Self Draining Cockpits

[CES]

I'm lookig at buying a 24Ft motorsailer that doesn't have a GRP moulded self draining cockpit. Should I be put off?

The cockpit is plywood, quite deep with lots of lockers and an engine hatch, so watertight it is not!

 

[Mirelle]

No, but check carefully for rot in the cockpit area esp. round the hatch.

In 22 years of owning a boat with a selfdraining cockpit, I've had a real big sea break into it just once - and that was my fault.

 

[26ft_bathtub]

The bathtub has a cockpit drain, but for some idiot reason the through-hull is below the waterline, with the pipe running through the large open space below the cockpit (what I think of as 'the hold'. If that pipe fails, I'll sink pretty quickly.

I'm thinking a new hole in the transom is in order.

Is this motorsailor aft-cockpit? If so, how difficult would it be to drill scuppers in the transom?

 

[CES]

She is aft cockpit, and I guess scuppers could be fitted relatively easily /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif, but I suppose in order for them to work, the engine hatch in the cockpit floor would have to be watertight?

 

[Stemar]

Obviously, the more watertight, the better, but without cockpit drains, all the water in the cockpit will be going throught the leaks into the engine compartment. With drains, you'll have less, no matter how bad the leak in the engine hatch.

If you can get it down to a a few steady drips, IMHO, your not going to be too badly off - as long as the drips can't find their way onto the electrics!

 

[EASLOOP]

I thought all self drainer outlets were below the waterline. Mine are, by design, and are stopped off at the hull by large stopcocks so no chanc eof sinking.

 

[Lakesailor]

My last two 18ft boats have had self drainers that exited above the waterline.
One had the pipe between skins and that started leaking. The current one is a moulding bonded between the skins .
You really need one as rainwater has to get out somewhere.

 

[Guest]

Most are at or slightly above w/l .....

Very few nowadays are below.

The at w/l variety often suffer similar to mine - when motoring you get wet-feet from the stern setting down at "thrust". So you need to close the valves.

Various boats have crossed over pipework - to gain advantage when boat is heeled etc. Debatable whether this is good or bad.

If a cockpit sole is not at or above w/l then fitting drains is a risk that I would not take ... yes you would gain in that water into cockpit would in theory not be greater than the level at the drains ... but you also run risk of failed drains and water into a lower space - ie cockpit and then to engine.

If the cockpit is deep and access to lockers etc. through top / upper sections .... is it possible to build up the cockpit sole to just above the w/l ? I did this on my Snapdragon 23 years ago .... by adding supports around ? Access can be via hatches etc. - so then you gain by being able to create a self-drainer ?