CONTINUOUSWAVE

Hello. I have a 2005 255 Conquest. The boat has a water problem. The main aft [fish box] can become flooded, and water can even show up on the floor of the cuddy.

I often operated the boat with the port side [fish] box drain [open to the sea] while trolling. I suspect the [the water problem] is masked as the water drains out [of the port side fish box when the drain is open to the sea]. When the drain is plugged, water builds up in the fish box.

I have observed [flooding of the deck of the cuddy or overflow of the port side fish box] twice, but other [than those two occasions] I have not noticed it. On occasion there is more water than I would like coming from the bilge pump.

I'm not sure how water could end up on the cuddy deck. There doesn't seem to be anywhere for it to come from. I suspect it may be the fish box which is the culprit. If the fish box drain is closed, water can splash over the fish box (yet under the deck) into the lower compartments, but I haven't been able to verify that.

I really don't know where to start and can't see any obvious entry points.

Appreciate any suggestions.

Many thanks.

Do you leave the 255 CONQUEST in the water at a mooring or dock when not in use?

If so, what is the static trim of the 255 CONQUEST when the boat is at rest in the water?

ASIDE: I used to have a similar problem with water appearing in the forward cabin of my REVENGE. The water seemed to appear from nowhere. I trailer the boat. I would check for water in the cabin as soon as the boat was hauled out at the ramp. There would be no water. I would drive the boat to my home, and there would be water in the cabin. Eventually I solved the mystery. Water in the aft cockpit sump was draining forward into the rigging tunnel. It flowed out of the rigging tunnel at the forward end and found a path into the cabin, where it collected in the sump. This occurred during trailering because I had to descend a rather steep grade in the route I always took from ramp to home. If I carefully dewatered the cockpit sump at the ramp, then no water appeared in the cabin.

If the 255 CONQUEST has any drains in the deck at the forward end of the cockpit, those drains probably lead aft to the cockpit sump. If the boat has a static trim with the bow lower than the stern, water could flow forward and come up those drains or follow a further under-deck path into the cabin that is part of the rigging tunnel.

Here is a view of a 235 CONQUEST hull before the cabin superstructure is added. Note the many paths for rigging that could also carry water.


Fig. 1. View of 235 CONQUEST hull during construction. Photo credit: the author.

This image appears in the article about a Factory Tour.

Thank you for the response.

The boat is typically stored on the trailer and launched by marina staff. The boat does spend about a month every summer in the water. There never seems to be much water pumped from the bilge when moored at the dock. My thought has been that some water spills over the sides of the fish box when getting up on plane before it is able to drain out the drain hole. There is some space between the top of the fish box and the deck.

When moored, the boat sits very level. On the trailer in storage, I would say it is tilted toward the bow slightly. The garboard drain is left unplugged when stored and then the plug is applied right before launching. The port fish box is often not plugged and allowed to fill.

The starboard fish box is always plugged and used as storage--no [water] there.

The raw water intake is on port. The port live well is never used other than for storage. And there is a raw water wash down which does get use.

The recent experience with the water in the cuddy also had significant water under the main hatch. In that circumstance, the port fish box was plugged.

After a two-hour-run in a three-foot or higher chop, the water was there. Perhaps the through hull in the fish box allows water in when running but not when plugged at the dock. With the fish box drain plug in, water can't drain out and the water splashes around and over into the main hatch This is only a guess though.

Buy a gallon or two of the pink RV plumbing system anti-freeze. Add this to the locker or sump that you suspect is the source of the water in the cabin. Go boating. Check the cabin for water. If the water is pink you will know where it came from.

I was thinking of using food colouring and trying that.

Thanks again.

Food coloring is meant to be a dye. Take care you don't dye the gel coat.