F4 Water ingress

[Yare]

Hello all,

Have read many a post re water ingress with the family 4 so am working through possibles such as re sealing windows etc.

I cant figure out how so much water gets in but was wondering if i should remove the rubber circular fendering that wraps round the boat
where the hull joint must be and attempting to seal that.
Anyone else tried this and had any success and what sealant should i use?

Anything else i can try to get her watertight ?

Thanks everyone,

Tony

[DACS]

I had a similar problem when I had a Shetland 29i. When I bought the boat my survey found that the water leaking into the boat where the stern thruster was fitted through the transom. The boat was lifted out, the thruster was removed and the transom core had to be dried before the thruster was refitted. Later I found water was still leaking from the same place. I eventually realised that it only happened after it had rained so I sealed the upper flange of the rubbing strip on the hull to deck joint and this cured the problem. I think that I used and ordinary clear silicone sealant as the water is not under any pressure and just needs deflecting away from the joint.

[Mark0405]

Where are you finding the ingress?

[dellquay13]

Hi,
I have had leaky cabin windows, and leaky topside seals under the rubbing strip.
The topsides moulding and hull are bolted and glued together under the rubbing strip, and can part with age or impact. First sight of what lies beneath the strip can be a sobering moment, when you think how much abuse you put your boat through in big seas. Most of the bolts on mine had corroded to almost nothing so i ground or cut out and replaced every one with decent stainless machine screws and nuts, after forcing silicone sealant into any gaps between the top and hull, inside and out.
The rubbing strip will peel off more easily in hot weather when it is more pliable, but can be managed in cool weather too. The screw heads and nuts are basically all that holds the strake in place, other than the end caps either side of the outboard splashwell. I did all mine without removing the end caps, the strip peels off most easily midships, but can be unhooked off the bow if you get it warm with enough hot water.

[Yare]

Where are you finding the ingress?

Hi

The water appears to collect under the cockpit floor and under the battery and fuel lockers.
There is a crack in the fuel locker floor and if i sit at the stern on that side of the boat the water wells up through the crack.

[daveflack]

Hi, if you sit & water comes thro' it's either well full or if it's on the water, it's a big hole !!! Anyway my black hawk had a similar issue with water in the rear lockers, it was coming into the transom & seaping thro', further investigations found that there was a split along the join between the transom & upper sections of the hull, in all honesty looked like it had been there since build & hidden under the metal trim strip that protects the edge, I also found an issue in the bow, the ring that hooks to the winch, when they had drilled the holes to secure this ring they had drilled into the void space under front bunk allowing water in the chain locker to soak in & eventually gather under the cabin floor.

[Clive]

Hi - how are the leaks? Have you resolved them yet?
I have been posting on my repair to my 4+2 leak in Maintenance DIY, posted pics too. No quick fixes but not difficult. I removed the starboard side rubbing strip and left port side in place so I can refit in the same position. That’s my today job! The front cabin window is being made locally as we speak as it was leaking. The boat is otherwise dry but the cockpit windows need resealing too.

[Yare]

Hi Clive,

No not resolved yet and after the recent very heavy rain over here in Norfolk there was 2" of water on the cabin floor, definitely rain water!!

The windows seem fine and the carpet trim on the cabin ledge is pretty dry all round so i think it must be the joint under the fendering
so will attack this next.

It is only coming in on one side so i imagine if i seal it all round between the hull and superstructure that should sort it.

Any other possibilities do you think as to where its coming in ?

Many thanks

Tony

[Clive]

Hi Tony. Well I’m no expert in these matters but I’d say it’s highly likely to be getting in where you say. Can you feel under the gunnel from the cabin? See if it is wet. My clue was brown drips (rusty water), but my window was leaking too so if it hadn’t had been brown I’d still be looking! Great thing about this forum, so many experiences with older boats. The only other places are anything fixed to the deck like bow rails and cleats. One of my bow rails has some play so I will seal round that. In time any old sealant will be replaced.
Keep us posted
Cheers, Clive

[dellquay13]

Hi,

Is the water in the cabin or just in the cockpit? I have had problems with water coming in to the cockpit only, through the pram hood, particularly with the vinyl window seals on the side panels. I had to find ways of keeping the side panels pushed out wider than the gunwhales to keep the drips outside the cockpit, until i could get the windows replaced.
Chris