Water Leak - Zodiac Pro

james t · 17 July 2008, 11:33

I have a Zodiac Pro 7 (4.2m RIB) and I am baffled by the amount of water that comes out of the hull drain at the end of a session - it runs full flow for nearly a minute!

I have filled up the hull in reverse on land to check for cracks in the hull - using a hosepipe connected into the drain hole. I filled her up and no water came out through the underside of the boat.

The drain plug and washer looks like it is OK. There are a few small holes in the deck where screws used to go - but I can't imagine them leaking that much.

Does anyone have any idea how this water is getting into the hull?

I haven't ever taken the tubes off - could there be any leaks between the tubes and the fibreglass material of the hull?

I'm a bit stumped

mike-stgt · 17 July 2008, 17:15

Hi,
don t worry about that. It is mostly condensed water from the ait comming inside.
The Hull is in cold water and the sun is shining to the flor on top. Its the same as in the bathroom. You cannot see , but its always there , the humidity.

Salve mike

ribraff · 17 July 2008, 18:10

If it's running for more than a minute it is more likely to be something other than condensation!

A common cause for a lot of water in the hull or under the deck is rainwater leaking through fittings, is the console and seating screwed down? If the screws are not seated in a suitable sealant there's a strong chance any water on deck level be it rainwater or seawater will run through below deck.

Is there a splashwell running down to the keel?... Is there a bung it may be leaking through?

It's unlikey to be a gap between the laminate on the tube flange but if it is an easy job to take them off it may be worth checking.

RibinSpain · 19 July 2008, 13:00

yes I have a Ribeye 5m & was amased at the water in the hull after each session. Post 2007 there are no elephant trunks, just supposed to be 1 way flow valves where the trunks were. These work ok on planing & clear the deck but when launching are pretty useless as water flows in the hull. In fact for anything other than planing they are useless.

As you recover & haven´t planed for 5 mins the boat is full of water.

My solution - block them up from the inside with swim toggles (those foam things). You can easily take them out if needed, just pull them out as they are blocked from inside.

Since I used above no problems at all.

spartacus · 19 July 2008, 17:52

I have the same boat - and to be honest I just get a trickle from the hull drain plug even if I'm out in bad weather. When I put the console and seating in I used sikaflex then screwed down with stainless-steel screws so is watertight.

I don't see any advantage in taking off the sponsons - more hassle than it's worth. What I would check is that the bow locker lid is down tight. Water will gain access here. Also check the main transom drain bung is fitted. The one-way valve is next to useless unless you're under-way.

mike-stgt · 20 July 2008, 08:06

Hi again,
i have the same Rib. When not in planing , the hull is full of water until middle of the floor from behind. The valve is not completly close. I thought about the inside of the hull. There is a 3/4 Inch screw to drain the hull . There is also water comming out and this is mostly condensed water.

Red Fox · 20 July 2008, 21:29

If this occurs after wave jumping etc I can only think water might be getting into the 'hull' chamber via the locker box. Normally the flow out at the end of a day will be some especially if soaked folk have been hauling themselves in and depositing water out of wet suits. Most will run down the deck and exit via the bilge well at the back and through the black flap. But if your screws and holes are not filled/caped with silicon sealant then this will be the way in. Check the D ring on the front bow is not lose also. Good luck and enjoy...its only water!

james t · 21 July 2008, 13:44

Thanks alot for all your input. I reckon it must be the screws of the console etc not being sealed properly as you have pointed out. As a newbie I am just getting aquainted with problems of boat owning and also being able to differentiate between what is worth worrying about or not. We dive and fish from the boat and get quite alot of water on the deck.

Nos4r2 · 21 July 2008, 14:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by Red Fox

If this occurs after wave jumping etc I can only think water might be getting into the 'hull' chamber via the locker box. Normally the flow out at the end of a day will be some especially if soaked folk have been hauling themselves in and depositing water out of wet suits. Most will run down the deck and exit via the bilge well at the back and through the black flap. But if your screws and holes are not filled/caped with silicon sealant then this will be the way in. Check the D ring on the front bow is not lose also. Good luck and enjoy...its only water!

Noooo! Not silicone! Sikaflex/purflex/a PROPER marine sealer is the ONLY thing you should be using onboard a rib!

martin p · 30 April 2012, 11:50

I have the same issue. im sure its not water coming in through screw holes. i think i might fill it with water and see where water comes out. the rubber on the bung has perished slightly but still seems excessive.

Nos4r2 · 30 April 2012, 12:34

You'd be surprised how much will come through a leaky bung. Don't forget it's under water and under pressure.

cgoing · 30 April 2012, 13:09

A firend of mine has a 6 year old Pro that he bought used. Everytime he'd go out the hull would fill with water. It would take a good 25-30 mintues for the hull to drain out. Yesterday we tested the hull and found numerous leaks. The through transom drains were leaking between the body of the drain assembly and the transom. We also found a small hole in the hull deck joint that I could only guess has been there since it was built. We' re gonna seal these all up and retest .

jyasaki · 30 April 2012, 16:57

Martin;

You do realize this is a 4 year old thread?

jky

ssobol · 30 April 2012, 17:09

I had the same issue with my 470 Pro II. After use removing the hull drain would result in lots of water coming out.

I found that there was no O-ring on the hull drain plug, so I replaced that.

I also noticed that the runner that attaches the tube to the hull did not go all the way to the aft end of the slot that holds the tube to the boat. About 6 inches of the slot was not used. This part of the slot is in the water when the boat is stopped or moving slowly.

I tried poking around in the slot with a piece of wire (couldn't see clearly into the slot), but I could not detect any openings into the hull. However, I filled this part of the tube slot with silicone sealant. No more water in the hull after using the boat. At worst there is one or two drips when the drain plug is opened.

The attached picture shows the slot and how the tube runner stops before the end of the slot.

actions · 30 April 2012, 20:41

I only get a few drops coming from my 420 after use in all types of sea condition.

However the friends 420 fills up to his feet with water but he simply needs a new drain bung which has given up.

kubcat · 30 April 2012, 21:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nos4r2

You'd be surprised how much will come through a leaky bung. Don't forget it's under water and under pressure.

We had a missing o ring on the bung and had quite a bit of water coming in. New o ring and problem gone.

martin p · 06 May 2012, 21:58

New drain plug but still loads of water between the skins. when i get a spare couple of hours i will have to look under the tubes

zookeeper · 08 August 2012, 22:26

i have pro 500 and have same problem, water in hull, done all sort of checks and can find no leaks. Somewhere i have heard its pressure that sucks water in around drain bung. How i do not know. I also heard that a brass bung may cure it. Any more thoughts?

martin p · 09 August 2012, 07:34

I had a crack in the hull. it was along the runner where the tube slots in. iv had it repaired but still quite a bit of water in there. no idea whether the repair failed or where else it is coming from.

seanavent · 03 February 2013, 01:31

I just got brand new tubes from Zodiac and installed on the 1987 hull. I took it out for the first time to see how she runs. We could see some water coming in from under the tubes when we were under way and also at the stern where the tubes hit the hull. I also have about 3 inches of non-used space in the running slot that the new tubes do not utilize. Guess I'll fill those portions in with Silkaflex or 3m 4200.

Also, I found areas in the bolt rope slot where the hull is pulling away from itself. Does anyone have a good way to fix this? 3M 4200 or 5200 as a temorary remedy? Glass it and sand it? Duct tape? It needs to be thin as any thickness will limit the installation of the tubes bolt rope slip on application.

And next is playing with the fuel pump......

Sean