TI should be faster with the water on the outside now

I just recently was cleaning up the TI and noticed that in the stern there was a 'ring' around the inside, at a level that would have made the water that produced it about four inches deep. Of course, the drain plug was gone. In thinking back, the last time I remember loosening it was several trips ago when I flushed out the inside of the boat. I guess I must have left it draining, with the plug hanging on those little plastic fingers that are supposed to keep it in.

Well, with the nearest Hobie dealer two nations to the north of here, I had to find a substitute. Hardware store had these neat, stainless 3/8" x 16 gnurled allen head bolts that fit perfectly. I bought a little O-ring that fit snugly in the right spot Putting it in the boat, I was thinking now I'll need to carry an allen wrench in the little tool baggie....but then realized....no, I don't. For my situation, putting that plug in and out to flush out the boat was a pain, but I always did it at home at the end of the trip. I got lots of allen wrenches at home. I don't need to carry one.

In further thinking about it, I realized that every time I took that plug out, I ended up having to use compressed air to blow the sand out of the threads in the hull fitting. Then I had to lube the plastic plug to get it back in.

I've realized that if I needed to drain the boat while out with it somewhere, it would be a whole lot faster to just rip the top off a beer can and use that to bail it. Bailing is a whole lot faster than using the drain hole. I can't really see me needing that drain plug open at all when sailing.

So I am not going to replace it with another plastic plug, but keep this nice shiny stainless one in. I can tell at a glance it's in place. If I lose this one, I am going to replace it with another one but screw the next one in from the inside. I've also been thinking of ways to drill it out and install some kind of check valve flap or something so that it will drain one way, and can stay in all the time.

I am thinking this boat is going to sail a lot better with the several gallons of water no longer in the hull.

There. I feel better.

Now, if I could just get this danged GoPro camera to go longer than fifteen minutes without fogging up....

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Island life in the Devil's Triangle:
http://2gringos.blogspot.com/

For sure having that drain plug is better than having the hull full of water.

Could also carry a manual bilge pump. Get one that you can attach a small piece of tubing to reach back into the tight spots. With that you should be able to get 95% of the water out of the hull if you had too.

Oh and get a real big sponge for getting that last 5% of water out.

With those 2 items, I doubt you will need to use the drain plug very often.

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I'd rather be sailing,
Mark.

Does anyone know where the absolute lowest point on this boat is while level (in calm water with no sailing or wind)?

Thinking about a permanent line to attach to a manual pump. Just an idea

Depends on trim, where the weight is.

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Hobie Island Sailing since 2006

I bought a little $10 manual pump with a long hose, it's now lashed to my aka with tie wraps. I use it to keep the seat areas dry and can easily pop the hose into the hatch in front of either seat if there's ever any water there. I've never experienced more than a few drops, guess I'm not pushing it into enough weather yet.

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It's a good Life, Let's sail!

iHop

Dune TI - 6/4/2011
Camas, WA

I do not understand why there should be ANY significant water in the boat??? The law of nature is that water belongs on the outside of the hull.

I use to get a lot of water when the boat was new. Then I installed a watertight bulkhead behind the mast just to find out that most of the water came from the front hatch. That took months to figure out. The bungee screw plug cups were damages. I still get a little water. If I plan on a long trip I duct tape over the hatch slot. I rough seas the bow flexes. Water accumulates in the hatch slot and leaks in. For the steering cables I used silicone grease packed in the tube. The plastic fittings are sealed in place. I do get some water if I open the round hatches. For that I keep a large sponge under the hatch. The inside does get damp, but never wet...

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Paul
DogsLife
2011 Adventure Island


http://dogslifeadventures.blogspot.com/

Our bow hatch gets underwater from time to time.
Yesterday, for the first time since we got the TI, we decided it was too windy to take it out. We had winds staying above 20 kts with gusts every few minutes to 26. And late aafternoon in a squall it hit 36 knots. So I am setting a rule for our TI. We won't take it out in more than 20 knots. It's a great little boat, but lets face it, it's a kayak with a lot of lightweight fittings screwed into a plastic hull. I think over 20 knots of wind is probably just too much stress for me to expect the boat to last very long.

And ours gets water in it every trip. We get soaked to the skin, every trip. The entire top of the boat gets wet, every trip. Hundreds of times. Our butts stay soaked. We wouldn't bother to pump the water out of the seats...cause three seconds later there's going to be another wave in there with us. We wouldn't have it any other way. If the wind is below 10 knots, we don't take the TI, we take the skiff with a 90 horse Suzuki.

All boats leak. Every fitting is a potential leak. Every screw hole. A grain of sand in a hatch seal, etc.

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Island life in the Devil's Triangle:
http://2gringos.blogspot.com/

I've always carried a sponge in my Adventure Island. I loosened the drain plugs a few times when the boat was new, and each time I'd have to be extra cautious to keep tiny grains of sand out. I always imagined that each time I screwed that plastic plug in and out of the plastic boat, that it would carve a nice little groove into the boat and ruin the seal over time. Since the boat was a week or so old, I haven't touched the drain plugs. When I'm done a sail, I put the boat on the cart, the water drains to the front, and I use the sponge in the front hatch to sponge out the tiny bit of water that gets in. It's simple, and effective, and it keeps me from potentially ruining a seal on a hole in the boat that sits below the waterline.

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well, it's not that big a deal to replace that plastic plug with a stainless bolt with an O-ring on it. The threads on the fitting are soft. I think maybe they're brass. Surely not plastic, but if you have to replace that plug you Should be good to go, and a whole lot tougher than the original.

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Island life in the Devil's Triangle:
http://2gringos.blogspot.com/