Alumacraft boat owners?

[BoxMN]

To find leak, put boat trailer up on blocks/jackstands. then start the hose running into the boat, with a couple guys looking under the hull. You will find it, you might have to fill it up pretty good. That is how we found the leak from the "misplaced screw", ha!

Good luck guys, it stinks to have a leaker, but it can be any brand. We tightened rivots on neighbors Lund a couple years ago - his was caused by poor placement on trailer, with rollers not under transome properly.

[bassislife]

Well I took the boat out the other day for another 3 hours of break in. It was calm out and it did not seem to be leaking any water. I did not turn on the livewell because that will be the next test on the next outing.

However... I do notice that I need the boats nose almost 1 foot higher then the back to drain all the water out.

NOT a good design for draining as far as I'm concerned!!

[JimBuck]

Well I took the boat out the other day for another 3 hours of break in. It was calm out and it did not seem to be leaking any water. I did not turn on the livewell because that will be the next test on the next outing.

However... I do notice that I need the boats nose almost 1 foot higher then the back to drain all the water out.

NOT a good design for draining as far as I'm concerned!!

My boats the same way. I have a Sylvan and the stern is built much higher in the front than back by design. How long does it take to drain?

[TruthWalleyes]

87 Lunker, Stays dry!

[Fishin Dood]

91 Lunker V16...leaks like a siv.

Did the water test on dry land and its coming out of the weep holes in the bottom of the chines (i think that's the correct term for the ribs that run the length of the bottom of the boat)and from some rivets. Also noticed small stress cracks in the shell around a few rivets. I think this boat took a pounding before I became the owner...tried contacting Alumacraft a couple of years ago but nothing ever came of it. I guess that's what automatic bilge pumps are for.

[TruthWalleyes]

How do you strap your boats to the trailer? If you bring a strap over the top of the boat it puts stress on the rivets holding the back on...There are many things you can do to cause harm when strapping your boat down.

[GBPackerNut]

2006 Alumacraft Yukon , dry as far as I am concerned, less than a quart of water (so low that the bilge wont even pick it up.

But yeah, finding a leak can be tough, I had a Lund that we couldn't find the darn leak until one day we finally removed the floor, put the boat in the water and anchored it. finally found the spot in the middle of the floor, siliconed it up the best we could, and went on our way.

The idea of filling the boat from the inside sometimes only works when its a big leak. The stress on the hull is different from being in the water pressing against the bottom from the outside vs water on the inside stressing the hull outward.

Esoxmn, any updates?

How much water do you think is coming in? quart and hour? gallon an hour? gallon in 15 minutes?

Bassislife, I wouldn't worry about a quart or two in a day of fishing, that is normal in my book, all it takes is one good wave while backtrolling to get more than that. I usually take on a few gallons when backtrolling in windy conditions, but dont let it bother me too much.

Good luck on finding your leaks guys.

[NELS-BELLS]

My old Crestliner leaked a small amount when it sat overnight in the water. It ended up to be where the drain hose attaches to the drain of the livewell, because it was below the water line. I put a plug in the outlet, at the bottom of the transom and I never noticed a drop of water in the bottom of the boat again. Of course I had to pull the plug whenever I drained the livewell.

Sometimes those clamps aren't tight enough and other times the hose maybe had some water in it when it was stored over the winter and cracked the hose.

Nels

[BoxMN]

FYI - Fishing dood, those weep holes are for exactly what they are doing. It is not leaking from the inside the hull, just inside the keels - getting rid of the water from inside the keel.

[bolanfish]

I have a 2008 Alumacraft 185 Tournament Pro CS. We fish the river near Mobridge, SD and LOTW most of the time. It's been dry as a bone.

My previous boat was a 1995 Alumacraft Trophy 190 which also never leaked a drop.

[Fishin Dood]

Box- the only thing is that they leak when doing the leak test (putting water in the boat) after its been on dry land for a long time. So I'm guessing somewhere along the chines the rivets are leaking. There are too many rivets that i dont have access to to fix the leaks.

[BoxMN]

Box- the only thing is that they leak when doing the leak test (putting water in the boat) after its been on dry land for a long time. So I'm guessing somewhere along the chines the rivets are leaking. There are too many rivets that i dont have access to to fix the leaks.

ahhhhhh, okay, i gotcha. That does stink, as I know what you are saying about not having access to them, as a few simple raps with the rivet tool would be able to fix them. Drat...

[norma]

Have an 03 trophy. Couldn't find the leak, added red food coloring to the rear livewell and yellow to the front. Red came out the bilge! Problem was, the overflow tube uses a flange mount with an o ring to seal which doesn't work too good, the sidewalls of the livewell are kind of wavy and distorted from the overflow drain hose puling on it. To correct the problem, I unscrewed the retaining nut and added a liberal dose of silicone, tightned the nut and let dry. Problem never came back.

An easy way to check in the driveway is to fill your livewells with a garden hose. One other thing that might have happened, is improper winterization. I blow out the fill hoses with compressed air and pour RV antifreeze down the drains. Frozen water will burst a hose, when that happens, the boat usually takes on a lot of water.