Boat: a hole in the water that you constantly throw money into 😆. My boat is a 14' canoe that I've modified for fishing and pleasure cruising small lakes and ponds. Obviously, I don't have leakage problems, but I do enjoy watching your adventures (both good and not so good) and have learned a lot from you over the years with our travel trailer. Keep up the good work that you do👍👍
Greetings: I have a 1983 35 CHB. I have similar leaks. I had the same leak you have in the saloon. I found the water was coming from my grab rail on the outside. I noticed it was a little loose. I didn't have time to remove the rail and re-bed the screws so I caulked around the rails and the leaking stopped. I repaired the rotted wood inside with auto body filler and then painted. No more leaking. Later, I will have to remove the grab rail and re-bed the screws. Chasing leaks on these old boats never seems to end. Nice boat. Thanks for the video and good luck with your repairs.
Thanks, I found my leak was coming from where water was pooling in front of the flybridge seats. Did a reseal and leak went away. Got some good rain tests tis fall before I put the boat away for the winter. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-xP3qHZlVkoM.html Next season I plan to figure out a drain system for those two spots. Cheers! Ray
Ray, I had a leak in my travel trailer ( surprise 😉) and couldn’t find it . I cut a piece of cardboard to fit a window then cut a hole in the cardboard to match a small squirrel cage fan that I had , and with a little duct tape manage to seal it all up and with the fan on I pressurized the inside of the trailer with a couple pounds of air. Then with some soapy water on the outsideI found my leak and a few more. Not sure if this idea will help you but it sure worked for me. Take Care .
Ray: Great work resealing the bridge. I think that the underlying design issue with the boat is the lack of drainage from the floor at the front corner of the benches (especially on the port side) to that drain gutter that’s within the sides of the bridge. I saw another CHB that had a drain from the floor to that gutter…for unknown reasons this one didn’t have it. Like you, I resealed everything up top and it helped for awhile. I suggest you speak with some other 34 CHB OWNERS and consider putting in the drains. Of course,, having a canvas cover for the bridge seating area is another option…but very expensive. You are a restoration hero!
Thanks Howard :) I think next spring I'll add some drain holes in the port and starboard corners running into plastic tubes that will run in the hollow walls and all the way to the end drain holes and out.
The other thing to consider, as fibreglass at a "certain age" is prone to micro cracks and holes, is a product called Kiwi Grip (I think). Before I sold the boat, I had an expert fiberglass builder look at the boat and he suggested this product would be a good way to provide solid seal to all the decks. I believe you and I also discussed the rather "stupid" design of the rear-facing bench seats, which allows water to flow in...which is why I built those rather ungainly plywood panels to cover them in case of rain. Another area to pay attention to are the scuppers on the lower deck, which the owner previous to me "repaired" in a rather shoddy way. I tried to reseal them, but I bet there's more that could be done. Regardless, I am so very pleased to see you tackling these leaking issues so that Vestri can last another 50 or so years!@@LoveYourRV
Thanks Ray. I appreciate you sharing the good and bad. I’m wondering if you added sides to your fly fabric if that would reduce rain penetration. Into the fly bridge.
No floor drains, need to add a couple as water tends to collect in a couple places , front seat tops have drains and there are scupper drains on the very outside of the flybridge inside the fiberglass wall ends. I guess incase any water gets into there or condensation. Cheers, Ray
I've already removed some of the seats to see how its built up there :) Would like to track down the source and reseal and tear out most of the rot before we leave for winter. Then repair and fix things up next spring. we do have a full custom winter cover for the boat so that should help. Cheers, Ray
Wood is good, rot is not. We found water can travel a distance from point of entry to point ot of appearance. In our case, from front corner of flybridge surround to aft corner of rearmost cabin side window. Little drain holes at bottom of Windows intended to drain interior condensation to the exterior can plug and dump the water down the interior wall surface. A very fine wire will serve hear, like the modified coat-hanger on the deck drain. Our current leak at the front port corner of the main cabin over the galley has led me all across the front windows, top and bottom edges and all sidessides
To continue... sides. Still don't know if I have been successful. We are always seeking ways to amuse ourselves on rainy days, and our boats often provide the answer. Regards, Prowess (1987 Cooper Yachts 9M Prowler Aft.)
