Recommendations for new members

The terms used here for the forum content hierarchy are a bit confusing. The top-down order is : Forum - Topic - Comment - Answer to comment.

The "Forums" are grouped into categories such as "General topics" and "People, places and events". You cannot start a new "Forum". If you wish to start a new thread of communication, select the "add a new forum topic" option. Normally you will be already in the desired forum, but you are free to select any of the forums in the selection box under the " Forums* " heading.

It is of interest to other forumites and mirroristi to get to know who hangs out here (metaphorically speaking) so I recommend that you post a brief introduction of yourself and your boat (if you have one) by adding a new forum topic to the " Personal - about members and their boats " forum in the People, places and events category.

Apart from the real name you have entered (only the forum administrators have access to e-mail addresses), you are free to only disclose as much information as you please. We are not FaceBook and will not pester you for more information.

Today I have moved some "comments" by other new members from my introduction topic and "promoted" them to "topic" status. I hope that the authors do not mind.

Looking forward to hearing from / reading about you all.

Gernot H.

I'd rather be in my boat with a drink on the rocks than in the drink with my boat on the rocks!

woodbridgebob's picture

went to dinghy park and even though fitted with cover loads of water in mirror dinghy.Baled out majority but then stupidly took out transom bung(thought it was drainage bung)Now water in tank,what advice please to sort out?

curlew's picture

Bob
I had the same thing last weekend due to a loose running strip under the boat letting some water in. I have a hatch in the side tank - this might be a good idea. I opened the drain and tipped the boat up until level and most of the water came out. Then I put a sponge in the tank through the hatch and sloshed the water back and forth and gradually soaked it up and dried it out. I inspected the inside of the tank using my camera and a torch.
I think one cause of water in the boat is that if there is a pin hole in the cover, any puddling of water will allow gallons to run inside.I now try to keep the cover steeply sloping everywhere. One solution is to use two tarpaulins; in this case the holes never line up.
David

sail_and_oar's picture

Water in tanks hasn't killed my boat yet. I wouldn't worry too much. What I think does a lot more damage is condensation which runs down the inside of the boat cover and makes the gunwale wet.

A good course of action would be to take the boat out for a sail. You'll probably come back thinking all is well and nothing has changed. It will dry out in the summer.

I fitted my boat with an automatic bailer which I leave open when ashore. Any water that gets in can escape so I never have to bail it out.

Cliff

PuffinInTegel's picture

Hello Bob and welcome to the forum!
I assume, from your posts, that your boat probably hasn't got an inspection port under the transom deck.
"Puffin" didn't have one for years either -- until one day I discovered that the hull under the skeg and part of the transom were totally spongy and rotten under the paint :.-{( . This called for a complicated patching job ( http://www.hirsinger-translations.de/gast/boating/patch.pdf ). One of the consequences was that I have added an inspection hatch.
As "Puffin" lives outdoors most of the year, water frequently seems to leak through the tarpaulin. I keep the bungs in and the inspection hatches open. After longer intervals, there is occasionally some water in the rear tank (probably condensation or seepage past the bung) and I make sure to sponge it out. In the days of digital cameras, inspection ports enable you to see the condition of your boat from inside too. These were taken inside Puffin two years ago :
Transom repair - interior picture:
under transom
and inside side tank - note where I failed to get the nut on the screw. The screws have held the jam cleats in all kinds of weather all the same!
side tank interior
Raise the stern and drain the tank thoroughly. Install a hatch when you have time. Here's what mine looks like now (the bung hole was marked for another discussion).
bungh hole and hatch

Cheers,

Gernot H.

woodbridgebob's picture

Hi Gernot many thanks for your reply and welcome to the forum.I will attempt to drain as you stated and talk to one of my friends who works on Spirit yatchts as aboat builder to probably fit an inspection cover.Also need to refurbish gunwales which have small amount of splitting,
Cheers Bob

I have recently acquired an old wooden Mirror & am also concerned about water & rot in the buoyancy tanks.
I am wondering if it would be sensible to make large openings in the tanks - (reinforcing the edges) - and install inflatable buoyancy bags.
That way I could easily inspect the condition of the wood and treat any rot. - any comments would be much appreciated.

There are commercially available buoyancy tank hatches. See Jim Stark's message above.
Pete