Freshwater leak repair assistance on 35

DonW · Post by **DonW** » Sun Dec 19, 2010 4:05 am

Hi, I'm new to this board but guys at THT said this was the place to get the help I need. I recently bought a 1986 35 and one of the survey issues was leaks around the salon bulkhead. Engines were replaced in 2007 and I think they did a poor job of sealing everything up. During a hard rain you can see very slow drips coming in and landing on the fiberglass exhaust elbows at the very rear of the engine compartment. After a steady 8-12 hours there will be a cup of freshwater under each engine. I have got to get this fixed. There appears to be a little rotted wood on the SB side but everything looks fine otherwise. That is what leads me to the conclusion that this started during the re-power and hasn't been going on since 1986. Surveyor said to remove teak trim and caulk everything. That seems to easy unless the yard was very lazy. Any advice, things to check before I go off half cocked and make a mess. I was thinking of re bedding everything in the vicinity, fuel fill, cleats, etc in case the water is playing tricks on me. I'm 99 percent sure it is leaking through the bulkhead but not positive. Thoughts or guidance? Regards, Don

butch · Post by **butch** » Sun Dec 19, 2010 5:59 am

Not sure about later 35 with door to the port side but can offer some info on older 35 with sliding middle doors. It is yery comman for water to lay between teak trim and bulkhead driping down. in my case and 2 other 35 berts (friends boats) the damage included wicking of water into the bulkhead and rotting the main suport (port to star.)below the bulkhead.try to wiggle the bulkhead by the floor if it's loose you may have some of the above problems. My boat is a 74 and I replaced the piece under the bulkhead in the early 90's and the bulkhead around 2000.(check for soft spots bottom outside of bulkhead and for rot in the wood below the bulkhead from below decks.I'm not sure if bertram made any changes below with the later style 1981+)Good luck and I may be wrong not knowing much about newer 35.L&H made a glass bulkhead for a friends older 35 that is outstanding! Butch

ckuppens · Post by **ckuppens** » Sun Dec 19, 2010 7:35 am

Don Welcome and congrats on the new boat. You will get a lot of help here. My 35 is a 79. so the bulkhead is different. I would make sure the door frame is draining properly and remove all the wood and re bed it. See if that fixes the issue. You also mention some rot? I would replace that as well. I am sure you have heard this before but it is fresh water that kills boats not salt. I am rebedding all of my bow rails this spring...

DonW · Post by **DonW** » Sun Dec 19, 2010 3:53 pm

After spending some time on the boat today things may be better than I thought. With a flashlight, a couple of gallons of water, and my wife's help I determined the water flow. It is actually running off the teak the forms the trim for the bulkhead, under a fiberglass panel and down through the wiring hole and into the engine bilge. Once I removed the panel there is a clear path for water with no caulk or other means to keep water from going under the panel. Design flaw perhaps? Anyway, I will fix it this week and wait for another hard rain to figure out if that was the real problem. Since my bulkhead appears sound at this time I'm debating if I should remove all the trim and re bed it. Probably should. Don

Sean B · Post by **Sean B** » Sun Dec 19, 2010 5:00 pm

My next-slip boat neighbor has a B35 and endless bulkhead problems and leaks. He had the yard replace his original (rotten) bulkhead with new about 10 years ago when he repowered. They build it the same way Bretram did however (plywood & laminate) and his new one is again leaking at the base, and starting to rot along the bottom already. That beam that runs along under the bulkhead below the deck was rotten ten years ago too, but he had that replaced with glass so it's okay now.... more than once I've heard him grumble about not replacing the bulkhead with glass too. All Bert's seem to have bulkhead rot problems of some kind. Plywood was just a bad choice there. So anyway - that seems to be a weak spot on the 35 that likes to leak. I would remove that tri and have a look

Sean B · Post by **Sean B** » Sun Dec 19, 2010 5:04 pm

remove that TRIM and have a look, is what I meant

CB35 · Post by **CB35** » Mon Dec 20, 2010 5:55 am

The plywood is not the problem it is the way it sits on the sill. Bertram used a one piece teak sill plate with very little slope. Over the years the teak plank cupps and redirects the water under the plywood where the end grain just sucks it up. The fix is very very easy.

DonW · Post by **DonW** » Mon Dec 20, 2010 6:50 am

Charlie, I'm noticing that on mine (the lack of runoff because of the shape of the teak). My bulkhead actually sounds and feels sound right now. My runoff is directed port and starboard more than straight down behind the trim, and is actually running down into the bilge through the wiring holes. Any enlightenment you want to share on the easy fix? Don

DonW · Post by **DonW** » Mon Dec 20, 2010 10:00 am

I just went back down to the boat and tapped out the bulkhead again. I am convinced the plywood is still good inside. The teak at the bottom does have a pronounced curve to it and it is serving as a little gutter to direct the water to port and starboard. As dumb as it sounds a couple of small holes drilled into the teak to direct the water onto the cockpit instead of having it flow P and SB and into the boat (along with caulking those areas) seems like an easy fix until I decide to replace the teak with starboard or whatever the long term approved fix ends up being. If I just caulk the ends where the teak goes under the panels the the water is going to try and drain down the bulkhead which I certainly don't won't happening. Charlie, help me out here if I'm missing something please. Don

photo finish · Post by **photo finish** » Mon Dec 20, 2010 2:01 pm

Don, That sounds reasonable to me.

DonW · Post by **DonW** » Wed Dec 22, 2010 2:43 am

Well I have the SB side under the panel fixed. I cleaned all the caulk along the bottom of the bulkhead after removing the trim strip. I keep looking at the small gap between the teak and the bulkhead and my brain keeps saying inject that gap with West system and quit screwing around with caulk. Upside--no more water is going under there. Downside--big mess if I ever need to remove the teak plank. Don

IRGuy · Post by **IRGuy** » Wed Dec 22, 2010 6:33 am

Don... If I need caulk but are concerned about the need for possible removal at a later date I use GE 4200 only. Their 5200 is great for permanent attachment, but is too strong for anything you may want to remove in the future.

ckuppens · Post by **ckuppens** » Wed Dec 22, 2010 8:19 am

4200 can also tough to remove. I would use lifecaulk and see how it goes for a few years. It may fix the problem for 10 years

DonW · Post by **DonW** » Wed Dec 22, 2010 2:30 pm

I'm using Life Caulk. It bonds well to teak and I've had good luck with it. I'll have this finished by Friday and if it rains over the weekend then I'll have my first test. When I cleaned the rest of the old caulk out it was in pretty bad shape. Frank, I tapped out the whole bulkhead and it was solid except for a couple places where the trim was attached at the bottom. I drill into it, got solid wood so I think I have the same glue issue you told me about. I filled the holes with epoxy and I suspect tomorrow it will not be loose anymore. Don

IRGuy · Post by **IRGuy** » Wed Dec 22, 2010 4:10 pm

Don... Sounds good! Glad you don't have to cut into the bulkhead.. you will find plenty to do on a new boat without cutting the aft bulkhead apart!