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I have a 1981 montauk 17 that i've had since 1990. It managed to survive my late teens and now i want to refurb it for my kids. however, during the 2002 hurricane season in fla it was swamped with salt water for approx 3 wks before i could get a chance to drain it. now i have what i think is a soft spot in the deck near the bow and the boat seems quit a bit heavier than before. If it has become water logged how do i confirme that and what would the best method be for fixing the prob. i've had the boat indoors now for 8 mos while i've been refinishing the teak and metal work. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. If i can figure out how i'll post some pics.
thanks
Gary

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well you could always have it weighed to check it vs. Whaler's published dry weights. You could float the hull and check that the water line falls where whaler specs it to be.

If the hull really has water in the foam the only way to get it out is to drill holes along the keel and see what comes out.

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I thought the foam Whaler uses doesn't absorb water.

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First I would drill a small hole in the keel area and see if any water comes out. If it does catch all the water and see how long it drains and how much water you collect. Unless this hull has been moored in the water for long periods and you don't see any places for the water to get in I doubt if in the last eight months the foam absorbed any large amount of water. My trailer cracked the bottom of my boat and I didn't notice it for I don't know how long. When I drilled the keel area I found no water. I was sure some water must have stayed in so I cut a large 8" hole on the inside of the stern and took several core samples, no water. I kept some samples and set them in water and after two months they felt as lite as ever. I worry about this soggy hull thing no longer.

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Typically, having water sit in your boat for 3 weeks shouldn't cause any significant problems with regard to water absorbtion unless there were points for penetration such as definite cracks in the interior or possibly bad or deteriorated drains.

Tom Clark proved with "Chainsaw Whaler" that the foam in a Whaler can absorb water. Search CW for the threads detailing the project.

Please provide a description of what you mean by "quite a bit heavier". Are we talking 20 pounds, 200 pounds? Jeff has a valid suggestion with regard to weighing your boat. Have you put the boat in the water and noted the static trim? Post some photos - this is something most everybody is interested in.

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I have drilled 6 holes along the keel. they are 1/4" dia. no water collected yet but the area around the holes appears damp. I have the flu right now, everytime i bend over to look my head feels like it will explode. There were several open screw holes in the deck. The screws where the cooler mounts were missing as well as the rivets where the mat for the gas tank was and the screws for the seat mounts. I was in the process of replacing the seat brackets when hurricane caught me. As far as weight goes last i had in the water the boat sat approx 1" lower than previously. That determined by using the bottom paint line as reference point. I will try get post pics as soon as i get over the flu.
thanks for the responce.
gary

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Gary,

Here is another tip for checking for water. Get or borrow one of those heavy duty neck massagers. Like the one from Home Medic. Place the massager on or near the area where you have drilled the holes. The vibration will cause the water within the foam to vibrate and if the foam has even some water in it....... You will more than likely see water jumping out of the holes.

I noticed this when I was doing some sanding with a vibrating sander. I ran inside and got the neck massager just for fun....... Same result!! The water was jumping out of some of the holes.

So, I drilled some holes in the bottom (there were already plenty in the deck) and put it in a dry warehouse for seven months. She is bone dry now. And completely sealed.

Hope this helps.

AJ

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I just began working fulltime at a boatyard in maine and have been asking all sorts of questions about water in Whalers because I feared mine to be soggy. I was told by the fiberglass crew that the fastest way to remove water from a hull is to use a shop-vac.

First, set up your Whaler on land with the bow higher than the stern. Next, use a hole saw and bore a 2"-3" hole low in the stern and again in the bow area.

Take a one gallon or so plastic paint mixing bucket and tape the open end over the hole in the stern (as air tight as possible), next cut a hole in the other end of the bucket for the end of the shop vac. When you turn on the vac any water will collect in the paint bucket and you can drain as needed.

The reason for the hole in the bow is to allow air to pass through the hull, without this hole you will not be able to suck water out and you'll end up burning out the vac motor.

Final step- plug and reglass holes.

I am about to do this to my boat, as I found some cracks under the waterline. Today I used a grinder to open up the cracks more so I won't be putting a hole in the bow, tomorrow I hope to begin using the vac to dry her out.

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wow, great info. !

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drandlett,

A shop vac will not remove significant amounts of water from a soggy Whaler hull. The foam used in Whalers is closed cell and air cannot pass through it so drilling an extra hole is of no value.

What a shop vac can do is pull water that has accumulated in a void or has been forced between the foam and the hull but if this is the case them the foam has delaminated from the hull skin and your problems are greater than just soggy foam.

I have done extensive research on wet Whaler foam. In spite of Whaler's claims, it can absorb water, but not like a sponge. Once the foam is wet it will not give up that water easily.

I had a totally soggy 13 footer I rigged a suction pump to and measured the PSI of the vacuum and the amount of water pulled from the hull. Over the course of several days, I never saw any more than a quart or two of water and most of that was sucked out during the initial suction period of a few hours.

By the way, a shop vac will not burn out if it is running and not able to suck anything.

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Tom,

Thanks for clarifying the shop vac process. I used it just the other day on my 1968 Currituck. I had holes in my bow (reason she's on land) so simply plugged the inside drain hole and connected the shop vac to the outside of the transom. I ran the vac on and off for several hours. The amount of water I was able to collect was much greater than a couple quarts but as you said not nearly what I was wishing for.

As for the shop vac burning out I asked some guys in the yard and they told me the what you did, but added that the salt water can cause trouble and that was the reason for burnt out vacs.

Thanks for all your research, it will prove very helpful with my old whaler.

Dana

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Dana,

How much water did you remove from your hull? Any amount removed is good.

I had a block of waterlogged foam from CSW that I cut all the 'glass off of. It was perhaps three inches thick and 8 inches wide and 12 inches long. It was still perfectly firm but very heavy because it was full of water.

That block of foam did not dry out completely for over two years, even though it was exposed to air on all six sides in my heated basement. Imagine how long it would take a fiberglass encased Whaler hull to fully dry out with only some holes to allow the water out.

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tom,

i totally agree that using the shop vac only works if water has collected in certain areas. when i said i got more than a couple pints of water out i would guess it was about 5 gallons. i filled a small shop vac about 4 times. judging from what you have said i guess that the water i was able to get out was water that was concentrated only in the transom area.

i guess my sources were not as accurate as i would have hopped. anyway my holes are patched, fairing is in progress and a new drain tube is on order! with any luck tuesday she'll be sitting maybe a little higher in the water than before... i'm not counting on it.

thanks,

dana

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Hey Tom:

That was nice the way you explained to Dana how wrong she was, impressive! Now, can you tell her and the readers how you drain a hull? Is it possible? Is it costly or is it just better to buy another hull without any water in it?...I'm pretty sure that Dana will benefit more from your extended research if you can answer any of those questions.

wheaven

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Follow the link he provided and read the 300 or so posts, on the actual research they did do. The research shows,, YOU Can't drain the Hull. Maybe you will find it impressive, then again maybe you won't.

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in boat works winter 2006 following the whaler feature there is a top tip on drain holes and plugs installed on a permenent basis in the hull to "drain away interior moisture" could this be real?

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Hello, I just purchased my first Whaler - a Montauk 17 1984. I was thrilled that it had bow and stern pedestal seats. As I drooled over it boat in my garage a sick feeling came over me. How did the reciever in the deck plate mounted in the stern drain, i thought. It cant just be a hole in the deck with an open pipe for the pedestal seat to drop into. It was 11:00pm and I took it off the deck. I could not sleep till I knew. There was no cap or drain at the bottom of the reciever under the plate in the deck. I was told the seats were installed "at the BW dealer" when originally purchased. So, the installation done at the dealer, was just a hole of 3.25 inches cut in the stern deck caulking and the plate screwed down. The foam was hollowed out to allow the reciever pipe below deck. Need I say more. The boat is in great condition and thank goodness in was garaged and not used much. The owner was not a fisherman and the boat was used on the Ohio River so the boat was not soaked much with water for any reason. I of course, washed the boat and put the hose in the recieved to clean it out. How could I be so stupid ?
I just thought Id share that ...... Now for my opinion on water logged montauk.
These boats will not drain. The closed cell faom will not give up the moisture easily.
BW will only say the foam is closed cell and will not hold water. Nothing else.
I think the boat will be fine and dry out in time. I plan on trailering it so I can keep it out of the rain in my garage. I will install a 3 inch threaded deck plate in the old reciever hole to let the hull vent when not in use. This may take years, but I have time. I have removed every screw in the boat for a re sealing.
BEWARE of fancy additions on your classic purchases. If the dealer installed the add on twenty years ago - their attitude was - Its closed cell and water will not penetrate. This is BS. I will weigh the boat to try and estimate how much water is in there. I'll bet not much. I dont believe I have any pockets of water. I do remove moisture on a rag daily. I dont know how much traveling the moisture did from that point. I will try and probe the foam in different places to find out. I'll let you know if you want.
Good Day All ! Pete:):)