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Author Topic:   Drain Plug Arrangements

David Ratusnik posted 11-20-2001 01:07 PM ET (US)
On the Post Classic site jimh inputs concerning classic whaler drain plug placements (in/out) in contrast with a newer boat experiencing certain water in the cockpit problems. With regard to 20-25 foot Outrages and Revenges I am curious to drain plug arrangements. Do most folks pull all the drain plugs with the exception of the front center locker which is below water line? Do others plug all the drains? Does weather (Rain, seas) influence which plugs are left open/closed? Thanks David
kingfish posted 11-20-2001 01:53 PM ET (US)
David-
Differing conditions will have a lot to do with how your answers will come in. On a classic, if it is left in the water and uncovered, pulling the rear plugs will allow it to self-bail, and not put pressure on the bilge pump. A lot of folks (myself included) pull the rear plugs if they expect to be shipping any amount of water from rough seas or heavy rains while out on the water. Either way, as it is typically difficult to get at the front plug to drain while underway, because more water is shipped when the front plug is removed at rest, and because there is a bilge pump there (not the case with the rear plugs), the front plug is normally left in.
I trailer my boat, and when I have it in the water in basically dry conditions, I leave the rear plugs in, because I like to squirrel stuff away in those two compartments that I don't want to get wet.
kingfish (1992 Outrage 22)
reelescape1 posted 11-20-2001 02:17 PM ET (US)
1990 22' OR...I put the fishbox plug and baitwell plug in when the boats in the water. Otherwise all plugs are left out.
David Ratusnik posted 11-20-2001 02:41 PM ET (US)
Thanks for responses above. I have 1986 Manual for my 22'Outrage so I know what Whaler recommends. Last week the water was like glass and the wife/kids just wanted to go for a short cruise so I tried putting in all the plugs including the big one at the bottom of the splash well. Thought, why not just float along the surface seeing how the boat performed. Seemed quite ok. Set up abit higher in the water, showing more bottom paint but no big deal. When I wash down the boat up in the lift I pull the 8 plugs. Does plugging the whole boat present any problems? David
davey posted 11-23-2001 06:23 PM ET (US)
David....I have a l987 25ft outrage, so I think my configuration of plugs is different than yours maybe? However, I have had some of the same thoughts as have you. My boat sits in a slip in saltwater 12 months out of the year. I have three plugs forward of the center console, one starboad, one port in the rope compartments, I always leave these plugs out as the drain holes are above the water line. I have another plug in the center compartment just forward of the console seat, I never leave this plug out. Aft are three plugs, one in each bilge compartment starboard and port, I leave these plugs in always. In the starboard aft compartment there is a bilge pump that is supposed to keep the compartment dry. (The port drains into the starboard compartment.) The fish box, center aft, has a drain plug which I keep in, only because I dont want the barnacles and undergrowth in that compartment, however I am told that if you pull this plug and keep it out, that water should never enter the boat?????? Not being a physics genius, I am afraid to even try to keep this plug out, though often I have wanted to do so. And so I leave this plug in always. There are times that I believe that I should turn the aft starboard bilge pump to "off" and remove the all three aft plugs so as not to overwork the battery in heavy rains from working the bilge pumps, but frankly I am afraid to do so. I have shore power, however worry that if AC dock power goes out, and the float switches stick in the open position, that the drain will negative draw on all three batteries rendering no power, and so for this reason I leave all three aft plugs in, always. I wish I could remove all three aft plugs and just turn the bilge pump off, this would be safest, but as I said before, I still worry that water will enter and cause all kinds of problems....davey
jimh posted 11-23-2001 10:01 PM ET (US)
The 20-foot hull of my Revenge has only a single sump compartment, located in the stern just in front of the motor well dam on the starboard side.
I usually leave the plug in, but, if you do remove the plug, water will enter only to the point of filling the sump about half full. The boat is then self bailing.
If two people go over to look at the level in the sump, it rises a bit, of course, and it could begin to drain into the center portion via the access holes than bring the fuel lines into the sump area if allowed to fill to the brim. I don't know if it would because I put the plug back in before the water can get that high!
If I were to leave the boat in the water for a long time unattended I would probably leave the plug out. I recently left the boat in the water for a week or so, but did not remove the plug because the water quality was pretty bad, a lot of algae and green stuff in the canal where I was mooring, and I did not want that in the sump which is otherwise pristine and clean.
The first few days I owned the boat I had it in the driveway on a trailer with a cover on. I was not that familiar with all the drains on the boat and did not realize the previous owner had all the plugs in place. It rained heavily for several days, and I ended up with a half ton (literally) of water trapped in the cockpit before I had a chance to look under the cover and discover the lake that was building up. So now I always remove the rear sumpo plug when on the trailer and in storage.
I would not remove the forward drain sump when in the water because it would admit water to the forward cabin. (On a Revenge this area is the floor of the cabin, not the bottom of a locker like it is on the Outrage.)
Arriba posted 11-30-2001 11:19 AM ET (US)
Jimh It sounds like I have the same Revenge model you do. I have a question for you. Do you have a problem with the bow drain in the cockpit(starboard side) draining properly? I do, tried clearing it , but only a slight improvement. I'm going to take the fuel tank cover off this winter (inside my storage building). Have you ever removed this cover? If so what did you discover?
jimh posted 11-30-2001 01:00 PM ET (US)
I have not removed the cockpit cover, but the previous owner did in order to mount some backing plates for a stern seat he fabricated.
What I expect you will find in there is a cavity that is in the main filled by an aluminum fuel tank. The tank is foamed in place, as well as being held down with stainless steel straps. I expect the foam is trimmed to the level of the tank sides.
I would also anticipate that the weight of the cover is going to be pretty substantial.
--jimh
Arriba posted 12-02-2001 08:18 PM ET (US)
JIMH Thanks. I'll let you know what I find under the tank cover. I'll have it off in about a week. I'll put in in a new topic under "fuel tank cover".

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Author	Topic: Drain Plug Arrangements
David Ratusnik	posted 11-20-2001 01:07 PM ET (US) On the Post Classic site jimh inputs concerning classic whaler drain plug placements (in/out) in contrast with a newer boat experiencing certain water in the cockpit problems. With regard to 20-25 foot Outrages and Revenges I am curious to drain plug arrangements. Do most folks pull all the drain plugs with the exception of the front center locker which is below water line? Do others plug all the drains? Does weather (Rain, seas) influence which plugs are left open/closed? Thanks David
kingfish	posted 11-20-2001 01:53 PM ET (US) David- Differing conditions will have a lot to do with how your answers will come in. On a classic, if it is left in the water and uncovered, pulling the rear plugs will allow it to self-bail, and not put pressure on the bilge pump. A lot of folks (myself included) pull the rear plugs if they expect to be shipping any amount of water from rough seas or heavy rains while out on the water. Either way, as it is typically difficult to get at the front plug to drain while underway, because more water is shipped when the front plug is removed at rest, and because there is a bilge pump there (not the case with the rear plugs), the front plug is normally left in. I trailer my boat, and when I have it in the water in basically dry conditions, I leave the rear plugs in, because I like to squirrel stuff away in those two compartments that I don't want to get wet. kingfish (1992 Outrage 22)
reelescape1	posted 11-20-2001 02:17 PM ET (US) 1990 22' OR...I put the fishbox plug and baitwell plug in when the boats in the water. Otherwise all plugs are left out.
David Ratusnik	posted 11-20-2001 02:41 PM ET (US) Thanks for responses above. I have 1986 Manual for my 22'Outrage so I know what Whaler recommends. Last week the water was like glass and the wife/kids just wanted to go for a short cruise so I tried putting in all the plugs including the big one at the bottom of the splash well. Thought, why not just float along the surface seeing how the boat performed. Seemed quite ok. Set up abit higher in the water, showing more bottom paint but no big deal. When I wash down the boat up in the lift I pull the 8 plugs. Does plugging the whole boat present any problems? David
davey	posted 11-23-2001 06:23 PM ET (US) David....I have a l987 25ft outrage, so I think my configuration of plugs is different than yours maybe? However, I have had some of the same thoughts as have you. My boat sits in a slip in saltwater 12 months out of the year. I have three plugs forward of the center console, one starboad, one port in the rope compartments, I always leave these plugs out as the drain holes are above the water line. I have another plug in the center compartment just forward of the console seat, I never leave this plug out. Aft are three plugs, one in each bilge compartment starboard and port, I leave these plugs in always. In the starboard aft compartment there is a bilge pump that is supposed to keep the compartment dry. (The port drains into the starboard compartment.) The fish box, center aft, has a drain plug which I keep in, only because I dont want the barnacles and undergrowth in that compartment, however I am told that if you pull this plug and keep it out, that water should never enter the boat?????? Not being a physics genius, I am afraid to even try to keep this plug out, though often I have wanted to do so. And so I leave this plug in always. There are times that I believe that I should turn the aft starboard bilge pump to "off" and remove the all three aft plugs so as not to overwork the battery in heavy rains from working the bilge pumps, but frankly I am afraid to do so. I have shore power, however worry that if AC dock power goes out, and the float switches stick in the open position, that the drain will negative draw on all three batteries rendering no power, and so for this reason I leave all three aft plugs in, always. I wish I could remove all three aft plugs and just turn the bilge pump off, this would be safest, but as I said before, I still worry that water will enter and cause all kinds of problems....davey
jimh	posted 11-23-2001 10:01 PM ET (US) The 20-foot hull of my Revenge has only a single sump compartment, located in the stern just in front of the motor well dam on the starboard side. I usually leave the plug in, but, if you do remove the plug, water will enter only to the point of filling the sump about half full. The boat is then self bailing. If two people go over to look at the level in the sump, it rises a bit, of course, and it could begin to drain into the center portion via the access holes than bring the fuel lines into the sump area if allowed to fill to the brim. I don't know if it would because I put the plug back in before the water can get that high! If I were to leave the boat in the water for a long time unattended I would probably leave the plug out. I recently left the boat in the water for a week or so, but did not remove the plug because the water quality was pretty bad, a lot of algae and green stuff in the canal where I was mooring, and I did not want that in the sump which is otherwise pristine and clean. The first few days I owned the boat I had it in the driveway on a trailer with a cover on. I was not that familiar with all the drains on the boat and did not realize the previous owner had all the plugs in place. It rained heavily for several days, and I ended up with a half ton (literally) of water trapped in the cockpit before I had a chance to look under the cover and discover the lake that was building up. So now I always remove the rear sumpo plug when on the trailer and in storage. I would not remove the forward drain sump when in the water because it would admit water to the forward cabin. (On a Revenge this area is the floor of the cabin, not the bottom of a locker like it is on the Outrage.)
Arriba	posted 11-30-2001 11:19 AM ET (US) Jimh It sounds like I have the same Revenge model you do. I have a question for you. Do you have a problem with the bow drain in the cockpit(starboard side) draining properly? I do, tried clearing it , but only a slight improvement. I'm going to take the fuel tank cover off this winter (inside my storage building). Have you ever removed this cover? If so what did you discover?
jimh	posted 11-30-2001 01:00 PM ET (US) I have not removed the cockpit cover, but the previous owner did in order to mount some backing plates for a stern seat he fabricated. What I expect you will find in there is a cavity that is in the main filled by an aluminum fuel tank. The tank is foamed in place, as well as being held down with stainless steel straps. I expect the foam is trimmed to the level of the tank sides. I would also anticipate that the weight of the cover is going to be pretty substantial. --jimh
Arriba	posted 12-02-2001 08:18 PM ET (US) JIMH Thanks. I'll let you know what I find under the tank cover. I'll have it off in about a week. I'll put in in a new topic under "fuel tank cover".