Any help would be appreciated

[David A]

I recently purchased a 1990 16 Angler. When I drilled into the transom to mount a bait pump, water came pouring out. Further exploring for moisture has been very depressing. The transom is soaked from the bottom to half way up. Some of the balsa is now just mush. The hull is all wet too. I used my moisture meter up to the point where the deck steps up. I can't really check forward of this point without drilling through the hull from the outside. Does the balsa core continue forward of this point? I hope not.
I assume I will have to rip out the deck and transom, replace the wood, and re-glass.
Looks like my summer of boating with the kids just got a lot shorter.
The water came in through a thru-hull wiring piece that was not sealed. When the boat was backed down into the water, and still on the trailer, water was coming in. I guess the previous owners topped-off the transom with water everytime they used the boat. Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
David

[patrick and linda]

hi david,
i'm sorry i can't be of help but wanted to wish you the best of luck with the remedy for your situation. hopefully the fix will be short and inexpensive. keep us informed and post pictures, if possible.
pat

[Wandering Sagebrush]

David,

Wow that does not sound like the kind of surprise you wanted. Sorry that it has happened to you. Several Brats have repaired transoms, and it seems that there is a 25 located in Gaston, Oregon that just did the repair last year. You could do a site search for the topic, or you could look for the boat in a sort of vessel by city/port if that can be done. I will try and find those for you.

On Edit: I found the link to the album with the photo record of the repair...

http://www.c-brats.com/modules.php?set_albumName=album682&op=modload&name=gallery&file=index&include=view_album.php

Steve

[tomherrick]

David,

I feel your pain. My '84 22-Classic spouted water when I drilled a hole in the transom for a rewiring project. I started to do the repair, then liked the extra room in the cockpit without the engine well. Long story short, my 22 will be a 26 later this year. Dave "Oldgrowth" Thompson extended his 16 to an 18, but not at the transom. Here's a link to his project photos http://www.c-brats.com/modules.php?set_albumName=Hull-Extension&op=modload&name=gallery&file=index&include=view_album.php. If you have to rip out the inner sole glass as well as the transom, and have thought about a little bit more room, now might be a reasonable time to consider an extension.

I'm not a fan of balsa cores. As you've seen, that "impervious" glue between the blocks doesn't necessarily isolate the rot to small areas. For your new core I'd recommend a change of wood species or a closed-cell foam designed for that purpose. There's also been lots of discussion here on how to treat fiberglass cores if you need to put a fastener through, which will help ensure that your problem doesn't recur.

Several of us on this forum have dealt with your issue in different ways.

Tom

[Hooked on Powell]

David,

Sorry to hear you have the water in the core problem.

Check Dr. Bob Austin's "Thataway" album. Within the album there are a group of pics documenting repair of similar problems with "Frequent Sea" (25 cruiser). Both transom and cockpit sole required attention.

Dalton

[David A]

Thanks guys,
I really appreciate your response. The photo links were very helpful. I couldn't find the "Thataway album"?
I now have the engine off, and the hull completely stripped down. The transom is actually wet all the way to the top, the entire cockpit is wet.... even the little mounting pads on the sides. I didn't realize they were connected to the wood under the deck. I made a hole just aft of the step-up pedestle under the cabin and probed forward to find the balsa does continue forward under the platform, and of course it is wet too.

What do you all think of creating a fiberglass barrier at that point, and sealing off the wet balsa that is under the pedestal? It would be a lot less work to replace the cockpit wood up to that point, as there can't be a whole lot more balsa under the pedestal. The hull starts to sweep up another foot forward, and at some point the wood discontinues.

I emailed Toland Marine to ask Ben if he remembers how far forward the balsa goes. His partner said he'll ask Ben tomorrow. He suggested I use closed-cell foam instead of balsa.

Thanks again for your help and support.

David

[Captains Cat]

David, here's the Thataway Album.

http://www.c-brats.com/modules.php?set_albumName=Thataway&op=modload&name=gallery&file=index&include=view_album.php

I'm sure you'll find it instructive. Bob is a great photographer and does great fiberglass work.

Charlie