New boat with questions about draining - v hull

[pjcalla]

Hello all, I recently traded my flat bottom 1648 for 16' v hull. It is a '70s Smoker Craft. I decided to trade because my needs had changed, and I will be using the boat more on the lakes than on the rivers. Anyway, it seems to hold water between the seats on the floor. On my flat bottom, the water would drain down the channels of the bottom, under the seats. The new boat's seats are all the way to the floor, and it holds water. What do you guys with v hulls do about this? I could drill holes to allow the water to drain to the back, and that's probably my only option, but was wondering what you all do. Here are some pics to show what I'm talking about. Thanks.

 

[rscottp]

I drilled a couple extra holes in mine and try to keep it tilted up as much as possible so the water drains. If only I had a garage!

 

[onthewater102]

Damned if you do and damned if you don't - you need to put holes, but you have to keep them small so they don't degrade the integrity of the rib structure - however, this makes it easy for all that leaf litter & misc. debris to clog them. I never found a good solution to it which is why I dumped the V-Hull and went to the flat bottom.

 

[Johnny]

is that design FACTORY installed ??
Even a Live Well would have been designed with a tunnel under it for drainage.
In all my days, I have never seen anything such as that.
The design "engineer" must have fallen asleep at the tiller when he designed
those seats.
If it were mine, I would drill out all those rivets pull it all out and start over .....
(But, I am kinda handy at metal working and rivets)

just cracks me up . . . .
any "normal" person with "common sense" knows that water INSIDE a boat is not a good idea.

 

[onthewater102]

Stupidity is everywhere - my sea nymph had the same design, longitudinal support ribs on the bottom (good idea), continuous lateral support ribs on the inside (bad idea)...

Simple dimple & short section of tubing welded to the rib to allow a pass-through would have gotten all but a sponge worth of water out but that would have dipped into the profit margin and we can't have that in 'Murica

 

[ccm]

If it were me I'd drill/bore a hole/holes through the bench & put a piece of PVC pipe just long enough so that it is flush with either side. I would go with three; one in the middle with one more on the right & left side. They need to be big enough around so that they don't clog with debris/trash easily. Also, so that you can easily clean them out with a stick if they happen to get clogged. Just an idea.

 

[Y_J]

My bench seats don't go all the way to the floor like yours but the ribs going across are exactly the same, and no drain plug in the transom. Bilge pump time but the ribs still hold water back from getting aft. You got to wonder just what the engineers were smoking the day they designed that system.

 

[pjcalla]

As far as I know, it is factory. I plan on putting a flat floor in, but I don't want water just sitting under there. I have a cover to keep the rain out, but I want it to drain if I start taking on water while in the water. I guess I'll just drill a couple small holes and see if it works out, but then I run into the problem of those getting clogged. I like the idea of the pvc through the benches as well. I guess I'll have to put in access hatches in my floor so I can make sure it's draining. I like the hull, but damn, people don't think.

And, rscottp, I love your boat. It turned out really nice. I, too, am a fly fisherman, so I'm planning on keeping things simple and clean, since we know that fly line likes to find every little possible snag on a boat. I'm going to be running a tiller for now, but I really like that forward console. Anyway, I enjoyed going through your build, and I plan on stealing a few ideas from it.

 

[earl60446]

That sucks, really poor design. I would not drill holes in the ribs but those seat supports would definitely have about a 1 inch hole in them at the bottom middle. What else can you do? Either that or trade up to a better built boat. Most vee's are not like that.
Tim

 

[onthewater102]

1/8" pin holes along the flare between the rib and the flange where it attaches to the floor won't degrade the strength and will allow the water to drain.

 

[Johnny]

wow - speak of the devil !!

I just found a similar boat on C/L with similar "defects" in drainage......
I will probably buy it tomorrow for $750 WITH title and trailer - no motor.
It is part of a family estate settlement and I get first grabs on it.
The seller has no idea of the brand, year or length of it.
I don't necessarily want the boat - I just need a good pattern for the windshield
for my '59 Crestliner.
Then, maybe do some power washing and clean it up and sell for a tad more than I paid.

I just am floored with this drain (NO drain) design that I have never seen before.
I guess I COULD fix the drain problem before selling it - LOL - just to save the next
owner some frustrations.

Like I said before . . . water INSIDE a boat is not a good idea.

Followup ::::: a family member decided to keep the boat - so it was a no-go

 

[Captain Ahab]

My MirroCraft has the same design - every year I blow it out with a power washer - there is some drainage under those ribs - but they clog fast.


I just put a floor on the bottom and a few ounces of retained water will not hurt anything


If you do not put in a floor - use a towel or mop to remove the water DO NOT DRILL HOLES - they will not work well and will just clog anyway.