I wonder how this guy is gonna feel...pics
 

When he comes in and sees his boat sunk at the dock...

I took these tonight after I went to loosen my lines on my boat, due to the high water, at the Quayside Yacht club. I always thought you had to yank the boat right out for environmental reasons. This boat was just sitting there...no one around doing anything about it. Too bad....It looked like a nice boat...now totaled. Hmmmm.....

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e2...tmgb/sunk1.jpg

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e2...mgb/sunk22.jpg

:confused: No Dockmaster at Quayside Yacht Club that could have turned his bilge pump on before it got to this :confused:

Now theres a gentleman that wished he had tighten his docking lines a tad bit tighter after docking then there wouldn't be so much water inside.:)

have to ask
 

where are the pics? I cannot find them

The boat will be dried out and be fine after a fluid change, etc. That is the difference between a salt water and fresh water dunking. As noted, I can't believe an employee or friendly "neighbor' did not see it sitting lower and lower in the water.

Remember to keep your batteries on (or outside the shutoff circuit) for your bilge pump to operate. I check my pump yearly with a hose filling the bilge in my driveway to make sure the float switch is still working as well!

Maybe somebody did try the pump. Probably had a dead battery with all the rain we've had. I put a trickle charger on when I leave for the week. Still worry about it with all the rain. Lucky for me wife's relatives live near by and check things out. Also now checking the water level for my dock. I have in the past put boulders on the dock to hold it down and tie off the dock to land. I also have a vertical pipe in the ground(dock sits on shelf)and a bracket on the dock where it sits over the pipe. Helps stop it from moving.

Looks like they're starting to crank open the dam now.

Dave M

Are you kidding? If not they are listed right with thread #1 or the boat has comletely sunk under water.:laugh:

Help!
 

Honestly I do not see them in the post, and I really want to, I wonder if they are blocked, can anyone direct me to where they are in the photo post gallery?

It happened to me...
 

Several years ago, I went on an extended business trip and came back to find my boat at the bottom of the lake like this one. The battery died and it sank. I have to tell you it was an issue getting to float. I could easily get to the surface, but couldn't get the water out enough to have it float.

So I pulled it underwater to shore. Tied a rope around a tree and winched up on shore. After that I drained everything and fired it up. It ran like a top. It was nothing short of amazing.

notice the cover open at the helm?
 

To me that suggests that someone pulled back the canvas a little bit in an attempt to reach in and turn on the bilge pump. I have done that in the past when I noticed a boat on the adjacent dock was sitting a little low.

The battery probably quit before the rain did.

I couldn't look at them from my day job. So I cut/pasted the photographs' address directly into the web_address only to find that my employer blocks access to photobucket.com. I could view them from home, though. Perhaps we have the same employer.

I hope Lakesrider will forgive me but I "stole" his pictures and uploaded them as attachments for those that have photobucket blocked at work.

Are you sure it's sunk, I think it is one of them Go Fast Be Loud Boats with a huge engine in the back...:D

Nahhhhh
 

It is a bowrider. It's not a GFBL boat.

Most boats have one battery. I was told by a reliable mechanic that the battery of choice are usually a marine starter battery. They will not last long if the bilge pump is on continously. Lots of boat have debris in the bilge. Often he will find debris clogging the pump or holding the bilge switch open.

It is important that the bilge is clean. If you are leaving your boat in the water you should at least get a dual purpose marine battery. Get a smart charger that can 'desulfer' your battery at least every winter.

I was also told that those with dual batteries setup are also vulnerable. The automatic bilge pump switch is usually wired to one battery. There will always be juice to the bilge pump when the battery switch is off. If that battery is charged.

On the 'Higher end' boats. The bilge pump switch in the cockpit is usually connected to the battery switch. If the bilge pump is not working because it drained battery one, for instance, you can turn the battery switch to battery two and turn on the bilge switch. Something to think about when you see a boat listing because the bilge pump is not working.

Here's to Happy Boating! :cheers:

That will be a bad start to the day
 

I imagine a family walking down the dock carrying gear ready for a nice day on the lake, and stopping dead in their tracks. Hope they are able to dry it out.

its the cover
 

the canvas covers do what? keep out pineneedles?

I don't know what my cover is made out of, maybe vynal, but it is 28 yrs old and it does not let in a drop of water, even with the weather we have had lately. I always flip my battery switch to off when leaving, no pump on. I have two neighbors that always have dead batteries and they have canvas covers.

I feel bad for this guy, I heard spraying canvas with silicon helps, not sure:confused: like earlier posted it will probably start up once drained and dried out.

That boat didn't sink like a stone.......it gradually got lower and lower with each rain storm which makes me wonder why some good samaritan didn't bail him out,or at least notify someone.Any one of my neighbors would have helped out....we always look after each other when someone is away.

That marina looks pretty full. You would think that one good samaritan would have helped him out. In my marina we all keep an eye on each others boats. Last week I was worried about my lines as the lake level quickly increased. When I got there somebody had already re-tied them for me.

That said it may have happened fairly quickly, could have been a failure of a hose or something.

Sman unless you have outboards or outdrives without hoses and bellows (don't think those exist) you may want to reconsider your shutting the batts off.

Smart Charger
 

Broadhopper, you mention about a "smart charger". As mentioned above I use a trickle charger. Trouble is puts out a specified amount of current to charge the battery. It may not be enough time if it rains a lot. Is there such a "smart charger" that will crank up the current depending on the level the original battery is at. Also what do you mean by "desulfer".

You aways learn something new from this forum.

Dave M

I have an I/O...

If I understand you, your saying forget the rain, if you have a cracked bellows you would have a leak and it could fill up/sink.

Then my response to you would be, right, good point.

The bellows are new as of last yr, and I have been bone dry thus far, only other problem is I don't have an automatic bilge.

Maybe this guys problem wasn't the cover, thanks for pointing that out

Battery switch/bilge pump
 

If the battery switch is installed properly, the bilge pump will be powered regardless of the position of the switch, 1, 2, 1+2 or OFF.
When we took delivery of boats from the factory, this was the installation, and this is the way we installed them when we put them in aftermarket.
It allows the bilge pump to work but is the easy way to keep a random draw or switch left on from draining the battery.
Isn't Quayside right in front of Trexler's too? Between good samaritan neighbors and an employee @ the marina, a slowly-sinking boat should not have happened...

The "converter" in my RV keeps the battery at a constant voltage, like an alternator on an engine, so it is always fully charged. You can buy chargers that do the same, they will "float" the battery at a fixed voltage (14.4 volts is common) and have a "boost" feature to "desulfer" the battery. Marine versions are a little more waterproof than RV versions.

This link has a simple explaination of battery charging:
A Basic Guide to Understanding Lead-Acid Battery Charging and Maintenance Requirements.

Proof Positive that Trexler's is THE worst marina on the Lake

I don't know about a partial sinking like the one pictured, but submersion causes a lot of damage. Most boats sunk at the dock are totaled out. The oils and other fluids go all throughout the boat, not to mention the lake. Seats and vinyls are usually ruined, as is carpeting. There's rust and other considerations, not to mention the engine itself. To add insult to injury, there can be rather large EPA and other fines to pay.

Bone up on your insurance policies.

EPA fines
 

Does anyone know what the EPA fines for a sunken boat might be. My boat went down in the last storm but I had it out within 24 hrs.

Trexler's sold the docks in 1986.

Winnipesaukee is not considered a federal waterway so wouldn't any fine be imposed by the state rather than the EPA?

Not as bad as it looks.
 

I have delt with a few of these and the good news is that the mooring cover seems to be a good, tight one and the bow is up.

Jam a couple of garbage bags into the vent holes, put a decent pump into the boat (bottom of the bilge so that it doesn't suck oil) and she'll be afloat in ten minutes. Most of the oil will plate out on the boat's interior.

A competent marina will clean the oil (greased lightning, simple green, etc.) from the interior, drain and clean the fuel tank, and change the oil in the engine three times after short runs. She should be OK. You may have problems with electronics (starter, alternator, etc.) in the future but the boat should be fine.

Get a pro to raise it and a pro to check it out then count your blessings and have some fun.

Misty Blue.