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PostPosted: Sun Aug 07, 2022 9:25 am 
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Site Rank - Deck Hand

Joined: Wed Aug 03, 2022 2:11 am
Posts: 3
Two questions, from our 2nd time sailing with our new TI. The weather was somewhat heavy - 12-15knot wind, 1m waves - but with the water of Lake Neuchâtel at 25degC and the sun shining, it wasn't too uncomfortable. In fact is was great fun. :D As might be expected, the TI was often awash with water. What I didn't expect, at the end of the day, was the amount of water within the boat. We had had all the hatches firmly locked shut the whole 8hrs of sailing, and yet there was a good 5cm or so of water throughout the inside of the boat. First question is:

1. Is it normal to take on this much water?

Within the boat there are a bunch of foam blocks of various sizes. After our day's sailing, the blocks were shifted all over the interior of the boat. I understand (from the in-hatch sticker) that these blocks are there for buoyancy, but (my 2nd question):

2. Is there a correct position for each of these foam blocks? (If so, is a map available for them?)


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PostPosted: Sun Aug 07, 2022 10:17 am 
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Site Rank - Admiral

Joined: Wed Jun 24, 2015 6:38 pm
Posts: 199
Location: Pennsylvania - Philly Area
Wow 12-15 knots of wind on Lake Neuchâtel !

I worked for a few months a couple years back in Neuchâtel. The winds were always light. It was hard for me to get my kite up in the air.... but I did manage a few times... here at night at the Marina in Neuchâtel.
Image2022-08-07_01-01-10 by Jim Powers, on Flickr

Per your questions, the Hobie TI can take in water with waves over the bow.

The front hatch, even if firmly down with the bungies is known to leak water. If you had a full day out in the waves having a blast with your TI, I suspect a fair number of waves were coming over the bow. This is the most likely source of the water in the hull (assuming you have a new TI with no damage / cracks in the hull and all the hatches secured. Is this normal....unfortunately.... in the sea states that you described, yes. I was hoping Hobie would refresh the Hobie TI to fix this with a new design... but no luck so far.

So what do you do. You can search this forum for several mitigating actions to reduce the front hatch leaks (some work, some do not). I also recommend to carry a simple hand bilge pump that you can use to periodically pump out the water while under sail for longer runs.

As for the foam blocks.... I do not have a map of where they go. Wish I did. I picked up a used 2021 Hobie TI and the foam blocks are all over the place inside the hull.... not fully locked in position on my TI....

Enjoy your TI and the winds on Lake Neuchâtel!

_________________
Jim
Hobie TI 2022 - Offshore rig - Outboard - having fun!
Hobie TI 2021 - Offshore rig - Outboard - sold
Hobie TI 2016 - Offshore rig - Outboard - sold
Hobie Kona 2014
Hobie AI 2015 - sold
Hobie Rev 13 2014 - sold
Hobie Outback - 2008 - sold


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PostPosted: Sun Aug 07, 2022 11:26 am 
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Site Rank - Old Salt

Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2015 3:13 pm
Posts: 655
Jim is correct, the TI takes in water from the front hatch on days when the water splashes over it. This can amount to as much as 5-10 gallons or more, at least it did for me. For this reason, and for general safety, I installed a bilge pump on mine. That took care of the problem and now only a few drops trickle out of the drain after a day on the water.

I put a bilge pump on every boat I own that doesn't come with one, on my PWC I even have two. I feel every boat should have at least one.

So, your options are to live with the water intrusion, fix the front hatch, and/or install a bilge pump.

The foam will float the boat even if it becomes dislodged (as long as it doesn't pop out of an open hatch). I ended up securing my down because they shouldn't be floating freely inside. Ideally, you want an even distribution of the foam throughout the boat. That way, if it ever does become swamped, it will at least float flat when partially submerged.


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