Ranger 21EC V Berth Leak

[ameyer97]

Our 2009 Ranger R21EC has a mysterious leak in the V berth. When it rains, water seems to follow the underside of the deck near where the bow cleat is bolted in.

It will drip down onto the seat cushions in a mysterious "rusty" water color. There almost seems to be a hairline crack in the fiberglass about a foot from the bow cleat running towards the stern on the underside of the deck above the cushions but not close to the bow window hatch. I am trying to figure out where the water could be coming from on the deck besides the bow cleat.

Any thoughts?

 

[bob daily]

There are only two items in that area the bow cleat and the anchor locker cover. Since you said it was a rusty/brown color I would suspect one of them. Wouldn't take very much to remove and reset, I would also inspect the fiberglass in that area for delamination! If water was entering and running through the core material it would give the same symptoms that you describe.
Good luck on the fix. Bob

 

[Pilotnavigator]

Same as previous message, remover all deck hardware in the area. Before you rebel them check the core. Then be sure to taper their bolt hole with a counter sink bit. Run the bit backwards for a few seconds to prevent the gelcote from cracking. The counter sink opening should be 2x the diameter of the bolt hole. Don’t make the mistake of going too small. Then tape over the area with painter tape. Place the fitting on place with a couple of bolts. Cut around fitting with a blade. Remover the fitting and peal up the tape that was under the fitting. Then apply sealant around the lot holes and the perimeter, life caulk works fine. Install the fitting, sealant will squeeze out onto the taped area. When the sealant has skinned over carefully peal up the tape for a clean edge around the fitting. Should be water tight.
I have found many fitting where the counter sink is not sufficient. The issue is all sealants have a elasticity factor. Each product would state something like 10 percent on the package, If the fitting is squeezed down to 1 mm then it has only 0.1mm of movement before the bond will break. This can happen in most freeze cycles. So by opening up the area around the bolt holes you increase the sealant thickness enough to allow the sealant to handle movement. So if the fitting is a 1/4 bolt the area should be opened to a 1/2 inch cone shape. Now the sealant can do its job!