Small Leak in the Back of Boat

[ssimons]

I won a 1980 Crestliner Muskie 17 Foot fiberglass fishing boat. I have a small leak in the back. Any suggestions on repair. Was just goint to seal every seam in the back?
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[Lundman]

You can preform a covert operation - after dark have someone shine a high power
flashlight from the outside or inside of the boat and have another person looking
cracks and other damage in the hull.

Your local library has tons of books on fiberglass repair as well as your local autobody
supplier.

Hope you find your crack..... []
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[Bigcat]

If you are trying to locate the leak...... I have had good luck in the past putting 10 or 20 gallons of water in the hull of the boat (while its still on the trailer) and then watch where the water leaks out. Then you know exactly what area needs fixin.
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[trout_slayer]

How did you win this "Lemon"???[laugh] We have some stuff where I work on Base called RTV that I used on my boat when I drilled new holes into the hull/transom to install my new fishfinder transducer, matter of fact I have a brand new tube sitting in the garage!!! As far as finding where the leak is coming from I would take the last couple guys' opinions!!! Good luck!!!
TS
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[line_dangler]

--Oops, I wistook fiberlglass for aluminum for a moment. You should find some fiberglass seal/repair material at some marine dealer or fiberglass place. If you are having bad luck, ask some Truck Top/Cover place and they will probably hook you up with some materials or an easy fix.
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[Troll]

Boaters World on State near 22 south and West Marine on State at 72 south both have all the fiberglass, epoxy and gel coat repair you will need.

So about this leak, have you checked to see that the plug is good? Does the water come in while sitting still, or moving? How much water gets in say after sitting overnight at the dock?

If you do the "Fill the Bilge" trick to find the leak, add some food color to the water so it shows up better when it leaks out.
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[ssimons]

I actually own the boat not won the boat (my bad). I have owned the boat for several years, and it is a Great Fishing Boat. However, I went to Jordanelle two weeks ago and noticed probably about 5 gallons of water came out when I pulled the plug. However, I went to Utah lake and noticed about 10 gallons when we were just still fishing. There is no cracks in the hull. It has got to be something in the back. Ladder Supports - Engine Supports? - I am going to try the flash light trick? I think my plugs are good!
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[Saberfish]

[#000000][size 4]I would think that a 10 gallon leak during a fishing outing would be easy to find if in fact it is coming from a crack in the fiberglass.[/size][/#000000]
[size 4][/size]
[size 4]Worst cast is that there is a hairline crack that is located near the transom, and only opening up when there is pressure applied by the engine to the transom.[/size]
[size 4][/size]
[size 4]If you have several items mounted on the transom, first thing to check and repair would be these items. (Removing items and filling all screws, etc. with marine silicon.)[/size]
[size 4][/size]
[size 4]Let us know how this repair goes.[/size]
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[SportfishinSteve]

[][#0000ff] You probably thought of this already, but just in case, you should check the hoses on your bilge pump and live well. That happened to me one time...[crazy][/#0000ff]
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[ssimons]

I found the leak it was in the hull! Going to buy a fiberglass repair kit at lunch.

I am worried that there could be water in the hull that is not going out the drain plug, and is still in the bottom of the boat. Any suggestions before I fix the leak?
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[lunkerhunter2]

I backed my trailer down a very steep hill for a couple minutes and let it sit in the sun as much as possible before repairing my hull.[]
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[ssimons]

It is Fixed! Parked the boat on a steep hill made sure all the water was out and repaired the leak.

Thanks for the help!
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