Cockpit Drain Configuration

[otherthan]

I need to upgrade my drains...my cockpit has 2 aft drains, they go strait down and thruhull (below waterline)...they do not cross as seen on pearsons ...and they are 1/2in diametre only.
I would like to enlarge them to 2in each and keep the same configuration, however I wonder if this is a good idea?

rgds

[daddle]

2 inches times 2 are huge cockpit drains for a small boat. And 1/2" seems pretty tiny. What about just 1"? Consider a thruhull or hose failure, that's the main downside. And for us racers it's the drag of a large hole. Have you been pooped badly and it took forever to drain? The cool thing about conditions that fill the cockpit with green water is that the same conditions tend to toss it right back out again.

[stillbuilding]

I would agree with Daddle that 2" drains are large for small yacht. However it depends a bit on cockpit size rather than boat size too. Although I have a big boat I have a very small working cockpit right aft and have 2 x 2" drains in that cos I anticipate some heavy weather. My centre cockpit is for 6 - 8 people so wide and deep so for that I have 4 x 3" drains. None of mine cross over although I think it is generally a good idea to do so if your drains are not far above WL.
All mine are S/S but I have had heavy rubber hosing with ball valves in other boats and that was fine - can cross them over easily hey.

[otherthan]

yes 1in may be enough?

a similar boat with same original drains has crossed the atlantic and sailed to africa and back...his cockpit got flooded twice (he didnt like it) but nothing bad happened.

I was also considering using half of my footwell to build a stowage box...this would take half the cockpits volume and therfor make drainage easyer.

[otherthan]

Originally Posted by stillbuilding

I would agree with Daddle that 2" drains are large for small yacht. However it depends a bit on cockpit size rather than boat size too. Although I have a big boat I have a very small working cockpit right aft and have 2 x 2" drains in that cos I anticipate some heavy weather. My centre cockpit is for 6 - 8 people so wide and deep so for that I have 4 x 3" drains. None of mine cross over although I think it is generally a good idea to do so if your drains are not far above WL.
All mine are S/S but I have had heavy rubber hosing with ball valves in other boats and that was fine - can cross them over easily hey.

sorry I dont have recent photos or good cockpit photos, but this may give some idea?
as you see my cockpit is larger then average, just the footwell seems to be 6x2ft (guess) the easy fix would be a 2in drain thru the lazarette and strait out transome, I do have the space to do it above waterline.

[daddle]

Originally Posted by jobi

sorry I dont have recent photos or good cockpit photos, but this may give some idea?
as you see my cockpit is larger then average, just the footwell seems to be 6x2ft (guess) the easy fix would be a 2in drain thru the lazarette and strait out transome, I do have the space to do it above waterline.

Out the transom is a great way since the danger from a split hose is greatly diminished. You cockpit well is large. But it's also the type the the water leave from easily. Make sure it cannot leave the cockpit by draining down the companionway. That can ruin your day.

[otherthan]

Originally Posted by daddle

Out the transom is a great way since the danger from a split hose is greatly diminished. You cockpit well is large. But it's also the type the the water leave from easily. Make sure it cannot leave the cockpit by draining down the companionway. That can ruin your day.

this should be an easy fix

[daddle]

Originally Posted by jobi

this should be an easy fix

That's not too bad. Keep one hatch board very handy. At least 8" high. Make sure you can put it in instantly from the helm. Before the second wave hits. Just a tip from experience.

[otherthan]

Originally Posted by daddle

That's not too bad. Keep one hatch board very handy. At least 8" high. Make sure you can put it in instantly from the helm. Before the second wave hits. Just a tip from experience.

thanks we can never get too much experience!!!!

I wanted to build a brige from the companionway to the start of cockpit hatches, and close it shut (watertight)

then glass an 8in dame to raise my companionway...this was my fi
rst idea to make the boat ocean going.

[GordMay]

Whilst docked, plug the drains and fill your cockpit, then removed the plugs and time how long it takes to drain.
The maximum drainage time for any cockpit is five minutes.

[otherthan]

Originally Posted by GordMay

Whilst docked, plug the drains and fill your cockpit, then removed the plugs and time how long it takes to drain.
The maximum drainage time for any cockpit is five minutes.

5 long agonising minuts is too long...id feel like a siting duck (a stupid one at that) because I can do something about it now!!!

on my islande trader 41ft the footwell was 1/3 the size of this one...is it a good idea to shorten the volume of my footwell?

also the drains are 46 old...I dont trust them eventhos they look solid...the thru hulls and hoses have done there time...new gear will only add to safty...also I am remouving the combings in favor of a taff rail as formosa.

thanks for your opinions

[Cheechako]

I dont know... that foot well doesnt look like that big a cockpit....? I like the one 2" out the back idea....actually, get a size that you can buy a rubber exhaust flapper for, that way you can prevent aft seas from shooting a stream into the cockpit! Raising your bridegedeck etc will be pretty uncomfortable when you're living at anchor.... and that's probably 85% of the time! Filling the forward portion of the footwell with a built in waterproof box is a good idea. I did that on my Rawson (comanionway went right to the floor of the footwell!) Then I cut an access hole on the inside behind the ladder and had more storage! It was teak and 5200'd into place...

[Marksman]

My drain hoses are crossed, but only because the cockpit sole is about 8" above the water line (raceing boat) and one drain or the other is under water at anything more than 15 deg. heel. I still get some residual water welling up into the cockpit if I go over 20 deg. but not as bad as if the hoses weren't crossed. But still, if I got pooped when heeled the cockpit (fairly large) would not drain properly untill I was upright again. And the through hulls are only 1/2" so they do drain slow. No good for off shore.

[Jim Cate]

G'Day Steeve,

I'm also in favor of the transom drains. If it's feasible, use two bits of say 2 inch sched 80 PVC pipe, one from each corner of the well. Glass into the footwell bulkhead and the transom. If possible, angle them downward a bit to aid draining when at anchor.As mentioned above, put simple rubber flaps over the ends to discourage water coming in from wavestrikes astern. I'd remove the existing drains and through hulls, glass up the holes... an increase in overall safety.

This should reduce the drain time to well less than 5 minutes... and as mentioned above, the sloshing due to the boat movement will get rid of a lot of it without involving the drains... especially if you remove the coamings (although I am not so sure that this is a good idea, since it will let water that is running down the deck into the cockpit).

Cheers,

JIm

[Dennis.G]

While I think transom drains are a good way to go on many boats, I would think again if you need to run hose across a locker space. You will be reducing usable storage space, and have chance of damaging hoses with items stored in the locker. Also, if going out the transom you want hoses with a good slope down to the discharge. As a lot of sailboat transoms sit up off the water some distance it is something to consider if you can get a slope that will move the water through the hoses.