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Alita49DS · 13-03-2017, 11:50

I own a Jeanneau 49DS; but I suspect that this problem might be generic to other Jeanneau flat bottomed sailing boats.

Being largely flat bottomed my boat relies on: -

a. the limber holes being low enough to let water in the bilge pass to the sump

b. the build not having sections lower than the sump

Sadly, on my boat the limber holes are not flush with the bottom of the boat and there are also areas where the bottom is below the sump itself. The result is that when in harbour considerable amounts of water collect in the bottom of the boat. Not all areas where it collects can be reached to sponge out. There is thus higher humidity in the boat than is necessary.

Does anyone have a solution to this problem? As the limber holes go through structural sections none is obvious to me.

The only thing which is obvious is that Jeanneau would appear to be guilty of less than optimal design and build.

**neilpride** · 13-03-2017, 11:58

You should be sure they made the limber holes watertight when they pass the grid liner, i see few where the wáter drain inside of the grid liner making drain the bilge a nightmare....

Alita49DS · 13-03-2017, 12:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by neilpride

You should be sure they made the limber holes watertight when they pass the grid liner, i see few where the wáter drain inside of the grid liner making drain the bilge a nightmare....

Thanks. That is another potential problem that I had not thought of! Not a solution.

**neilpride** · 13-03-2017, 12:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alita49DS

Thanks. That is another potential problem that I had not thought of! Not a solution.

I dont know if your 49DS is built like others but by norm they dont pay to much attention to this details, you can check by digging a allen key around inside of the limber hole and see if they glass a tube or is just hollow , yes there is few solutions ....

rognvald · 13-03-2017, 13:59

Most limber holes in your structural grid are either a.) hollow or b.) foam filled. Mine were foam filled. I coated each hole with thickened epoxy to seal against water intrusion wherever possible. Some, I could not physically reach. Although we all want a custom boat at production prices, this is never the case. Therefore, repair if possible and leave the rest to the sea gods. Some people happily own a boat for thirty years and never know nor have seen their limber holes. Good luck and safe sailing.

**minaret** · 13-03-2017, 18:54

Bond in glass tube with methacrylate (Plexus). Just leave the tube proud if the limber hole a bit and fillet it in, no glass needed. When you install tubes you can hog out the original holes a bit so the tube sits flush to the bottom. In some cases sit tube is better but hard to do right.

Paul L · 13-03-2017, 21:05

Pour some epoxy into the sump area that is a little low to bring the bottom up to the limber holes lower edge.

UNCIVILIZED · 13-03-2017, 21:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paul L

Pour some epoxy into the sump area that is a little low to bring the bottom up to the limber holes lower edge.

Nice concept. Re-create the sumps so that everything's downhill, once the limber holes have been appropriately enlarged & sealed against moisture.

One other thought is that some limber holes are designed to drain well primarily when the boat is heeled over. And or, to work this way in conjunction with other limber holes that work when the boat is level, dockside.

And I can't advise doing this without taking a look at a specific boat. However some boats simply need a few more limber holes added to them, provided that it won't hurt them structurally. I've done as much to a few boats over the years.