Condensation?

[seicam]

I run into a strange situation recently. We had taken a first overnight trip on 4th of July weekend. While getting ready for the night we have discovered that the mattress and the carpet in the aft section of the boat (under cockpit) were wet. The carpet was pretty soaked and all underside of the mattress as well, however it's covered in plastic, so it did not get to the inside of the mattress. The top of the mattress was damp. There was no water on the sides of the bunk area nor any visible leaks or dampness above the mattress line.
We spend the night somehow and on the next day let the mattress dry in the sun and tried to dry the carpet with paper towels. The mattress dried quite well and fast, meaning there was not really that much water in it. The carpet was harder to dry, so we just covered it with paper towels and left like that for the rest of the trip. I spend also some time looking for any leaks, as this was first suspicion, but found nothing.
After the trip I removed everything from the bunk and let it for a few days. The weather was dry and when I came back the carpet dried out.

Now, I am still puzzled what happened. Is it possible that condensation caused that much wetness?

To be clear - the boat was in the water for 2 months before we discovered the issue. We used the area under the cockpit as general storage on day trips, and kept lifejackets and other stuff there when boat was not in use. Air circulation was likely poor there. The weather in May and June around here was quite wet and cold (both May and June were wettest and coldest in years). However the boat was in fairly frequent use in June.

How much condensation do you see on your boats, in similar climate to mine? How do you fight it?

Regards,
Maciek

[Ron]

Maciek -

I could be wrong, but by your description it sounds like there was too much water involved to be just condensation. You also need a warm and humid area next to a cold surface to get it, and the whole boat would have been cold. If there was a small leak below the carpet or mattress, water could easily "wick" up thru the material to get to the top. I'd keep on looking for a small leak somewhere.

[seicam]

That's what I suspected first, but then how to explain that the carpet dried out on its own after being left "open" for a few days? THe boat is stil in water and if there is a leak below the waterline, it would still be leaking.

I will keep looking.

[Ron]

The transom tends to be lower in the water when motoring or sailing. If it dried out while docked or on a mooring, that would not eliminate the possibility of a leak getting things wet. Also - the rudder tends to splash water inside that compartment while moving, so it could be coming from the gas tank / steering linkage box.

[gary green]

I was getting a lot of water in that part of the cabin as you described. In fact the lining on the hull was also drenched. The styrofoam backed liner either wicked up the water from the carpet or was part of the problem sending water to the carpet. It was extremely frustrating until I installed my dodger. I think water was traveling down the hatch channels and ito the boat becuase it was wettest in the front. I've filled all gaps but noticed that when the hatch is closed there is still opportunity for water to get into the boat from above. The dodger now prevents that except if a driving rain is in the direction of the hatch boards.

Now, if anyone can come up with a solution to prevent water coming into the amas. I would be a happy camper. I've resealed all inspection ports, sealed around the lining between the decks and hulls and sealed the hatches in the amas. I've sealed the gaps in the stanchion holes, yet I still get water in the amas in all three sections (forward, middle and stern). Anybody else have any ideas.

Thanks,

gary g.

[simonhayes]

I had a similar problem - turned out that water was getting in through the hatch openings - esp the screws holding edges of the hatch/companion way made of starbord . When it rained or I hosed down the boat - water would get in and run down into the aft compartment. I resealed the screws with 5200 and the problem got a lot better, but not completely fixed if it rains very hard si I have no cushions back there

Apart from leaky ama hatches (or maybe ama hull/deck joints) that lots of folks have - my big issues is a pinhole leak somewhere in the port forward ama box. When sailing fast and/or in choppy conditions where water is forced through that "channel" between main hull and port ama, I get water leak that flows from somewhere behind the tp holder in the head and down to the cabin sole and into the "bilge" A day of sailing means I have .25-.5 inch of water in the bilge by the end and have to pump it out. Try as I might - I can't find the leak as it is behind the inner molding for the head and/or the port bunk. It seems invisible from the outside.

[rorr1203]

I posted this under "General Maintenance" Topic: Leaks back in November. Your leak sounds very similar.



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Re: Leaks

Postby rorr1203 » Mon Nov 02, 2009 1:27 pm
If you find the carpeting under the cockpit area damp or wet I have a likely suspect for you to check that will hopefully save you time.

A couple of weeks ago I found the carpeting and headliner under the cockpit were damp to soaked. It took a couple of hours of running water on different parts of the cabin roof and cockpit and pulling the headliner and other parts off to finally find the leak.

I found the trim around the door that holds the head / wall liner was not completely sealed and was wicking water into the cabin under the cockpit. Rain water runs along the slide rails on the cabin roof for door hatch and then runs down a channel between the door frame and the trim around the door.

After taking a couple of days to get everything dried out, I removed the door frame so I could get a good working angle and resealed the door trim .

I am happy to report that after a miserable rainy weekend the cabin is dry - the leak is no more!

[Jerry]

I read this with some interest and memory.

At the end of the year last year I moved some things stored in the area under the cockpit and found some wet carpet area and minor mold. At the time I had written it off to a hand pump I had thrown back there still being wet and the water sitting under something stored. I have kept the area clear this year and it has been dry but now that I am reading this string I think I know why.

On my spring repair list I also pulled the trim that holds the door because it had pulled away at the bottom letting the plexiglass go to the sole of the cockpit.

I may have fixed two problems at one time?

[seicam]

Thanks for all the comments. I still have not found the cause of dampness, I will check the hint about the door trim.

I my case the carpet is/was wettest at the aft end on the port side. then it gradually got drier going forward. I am not sure that if water gets in through the door trim it would behave this way. I also do not think this is some permanent leak, as the carpet dries out often if left without the mattress.
I have three theories now, not sure though how to validate them:

1) condensation - I know I have condensation problem anyway, because I see some patches of mold showing up in hard to reach places, like under the head, or next to water tank. I leave all internal hatches open now to improve air circulation. Also on our recent trips I noticed that on the plexi covering the companionway there is plenty of water in the morning, inside. In PNW we have cold nights even in the summer, so the difference in temperatures can be large.

2) water leak through hull somewhere - it would have to be above waterline. When the boat stays in dock the area usually dries up.

3) the leak through companionway - as suggested by other.

I will keep investigating.

Regards,
Maciek

[Dan]

It isn't surprising that the area is wettest in the aft, port-side. That is primarily due to the boat being tipped that way, due to the engine, water tank and such being on the port side. In fact, I'd say most of the Telstar 28s are a bit port leaning. Another possible cause is water coming in via a poorly sealed join back in the rudder locker. It might not leak at rest, but leak only underway, since the stern tends to squat a bit when under sail or power—more so under power IMHO. Probably worth taking a look at the rudder locker and such.

[seicam]

Thanks Dan - that's actually sounds plausible. I will take a look.

Regards,
Maciek