Approach to bailer sealing

share hints, tips and experiences
Post Reply
slimtim
Posts: 57
Joined: Thu Nov 20, 2014 8:23 pm

Approach to bailer sealing

Post by slimtim »

Here's the situation:

My boat has two Andersen Super Mini bailers. They are a type that are installed from within the boat. Currently there is leaking and I can see that the wood is a little squashy (but not bad at all) around where the bailers are fitted. I'm not sure if I can get the bailers out as they seem to be bonded to the floor that was applied from the inside. What is obvious is that the filler that was applied around the bailer fitting on the outer side of the hull has given up the ghost and came away easily.

My plan is to remove all of the bolts and see whether the bailer will indeed come away from the hull. Then apply wood hardener and Ronseal high performance wood filler to create a strengthened mounting point. Then buy a new seal kit, reinstall and use either Sikaflex or the Ronseal wood filler to fill in around the bailer on the outer side of the hull.

If I can't get the bailer out then I'll harden the wood the best I can and then use the Ronseal wood filler or Silkaflex to fill the gaps on the outer side of the hull.

In both cases, I am going to try and replace the inner gasket.

If anyone can offer some advice, I'd be grateful.

Especially about whether the Ronseal wood filler is a suitable sealant for the area around the bailer which touches the water - I really like the Ronseal filler but will it bond to the metal OK and will it flex enough? (I think that one of the root cause issues is that the bailer is poorly located and can be easily trodden on, over time this has had a negative effect.

And also about the feasibility to replacing the inner gasket seal - there are a couple of online resources which suggest this should be easy enough (and Norfolk Marine have them for £1 each) so I'm tempted to give it a go.

Thank you in advance for any feedback.
User avatar
Ed
Site Admin
Posts: 3486
Joined: Wed Sep 01, 2004 10:11 pm
Location: Plymouth
Contact:

Re: Approach to bailer sealing

Post by Ed »

Regarding fixing the hole:

My feelings are that the best plan is to try and remove as much rotten wood as possible. Wood hardener can work, but only really hardens a small layer of external wood. Due to the whole point of bailers, they are at the bottom of the boat and are in an area of continual wetness, so any temp fix is likely to be shorter than you expect.

So, if it is soft, cut it out. Then stick in some new wood.... this sounds like more work, but normally takes no more time to do and lasts much longer. Worried about how to do it? Lots of help here. Stick it all together with epoxy and don't worry too much about what filler to use. epoxy/microballoons will work well, but so will car-filler.

So that's the hole.

Stopping the bloody bailer from leaking:

When they get old....they get bent and the rubber gets hard....so they leak.

Yup....you can buy the rubber seals, so all easy.....well....so so....problem now is taking the bailer apart and more importantly putting it back together again. This can often mean having to re-rivet, which is a bit of a pain as they are pretty strange rivets. Maybe someone else could tell you (and me) how best to re-build old anderson/elvestrom bailers?

good luck and have fun

Best wishes

eib
Ed Bremner
CVRDA


Jollyboat J3
Firefly F2942
IC GBR314 ex S51 - 1970 Slurp
MR 638 - Please come and take it away
Phelps Scull
Bathurst Whiff - looking for someone to love it
jules22
Posts: 90
Joined: Sat Jan 04, 2014 8:32 pm
Location: Gloucestershire

Re: Approach to bailer sealing

Post by jules22 »

The super mini is easy to do........ The club Cadet fleet are fitted with them and always need my attention :(

1. Prise the wire handle off the bailer.

2. Bend the stainless tag that stops the bailer passing straight through the mounting plate inwards.

3. Push the bailer down through plate and remove.

4. Remove old rubber seal from hull plate and clean the plate where the new seal will be stuck on.

5. Replace seal and reasemble unit.
slimtim
Posts: 57
Joined: Thu Nov 20, 2014 8:23 pm

Re: Approach to bailer sealing

Post by slimtim »

Thank you both for your replies. Progress is good as i seem to have caught the problem in time.

Jules i have sent you a PM with a specific question about the bailer seals.
Post Reply