I have a 2002 Scout 175. I’m collecting more water in the bilge than I’m accustomed. Seems like there is a leak some how but not all the time. On the water for about 7 hours yesterday and ran bilge pump 3 times for about 1 to 2 min each. Thought it might be aerator but when I returned to ramp I pumped bilge dry and ran aerator to see if water collecting. None visible. Any ideas?
I had a mystery leak in my 1990 Stratos that I chased for months. There was a crack in the drain pipe for the rear livewell. I found it because I decided to replace all of the plumbing. Hope this helps.
Oh yeah. I even filled the bilge area with water to try to find it! Lol
Mark Ingle
NauticStar 1810 Merc 90
I fixed 2 leaks on my boat that greatly reduced my bilge intake. Used to be that the pump would kick on every hour or two but now it usually doesn’t come on at all during the trip. I still drain some water when I remove the plug when it’s back on the trailer.
The first one was through the brass drain plug receptacle. It was held in place w/ 3 screws into the transom. I removed it and found that it wasn’t sealed very well when the boat was built. I cleaned it up real well and sealed it with marine silicon and it has been great since.
The second was a crack in one of the corrugated hoses that drained water from the cockpit through the transom. It wasn’t noticeable unless I bent the hose a little. I replaced the hose and now have very little water coming into the bilge.
I suspect my live well pumps may drip a little between the pump module and the housing.
Hope this helps.
I had a “mystery” leak last year. Finally found that one of my batteries was putting pressure on the plastic fitting on the intake side of my raw water wash down pump. The fitting had cracked under the pressure of the battery and would drip while sitting, but would spray while under way due to the increased water pressure from the high speed pickup. I moved the pump back about 1/2" and replaced the fitting.
Often times it will be a plastic fitting of some sort. Hoses tend to hold up pretty well but those thin plastic fittings can’t take a lot of vibration and stress.
218WA Sailfish
200 Verado
The "Penn"sion Plan
Probably a cracked hose or leaking livewell fitting/tub. Get some plugs and put them in the trough hulls one at a time until the leak goes away. Otherwise the leak will probably be between the drain plug fitting and the hull or a through hull and the hull.
Make sure there are no signs of leakage around the lower motor mount bolts or the hull seam around the back, depending on how low your hull sits in there water. I’ve had the calking come loose at the seam and leak though in when in reverse. You can use chalk dust around the inner seams and see if any washes off as long as you have access.