Weeping Keel Bolt

Roach1948

Roach1948

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www.dallimoredesigns.nl
I have a weeping keel bolt (I think) under the engine, and I know I should take the negine out and replace the bolt, but I really want to go sailing this year. I strongly suspect that the bolt is leeking from its base in the keel. Is there any compound I can put around the recess for the bolt in the keel that will stop the weep for this season? Grease, filler of some sort....
 
Nope, and it would be a mistake to disguise it. Go sailing, count pump strokes, if it gets much worse (eg when hard on the wind) then maybe fix it then. Otherwise, add it to next season's list. How many other bolts are there? Its really unlikely to do anything other than leak a bit, and thats what wooden boats are suppoesed to do
 
Presuming you have access, and can remove the nut, make op a grommet of caulking cotton and put it under the washer. Add a little Butyl rubber sealant (not sika or silicon) and replace the nut. Wind it up as tight as you can.
To avoid disaster (a spinning bolt), cut any excess thread off BEFORE you remove the nut to save it binding on the rust.

A larger plate washer may help.

A masic injection via grease gun and nipple into the bolt void would cure it, and can be done between tides. However you do need the gear for this.

Did you not check all c/line fastenings during your restoration?? /forums/images/graemlins/ooo.gif
 
Thanks for the tips. I "think" the weep is coming from this bolt. When I sponged the bilges dry if is from "around" here that water started bleeding in slowly. By pouring some coloured water around the bilges I tired to see whether it came out from the bottom of the bolt and it did not - I suspect the water pressure forcing the water up the hole. I could be wrong - often am!

Anyway - here are a couple of photos of the bolt in question. It is not a keel bolt but a deadwood bolt - it is under the engine and it looks very small and as you see there is hardly any head to it, so it will be hard to drive out I reckon.

PS the reason I never replaced this one was that it is one of the bolts that was not accessible during restoration as there was a wooden sleeper under it. All the keel bolts have been replaced....should I replace all the deadwood one to? There are some nasty ones that fan out around the stern post that look worryingly complicated to remove and replace.



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OK I can borrow the kit to inject white lead paste via a grease gun - the question is how far up or down the bolt do a drill my hole from the side of the hull (I presume this is the way to go)?
 
Inject about half-way up!
Pencil the 'must-do' list with other c/line bolts. Do the easy ones first,and that will give you an idea how hard/easy it is to get them out, and their condition.
When you want to move a sleeper you can jack the boat up until its clear by a few mm, then put in another block close too. Wedge it up and remove the original block. As you let the boat down free off the shores. Another person helps doing this.
 
Had a boatbuilder look at it and he suggested leaving it for the season - 4 litres a week is good for any boat. Then he suggests dropping the bolts over the winter and getting the yard to leave it in slings over the weekend. He says the there is a strong chance the bolts can break (being only 1/2 inch) making a right mess of things and damage the oak deadwood considerably. Any suggestions on the tried and tested method of bolt removal through the deadwood?
 
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