only use boat on weekends, so it does sit sumtimes in the slip for a week or 2 at a time, when i'm not using boat i turn off the air conditioning, my bildge never automatically kicks on (mid bildge) when i do turn on the bildge it runs for about 10 seconds and spits the water out of the port side of boat, at most there is 2 inches of water in the bildge, never enough to make the bildge kick on, the water is crystal clear, is this normal? i have checked under both fish boxes at the back of the boat, zero water back there, have checked the front bildge area, nothing, bone dry, i have taken a shop vac and sucked out all water of mid bildge area, after a few minutes the water seems to be coming from underneath the bildge pump, if that makes sense?? the marina that services my boat tells me this is normal, it's a boat, it's in the water, there is gonna be water in the bildge, should i be concerned? i look under both engines, both dry, nothing leaking anywhere, it's driving me crazy, any help would be greatly appreciated, thank you, i have a 2003 4200 open if that helps, thank you again.
Could be a weeping thru-hull, ac condensation (which typically drains into the bilge), rainwater, an overflowing shower sump, etc… My bilge is always dry except the part in the very back of the boat where there’s always a couple inches. I’ve decided to stop chasing my tail and accept it. Guess if it becomes a larger problem, you’ll recognize it.
I have a 2004 Open and had the same issue with water in mid-bilge. I realized it was warm which led to the problem. The hot water tank relief valve was leaking. Replaced the valve and solved the problem. Good luck-
As stated above, check the fittings on the water lines/hot water heater (are your water pumps on when you're away?). Also take a look at the port shaft log as a lot of people forget about it since it's tucked under the genset.
i do turn the pumps off when im away, i do check my water level in the tanks, they are steady, hot water tank i never use, is that the same tank as the fresh water? i am in fresh water and i dont use the dock water, i got on my hands and knees and went down there with towels, wiped it bone dry, then sat down there and watched where the water was coming from, it seemed to be coming from underneath the bildge pump if that makes sense? i just cant figure it out??? there is nothing under the bildge pump??? it is not coming from the back half of the boat and there is nothing wet in the front half of boat, just near the bildge and the 2 sea strainers and the ac strainers, cannot figure it out, and why does the water never accumulate enough to kick on the bildge?? thank you guys.......
Yes, the hot water heater is for the freshwater system. On my 35 Open, the hot water heater is in front of the bulkhead on the starboard side. I have to access it from the cabin behind a seat back. Even though it is in front of the bulkhead, mine drains to the mid-bilge and was the source of the water. Maybe there is a drain from that area to the mid-bilge under the bilge pump.
Also, I believe it takes a great deal of water to kick on the mid bilge auto switch. I turn it on manually when I see water in the mid-bilge.
If the water is coming out from the bilge pump it could be back feeding. Are your through hulls at the water line or above it, and how far above? Could water be entering the discharge hole from a boat wake maybe? This would allow water to drain backwards and into the bilge.
MY thru hulls are above the water line, like i would say 3-4 inches above water line, the only thing with that tho is if i manually turn on my mid bildge and it spits out the water , if i wait a couple hours it comes right back to the same amount in my mid bildge area, so i dont think it's from other boats wake?? thank you guys, i had sumone mention about a release ball in my lines from the pump to out the thru hulls, maybee the water is coming back down the tube back into the bildge? it's bugging me, lol, i will figure it out, hopefully.
If you only have a small amount of water in your mid bilge, when you manually cycle the pump, any water from the antisiphon loop back to the pump will return to the bilge when you shut it off. The antisiphon loop is simply the bilge line having a loop or hump in it that is higher than the thru hull where it exits the boat. That loop prevents outside water from entering the bilge from outside.
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