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mysterious water in the bow


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I seem to be getting water that shows up on the carpet in the bow when running at slow speeds for long periods of time. Anyone ever heard of such a thing?

All that I can think of is water is getting in from the front tie down????

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yikes...that's a bit spooky. The 3 ways that I know of (well, 4 if you include a hole in your hull) are H2O:

1) Splashing/spraying over the bow (assuming open bow). Spray can kick up a lot at slow speeds while driving into the wind.

2) Seeping through the bow-eye

3) seeping through the rubrail rivet holes

How much water are we talking about...a bit of dampness or soaking wet/pooled?

I'm sure others will chime in. Good luck.

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same here guys, boat went back to the dealer 5 times, they r&r the bow hook but that wasnt it. my water was coming from the engine bay from abnormal shaft drip and a badly installed shower.the dealer could not figure this out. the water would migrate up and around the bulkhead at the rear of the front storage compartment. now with the shaft adjusted properly and the heater hose fixed i have no more water problem....and i have never been back to that particular malibu dealer

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yikes...that's a bit spooky. The 3 ways that I know of (well, 4 if you include a hole in your hull) are H2O:

1) Splashing/spraying over the bow (assuming open bow). Spray can kick up a lot at slow speeds while driving into the wind.

2) Seeping through the bow-eye

3) seeping through the rubrail rivet holes

How much water are we talking about...a bit of dampness or soaking wet/pooled?

I'm sure others will chime in. Good luck.

Pools in the front corner of the bow. Does not happen all the time, just now and again. Been watching when this happens. Usually in rough water/when going slow. Bow-eye is tight. Will check the rubrail and the shaft drip. Thanks

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yikes...that's a bit spooky. The 3 ways that I know of (well, 4 if you include a hole in your hull) are H2O:

1) Splashing/spraying over the bow (assuming open bow). Spray can kick up a lot at slow speeds while driving into the wind.

2) Seeping through the bow-eye

3) seeping through the rubrail rivet holes

How much water are we talking about...a bit of dampness or soaking wet/pooled?

I'm sure others will chime in. Good luck.

Pools in the front corner of the bow. Does not happen all the time, just now and again. Been watching when this happens. Usually in rough water/when going slow. Bow-eye is tight. Will check the rubrail and the shaft drip. Thanks

Ya...if it's pooling, i doubt its spray/splash over the bow. Looks like you can narrow it down to rubrail, excess h2o from drip, or balast leak (if you have front ballast).

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The water is not a pool but is much more excessive than spray over the bow.

My boat does not have front ballast, only mid and rear. I drained the mid tank to be sure that was not it and the water still appeared.

Anyone know of a good way to tell if the font hook or the rubrail rivets are the culprits?

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The water is not a pool but is much more excessive than spray over the bow.

My boat does not have front ballast, only mid and rear. I drained the mid tank to be sure that was not it and the water still appeared.

Anyone know of a good way to tell if the font hook or the rubrail rivets are the culprits?

I have a 2005 Vride, are you talking about water underneath the smallest front bow cushion(shaped like a upsidedown heart). I keep my anchor in that little locker. For water to be coming from the rubrail right at the nose you would have had to be almost chilly dipping the nose. If the water is only in that small front storage locker and not down the side lockers I doubt it is your rubrail. It could be your bow tow eye. Try tightening the two nuts if they were loose that could be your culprit. One other thing to think about is how you store your boat if the cover gets wet (dew, rain) the water runs off the cover and off the sides ,but at the bow the water runs to the bow and hits the bow light and flows back towards flat spot behind the bow light and then once the cover is saturated down into the boat right on the front bow cushion and into that nose storage locker. If the cover never gets wet,then its wet passengers sitting or wet feet entering the boat from the bow. Most water is designed to flow to the stern if its just sitting in this spot I doubt its leaking through the boat from the outside in. It's got to be coming from somewhere not specific to the boat. (bow tow eye excluded)
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The water is not a pool but is much more excessive than spray over the bow.

My boat does not have front ballast, only mid and rear. I drained the mid tank to be sure that was not it and the water still appeared.

Anyone know of a good way to tell if the font hook or the rubrail rivets are the culprits?

I have a 2005 Vride, are you talking about water underneath the smallest front bow cushion(shaped like a upsidedown heart). I keep my anchor in that little locker. For water to be coming from the rubrail right at the nose you would have had to be almost chilly dipping the nose. If the water is only in that small front storage locker and not down the side lockers I doubt it is your rubrail. It could be your bow tow eye. Try tightening the two nuts if they were loose that could be your culprit. One other thing to think about is how you store your boat if the cover gets wet (dew, rain) the water runs off the cover and off the sides ,but at the bow the water runs to the bow and hits the bow light and flows back towards flat spot behind the bow light and then once the cover is saturated down into the boat right on the front bow cushion and into that nose storage locker. If the cover never gets wet,then its wet passengers sitting or wet feet entering the boat from the bow. Most water is designed to flow to the stern if its just sitting in this spot I doubt its leaking through the boat from the outside in. It's got to be coming from somewhere not specific to the boat. (bow tow eye excluded)

I forgot to tell you when troubleshooting this make sure your bilge is bone dry. Towel it out at the rear seat, open the hatch beside the driver and towel all water out if your bilge is still dry and you have water still in your front locker then the bow eye has no silicone behind that metal plate. It can be tight,but with no silicone it will still leak. ON the other hand if you have water especially a lot when you idle around all that water settles in the area right under the hatch by the driver. This is the lowest spot in the boat when at rest in the water. Everytime you stop the water runs forward until it hits that bow compartment in turn getting it all wet. When your underway the water flows back to the stern. I was amazed at how much water my Vride can hold in the bilge area before the bilge will go on,especially when the boat is at rest, because it is located back by the raw water pump. I now revise my diagnosis. Check your shaft packing, tighten the big nut clockwise if it is leaking more then a drop every 8-10 seconds. If it is leaking while the boat is just sitting in the water, not running ,there is your culprit. I went to Gore GFO dripless packing and there is almost no dripping even when we run it all day.
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