Irrational fear of sinking?

Seajet said:
Another boat I owned had 7 seacocks, there was usually one failed at any given time; once being young and daft I went over the side in snorkelling gear and plugged a seacock with a wooden taper while a mate changed the valve, we were in deep water in Fowey at the time and had a 'Plan B' that if it went wrong we'd drive her flat out onto the shore !

Gives me sweaty palms just thinking about it now...:rolleyes:
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1 out of 7 failed at any given time? Sounds like poor maintenance ...

Wooden taper to change the valve? Dodgy - depends on the condition of the skin fitting - I wouldn't worry, but given the apparent state of your seacocks I'm suprised your boat survived ..
 
Fireball,

yes the valve change was dodgy and a daft thing to do; however the boat was in good condition - as all my boats have been !

She was at the last Portsmouth Internatonal Festival Of The Sea so seems to have survived my maintenance. :rolleyes:

I was worrying about nothing when deciding to change the seacock, maybe as a qualified general & aircraft engineer my standards are a little higher than the average yacht, so yah boo to you ! :)

Andy

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The Lazy Kipper said:
Does anyone else suffer from an irrational fear of their boat sinking when it's unattended? /QUOTE]

My biggest fear is that Seadweller sinks when we are actually on her making passage:eek:

Possibly something to do with the fact that on her maiden voyage a plug in the engine cover gave way (it's a long story but Catepillar had replaced plugs with wooden bungs to paint the engines and then forgot to change them back again)

Seeing your brand new boat filling up with water whilst under way is a bit of a bugger especially as the alarms did not go off as they had been wired the wrong way round

May
xx
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Seajet said:
yes the valve change was dodgy and a daft thing to do; however the boat was in good condition - as all my boats have been !
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With the notable exception of the seacocks then ...

Seajet said:
She was at the last Portsmouth Internatonal Festival Of The Sea so seems to have survived my maintenance. :rolleyes:
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That's good ... mind you - boats have sunk and been restored so it doesn't say much does it?

Seajet said:
I was worrying about nothing when deciding to change the seacock, maybe as a qualified general & aircraft engineer my standards are a little higher than the average yacht, so yah boo to you ! :)
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Which bit was the worry about nothing? Changing the non-functioning valve or using the bung to stop water ingress whilst you changed the non-functioning valve? :confused:

I've seen some "qualified engineers" projects ... sometimes corners are er ... cut ... so we'll have to take your word on standards .. ;)
 
Leighb said:
A member of our club had a close call a couple of years ago. He went aboard one day just to fetch something off the boat to find water an inch deep over the cabin sole. :eek:
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At the club here there are some (albeit typically wooden) boats on the moorings that after stepping aboard, if there was only 1" of water in the bilge, you'd be wondering where the rest was! ;) Fortunately I tend to have a dry bilge.
 
fireball said:
With the notable exception of the seacocks then ...

That's good ... mind you - boats have sunk and been restored so it doesn't say much does it?


Which bit was the worry about nothing? Changing the non-functioning valve or using the bung to stop water ingress whilst you changed the non-functioning valve? :confused:

I've seen some "qualified engineers" projects ... sometimes corners are er ... cut ... so we'll have to take your word on standards .. ;)
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Well, as even my vast knowledge doesn't go as far as building a time travel machine, yes I suppose my word will have to do; I can say with reasonable confidence she didn't sink while in my dubious ownership, though I'll certainly admit it was a learning experience for me ! :)
 
Yes i dare say i would worry in some cases mentioned here.

My thoughts on this would be positive floatation to the outer hull sides, i have read placing floatation inside would cause her to capsize if swamped.

I was going to say so no need for bilge pumps to be used though positive floatation means no need for bilge pumps at all on my small and simple boat.

Positive floatation would work far better and quicker and automatically, it has no moving components and does not require electricity.

Though its best to get it checked perhaps once a year depending on the type of foam used as some type/s of foam expand with age (or this may pertain to older foams ).

And should stop or prevent worries over sinking :).
 
The Lazy Kipper said:
Does anyone else suffer from an irrational fear of their boat sinking when it's unattended? I go round closing seacocks that haven't spilled a drop but I still fear them spontaneously failing. I find it hard to have more than a week go by without a visit - just to check. We fitted an auto bilge pump with an alarm loud enough for half the marina to hear. I've even taken to giving the stern gland greaser a couple of turns before we leave "just in case".

Am I mad?
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If you know you've done everything right but still obsess about it then you might have OCD.

Suggest you:

1. Fit one of those gadgets to your bilge pump that sends your mobile a txt when it operates - that should help you relax

2. Pour a cup of water into the bilge and leave it there. So now you know the first bit of water has already happened. No need to obsess any more.
 
Ben Dockrell 22 said:
i have read placing floatation inside would cause her to capsize if swamped.
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That's because you read a story about an unseaworthy American open fishing motorboat. Sailing boats have a big heavy keel on the bottom, putting some foam in your lockers isn't going to overcome that weight and flip you upside down.

Pete
 
You don't just need to worry about holes below the waterline...

I pumped about 30 gallons out of the saloon bilge, engine bilge and lazarette, after leaving the lazarette locker lid undogged - lots of heavy rain recently!
 
Minn said:
I don't understand people who leave their boats with the engine, heads, etc seacocks closed but with the cockpit drains open because they don't bother with a cockpit cover.
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I leave mine open because they're above the waterline (and I don't have a cockpit cover. I also leave the engine coolant open because the consequences of forgetting to open it are more dire than, say, remembering to open the heads after using it or the galley sink when the dishwater won't drain!
 
Zen Zero said:
I leave mine open because they're above the waterline (and I don't have a cockpit cover. I also leave the engine coolant open because the consequences of forgetting to open it are more dire than, say, remembering to open the heads after using it or the galley sink when the dishwater won't drain!
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In this situation I'd use military aircraft style red ribbons on say the throttle, as a warning not to start before the seacock is open.

Aircraft also have a very obvious stowage place for the disabling pins from the ejection seat, visible from the outside to the groundcrew as well as to the pilot; such a set-up wouldn't be difficult on a boat, then if one glances at the stowage and sees a flag is missing, stop engine and start checking.

I'd include engine seacocks inc inlet, fuel, exhaust cooling & outlet, sea toilet inlet & outlet, and gas regulator valve !

There may also be ventilators open on the mooring to shut before going to sea, and lift keel position.

A printed checklist would be a sensible idea too; I was honoured to fly with some of the best Test Pilots in the world, and they always used check-lists, not trusting to memory...

While I'd suggest that all skin fittings should have an accessible valve to enable shutting it off if trim is changed due to flooding, cockpit drains are an awkward one on some boats, they just have to be left open.

That doesn't answer every problem though - a forumite's boat was sunk and lost because the cockpit drains were blocked by snow...
 
As one who managed, quite recently, to take his son's Firefly for a spin without putting the transom drain plugs in, (:o) I am also a believer in check lists and tapes.

I have changed my cockpit drain seacocks twice - once because we were rebuilding the cockpit and they were inacessible and too small and once because the new ball valve types went very stiff and I felt safer with Blakes taper bore jobs.
 
Zen Zero said:
My brother in law frequently has to collect his beautiful gozzo from the bottom of the Lago di Bolsena because it fills up with rainwater after the bilge pump has drained the battery.
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I can't help thinking that after the first time I'd be looking at something like a solar panel, battery & pump; rather just shrugging ' there she goes again ' ! :eek:
 
Seajet said:
I can't help thinking that after the first time I'd be looking at something like a solar panel, battery & pump; rather just shrugging ' there she goes again ' ! :eek:
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A solar panel won't power a pump, especially not if it's raining. True it'll keep your battery topped up and give you a better chance. The solution would be a boat cover that spills the rainwater overboard, but then I am not my brother in law's keeper.
 
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