.

**David_Old_Jersey** · 17-07-2012, 11:43

Filling the hole is the easy bit - fixing the damage caused by standing water inside the boat will not be.....inspect the lower (underwater!) part of the bulkheads (if Ply then likely will either be mush or have gone soft or delaminated) and the tabbing carefully (for delam from the bulkhead) - and ideally poke around with something sharp / pointy!

Stumble · 17-07-2012, 12:03

Boatless,

Unless you plan to routinely have the boat pulled, I don't think leaving a drain plug in the bilge is a very good idea.

You don't mention the size of the hole, but unless it is really large (bigger than 3") you don't need to reglass it. Simply tape up the bottom with packing tape, then make a slurry of epoxy, structual filler micro balloons, and glass fibers. Pour the mix into the hole and let it cure.

Once cured pull the tape, fair the patch to the hull and apply bottom paint. The inside can be faired, but doesn't really behave to be.

Samantha ann · 17-07-2012, 12:08

I had the same situation. Fixed with a Garber (?) plug. 10 years later no problems.

kaimusailing · 17-07-2012, 17:31

Don't fill the hole without feathering the edges, or do the other suggestions threading it. How big is it? Use an angle grinder with flap disc and feather it inside and out. It's like making a scarf joint. You want about 10:1. Make round glass patches of alternate roving and matt for both inside and outside total thickness to equal the hull. Force into place with inflatable mattress. The edges of the patches can be ground flush, the whole patch should come out flush if done correctly.

**Sailmonkey** · 17-07-2012, 17:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samantha ann

I had the same situation. Fixed with a Garber (?) plug. 10 years later no problems.

Garboard

**HopCar** · 17-07-2012, 17:46

I would install a garboard drain plug in the hole. In the olden days of my youth it seemed every boat had one of these. Very handy if the boat is on the hard for a while.
PERKO Inc. - Underwater Hardware - Garboard Drain Plug
Samantha Ann, is Garboard the word you were looking for?

**Cheechako** · 17-07-2012, 17:58

Yes, plugs were the norm many years ago. it's not a big thing. Tap the hole and put a bronze or SS allen head screw in it with sealant. Forget about it. It's not going to fall out.

**svHyLyte** · 17-07-2012, 18:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samantha ann

I had the same situation. Fixed with a Garber (?) plug. 10 years later no problems.

"Garboard!"

Ziggy · 17-07-2012, 18:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by HopCar

I would install a garboard drain plug in the hole. In the olden days of my youth it seemed every boat had one of these. Very handy if the boat is on the hard for a while.
PERKO Inc. - Underwater Hardware - Garboard Drain Plug
Samantha Ann, is Garboard the word you were looking for?

I've had one of those in my garboard since the boat was built (in 1984!). Very useful during haulouts (makes it easy to hose down and clean the bilges) and never gave me any problems. I highly recommend one.