1988 21BR Deck to Hull Seam Leak
Posted: Wed Jun 02, 2021 5:09 am
Hi,
New Cobalt owner and new to Cobaltchat. Just bought 1988 21 BR in great condition and love the boat but think I have found my first issue.
Over the holiday weekend ran the boat for the first time on our lake. After pulling the boat after being moored for the weekend I noticed area of wet carpet on starboard side where the floor meets the sidewall.
I removed the battery box to get access to the bilge and found some water trapped between the outer most stringer and the chine of the hull. I cranked up the trailer to pitch up the nose and more water flowed into this location. I removed about a gallon of water with shop vac.
I suspect that the seam between the deck and hull under the rub rail is leaking somewhere letting water into this cavity where some of it gets trapped (whatever cant flow over the notch in the stringer in the stern. I did not find any water in the center tunnel of the bilge and the area under the engine was relatively dry. It did rain a bit over the weekend and the cover does not cover the rub rail area.
1. Has anyone had any experience with this condition and have any tips on repair?
2. Does this sound like the correct diagnosis?
2. Is there a drainage path underneath the frames that run across the boat? In other words if water is leaking between the hull and deck by the helm, will that water be able to run freely to the stern if the boat is pitched up or will it get trapped?
Thanks
Ken
New Cobalt owner and new to Cobaltchat. Just bought 1988 21 BR in great condition and love the boat but think I have found my first issue.
Over the holiday weekend ran the boat for the first time on our lake. After pulling the boat after being moored for the weekend I noticed area of wet carpet on starboard side where the floor meets the sidewall.
I removed the battery box to get access to the bilge and found some water trapped between the outer most stringer and the chine of the hull. I cranked up the trailer to pitch up the nose and more water flowed into this location. I removed about a gallon of water with shop vac.
I suspect that the seam between the deck and hull under the rub rail is leaking somewhere letting water into this cavity where some of it gets trapped (whatever cant flow over the notch in the stringer in the stern. I did not find any water in the center tunnel of the bilge and the area under the engine was relatively dry. It did rain a bit over the weekend and the cover does not cover the rub rail area.
1. Has anyone had any experience with this condition and have any tips on repair?
2. Does this sound like the correct diagnosis?
2. Is there a drainage path underneath the frames that run across the boat? In other words if water is leaking between the hull and deck by the helm, will that water be able to run freely to the stern if the boat is pitched up or will it get trapped?
Thanks
Ken