Hate asking this question, but got to......Why are my scuppers underwater?

[imonna 19 6]

Hello all,

So I love my 79 19-6 and during the first year i trailer'd and never really noticed that the scuppers were low in the water, but looking at pictures from last year they were about an inch under (standard ball scuppers.)

  This year I replaced a topside 19 gallon fuel with a 44 gallon coffin tank.  Now that i keep it the water overnight occasionally I can look at it from land and low and behold when at rest my scuppers are a good couple  inches underwater, which means that they cant do a thing unless the boat is on plane or in waves.

With the low transom, this means i get a few waves over the top and the water sits there and I can either open the bilge and let the pump do its thing, wait till the boat rocks enough to drain or get on plane.

So my question is why?

Since the original had a 50 gallon tank, i assume the 44 gallon one i have in it now isnt the direct cause and it did it last year anyway). 

When i bought it, the previous owner said he had the transom rebuilt around 2006 and he always trailered it.  is it possible he installed them to low?  I'll include the few pics i have.

I dont have any shots of the inside, so for reference the scupper is right at the bottom of the drain "gutter"

The last and most worrisome possibility i have thought of is wet foam leading to a lot of extra weight.

So anyone with some direct experience or educated guesses is welcome to chime in.  i'll include some pictures for reference and some of the most recent fish I pulled in for fun.

 not much you can see, but the scupper is just below the water line


Look closely and you can see the waterstain line from sitting in the water at the marina in the above picture for a few days getting serviced.  It shows where the boat sits at rest (just in line with the S.


A nice  striper I pulled in early in the year.


Thanks in advance and really hoping its not the foam scenario.

[T Race]

Bill,
  I am sorry that I can't tell you anything about the scupper issue, but I CAN tell you that I like your striper and am glad you posted this picture

  Best wishes, and hoping that you don't have a wet foam problem, T

[gran398]

Bill,

Nice striper! nice work!

There certainly is a difference between the old bottom paint and the new waterline. A right big difference, looks to be around six inches or so.

The new tank, as its now in the deck and well forward as it should be...shouldn't make this much of a change. Maybe an inch or so, if that, max.

How is the bilge? Is it shipping water through rain? This sounds weird...but have done it many a time...TASTE the water in the bilge...is it fresh or salty...or in between?

Even saturated stringers shouldn't throw a six inch drop....something else is going on. How often do the pumps cycle? How much water is in the bilge? More than  1/4 inch is unacceptable.

No worries. We'll find it.

Know you don't want to pull her in the summertime...but not a bad idea in the short-term here, especially since you've mentioned that aft wash-over could be an issue. Just thinking it through. We sure don't want to put constant underwater pressure on those ball scuppers.

[gran398]

After reviewing the bottom paint pics again...the bottom paint is low with regard to the outboard. The bottom paint should be a bit above where the PO placed it.

Let us know. Bottom line...how is the freeboard at the stern now...is she quite lower, that is, are you concerned with her washing over?

If so...pull it...A boat will never sink sitting on the trailer.

Our boats in general...they self-bail...sorta.

[MarshMarlowe196]

...A boat will never sink sitting on the trailer.

   

Like Gran said, your boat should be floating a little higher than where your waterline is; you don't have an overweight engine (like me).  Again, like Gran said, check your bilge.

[wingtime]

I'd say your bottom paint should be right at the bottom of your scuppers.   Om the inside of the transom the bottom of the scuppers should be about a 1/4" or so above the deck.  Did the PO drill the new drain holes on a downward angle?  or are they straight?   As already mentioned you don't have a overweight motor so thats not the problem.

[MarshMarlowe196]

I dont have any shots of the inside, so for reference the scupper is right at the bottom of the drain "gutter"

That's where my scuppers are, below the floor and in the gutter. Unless Aquasport changed the floor layout from my year to yours, your scuppers likely have not been moved.

[gran398]

I dont have any shots of the inside, so for reference the scupper is right at the bottom of the drain "gutter"

That's where my scuppers are, below the floor and in the gutter. Unless Aquasport changed the floor layout from my year to yours, your scuppers likely have not been moved.

Since the scuppers are in original position..somethings going on IMHO.

I'd put it on the trailer ASAP, tilt the bow up...and pull the plug. Let us know, tx.

[fitz73222]

All of our scuppers are too low; although yours seem a bit low for a single engine and moderate horsepower. On my old 22-2 they are below the floor height in the small splash recess. Mine are under water a good three inches, so the ball scupper is the only course of action. Now I do have 700# of 115's on there. But even when she had the original twin 70's if you stood in the stern area you got wet feet. So pull it, make sure it isn't full of water and that will be that.

[imonna 19 6]

Ok.  here are some answers.

good news is the boat lives on a trailer and is currently sitting on it at the marina.  I have a nice arrangement.  My boat lives on my trailer as if it were rack storage.  When i want the boat, they crane it into the water.  When I am done, they crane it out.

Typically they crane it out within 24 hours.

Next, the bilge is always super dry.  I have had 2 inches of water at the stern when a wave comes over and if i wait until the scuppers take care of it and check the bilge after,...no water. Rain fail, no water in the bilge, waves and spray all day fishing....no water in the bilge.  My auto pump never comes on and whne i visually check it each trip, nothing

My ball scuppers are at the bottom of that well and seem pretty straight.

The transom was supposedly rebuilt in 2006, and the guy who did it isnt really detail oriented, so it is possible he just put them in the spot he felt they should go and not relative the the location they should.  THEY are about 1-2 inches below the deck at the bottom of that well.

I am not concerned with the amount of water coming over, although it is annoying that on a flat day if i take someones wake, I have to motor up to get the water out (or open the bilge hatch and let the bilge pump do it). With small seas, the rocking of the boat will empty it

My main concern is if my boat is sitting in the water after i use it, but before they pull it, and torrential rains come.  That water is just going to collect on the deck.

I have figured a few temp fixes, but mostly want to know why I have this problem.

[MarshMarlowe196]

From what I'm hearing, it seems you're getting water washing over your transom fairly regularly.  When my transom was the stock height (15"), I never really had an issue with that.  Sounds like you're getting so much water coming in due to your boat drafting abnormally low in the stern.

Your scuppers are in the correct position, so that's not the issue.

My main concern is if my boat is sitting in the water after i use it, but before they pull it, and torrential rains come.  That water is just going to collect on the deck.

I have figured a few temp fixes, but mostly want to know why I have this problem.

I remember Fitz mentioning having an above deck pump setup for this same problem.  Hopefully he'll have some pointers on that.

Some possible scenarios as to why your boat's drafting lower:

-The transom was never rebuilt, and is soaking wet.

-The transom was rebuilt, and not sealed properly, and has gradually soaked up a lot of water weight

-Lastly, your stringers have gradually soaked up some water weight (most likely through rain water)

You could find out by drilling some small exploratory holes in your transom, and if you find wet wood, you'll know you have a problem in your transom.

Since you have access to your aft bilge, you can drill a 1/2"-3/4" hole in the side of your stringers, toward the bottom, and see if  you get any water flowing out.

Report back with your findings, and we can go from there.

[gran398]

After reviewing your photos again, the new waterline appears to be more like 10 inches above the bottom paint.

Since the bilge stays dry....

The weight is coming from somewhere, and feel that Marshmarlowe has nailed it.

We pulled my waterlogged transom, JUST the plywood weighed 120 lbs. And only the bottom third was really wet. So if it were totally saturated, could be more like 200+.

The stringers were wet too, but not that bad, just at the bottom. But the rebuilder estimated we pulled out 150#'s or so there with the foam removal.

Hate to tell you all this, for sure no fun to hear. As Jesse says, keep us posted.

[imonna 19 6]

that was one of the answers I hated to hear.  I just dropped $1200 in rebuild projects over the winter and hardly have money left for gas.  I cant see starting another big project on the boat so soon.

Three questions:
What is the most definitive way to determine it is water in the transom.

what is the consequence of NOT rebuilding the transom for a couple years IF it is waterlogged?

What would the cost be approximately of  the project, start to finish, if i did much of it myself.  nothing to exact, just rounded to the nearest $500 increment.,

[fabuck71]

I have had 5 19-6"'s and 200 Osprey's like yours and you are fine man.  That is where they are supposed to sit while at rest.  When you get two or 3 big boys back there fishing your are gonna be standing in 2-3" of water.  All my transoms and foam were dry.  Thats just the way these are.  The person who painted on your bottom paint just guestimated I bet.  I think Seabob will say the same thing.  Then when you move spots and get on a plane, it drains out in about 30 seconds!

This is why I enclosed my new 200 osprey's transom in.  Dry to the bone.  Keep on fishing my friend!

[gran398]

Hello all,

So I love my 79 19-6 and during the first year i trailer'd and never really noticed that the scuppers were low in the water, but looking at pictures from last year they were about an inch under (standard ball scuppers.)

  This year I replaced a topside 19 gallon fuel with a 44 gallon coffin tank.  Now that i keep it the water overnight occasionally I can look at it from land and low and behold when at rest my scuppers are a good couple  inches underwater, which means that they cant do a thing unless the boat is on plane or in waves.

With the low transom, this means i get a few waves over the top and the water sits there and I can either open the bilge and let the pump do its thing, wait till the boat rocks enough to drain or get on plane.


Went to sleep thinking about this and lo and behold woke up thinking about this

From reading the above, over the course of the last few years, the scuppers are riding a good bit lower than they were initially. They started out near the waterline, but looking at the new waterline pic and from your report they've migrated south over time around six inches.

The first Aquasport I was interested in purchasing was a 1985 Osprey 200. That boat had regular transom drains (no ball scuppers) and the owner ran it with the plugs out. 150 Johnson, no water on the deck. Have ridden on two club member's 70's 19-6's. Skoots had ball scuppers, but didn't pay attention to where they were. Marshmarlowe reports his 19-6 is riding a bit higher than yours.

Last thing I want to do is be an alarmist. Lord knows I know how it is to whiz away a bunch of money on a boat. But if the scuppers continue this pattern of migration, for safety's sake, this must be addressed. Especially since it gets pretty chilly in Delaware during striper season.

To the extent she has started riding lower in the water, this also means she is drafting more water and the freeboard at the transom is lower. So lets say you do get a couple of guys at the stern striper fishing on a marginal day, and take some water in. You move everyone to the front, crank her up to throw her on plane. But nothing happens. Engine won't crank. Very real situation. Then with the extra water weight back there, here comes some more water in.

We used to heat and bend lexan to act as wings on the side of the engine at the transom. A homemade wave guard. Basically raised the transom height everywhere but where the engine was mounted. Worked pretty good.

Something else that hit me. Lets say that during the winter on the trailer the ball scuppers were clogged with debris and held water. Then the water froze and the ice cracked the ping-pong balls. It could potentially be like having no balls when it went in the water the next spring.

If this change hadn't occurred, (and may continue to occur) I'd be with Fabucks, that's just the way they are. But especially where you live, how you fish, what you like to fish for and when...Lets do some minor 3/8ths inch exploratory drilling. If everything's fine, great! Throw some marine-tex in those dry holes...and you've got peace of mind.

Lets see what you find (if you want to) and we'll take it from there