Valves on cockpit drains or not??

[iantomlinson]

Any views on cockpit drains? our are going straight down to drain below the waterline. fitted tru-design through hull fittings with new pipe and double stainless jubilees straight through. havent got stopcocks as they are never gonna be used. any thoughts about surveyor/insurance/moral purposes of fitting shut off valves. why would they be needed to be shut off if you have a bung to hand on each one???

 

[Bodach na mara]

I have often thought about this problem. I did reach a conclusion. The whole point of cockpit drains is to drain the cockpit, which they will not do if there is a shut-off valve which is closed. As you want the cockpit to drain if it rains when you are away from the boat you will never close them. So they are useless.

 

[steveeasy]

Actually they are very important. If a hose breaks or leaks your boat might sink and you get water backfilling the hoses when going forward. a leak and your done for. so they are a crucial safety feature.
Steveeasy

 

[jwilson]

I once had a boat that had - as was traditional - twin crossed cockpit drains each fitted with pipes to seacocks. To open or close one seacock you needed to empty the deeper cockpit locker and hold a child's feet whilst he was in it head downwards and get him/her to reach under the cockpit sole. To reach the other the same procedure was needed except that you would have had to remove a stainless diesel tank and it's piping first. Funnily enough I never closed the seacocks.

 

[Bodach na mara]

So, Steveeasy, do you close them when you leave the boat?

 

[iantomlinson]

steveasy. when we are not on the boat then it doesnt matter obviously. when we are onboard, if a clip loosens, pipe splits, etc then the the bilge pump will kick in, alarm sounds and i quickly put the bung in, tighten the clip etc. im trying to weigh up why there is a need for a valve compared to my reaction to solve the problem on board. this is for surveyor/insurance recommendations. throwing around the ideas and reasons why or why not??

 

[Poignard]

I have often thought about this problem. I did reach a conclusion. The whole point of cockpit drains is to drain the cockpit, which they will not do if there is a shut-off valve which is closed. As you want the cockpit to drain if it rains when you are away from the boat you will never close them. So they are useless.

I used to have the cockpit drain seacocks fully upen when sailing but when the boat was unattended I had them almost completely shut.

My thinking was that rainwater could still drain out of the cockpit, but in the (admittedly unlikely) event of a hose becoming disconnected the seawater would enter the boat so slowly that there was a reasonable chance of someone noticing her settling in time to do something about it.

However, the seacocks on my boat were very accessible so operating them only took a few moments. If they hadn't been, it's doubtful I would have bothered.

 

[steveeasy]

When I recently removed one of my cockpit drain pipes, I then refitted it incorrectly at the top. I went off for a few days sailing and after 30 mins noticed a bad water leak. water was being forced up the cockpit drain tube and in to the bilge. (to my surprise, the water raises almost to the level of the cockpit sole) I spent the entire two days pumping the boat out every 30 minuets. If Id been smart id have closed the cockpit drain seacock, but im not. My point is that without a seacock, one would not be able to prevent this happening. you might not be able to repair a pipe at sea to prevent a leak. with a seacock you can. When on a mooring, I dont close the cockpit seacocks, as the cockpit might fill up with rainwater.
Im sure most boats have them for a reason, even if they are never used. One day you may regret not having them!! Its all about having a back up option.

Steveeasy