Traveling without a dinghy

Nomad Willy · Jun 12, 2015

Marin it only takes a few minutes to install a hull bottom drain plug. Readily availible at marine hardware stores. I put one in the yellow dink ... a propper bronze fitting.

Steve I was wondering about the drain on your Dink tilted up like that.

Janice,
Your minimalist ways are really very interesting. When you made your first post on TF did you imagine soon there would be hundreds of guys hang'in on your every word? There are you know.

janice142 · Jun 12, 2015

manyboats said:
Your minimalist ways are really very interesting. When you made your first post on TF did you imagine soon there would be hundreds of guys hang'in on your every word? There are you know.

Too funny. And I don't believe a word of it.

Y'all are just right nice folks. And believe me, I'm not an expert. If you don't believe that, see the Tractor thread. :facepalm:

I wish I remembered more... Daddy was the smart one. I'm still learning.

But thank you nonetheless.

Marin · Jun 12, 2015

Panope said:
Marin, Unlike their motorized (planing type) brethren, I believe that most rowing dinghys do not have drain plugs because their transoms are well above the lowest point of the boat.

Our fiberglass Montgomery rowing/sailing dinghy (first shot is ours, second shot is a factory shot) has two drain holes in the keel, one aft of the middle seat and one forward of it, each one with a metal plug that screws in to close the hole. So any water that gets into the boat drains right out when it's in its cradle. I assumed this was a standard feature in this type of dinghy, but perhaps Montgomery was a cut above the rest.

(Actually, I've been told that it is.)

PS-- Ours has a dagger board as opposed to a leeboard.

caltexflanc · Jun 12, 2015

One thing I like about our Whaler is that it is self bailing, in that there is a drain in the center where the cathedral hull "peaks". So when it is in the water, say tied off to the swim platform, it can self drain. And also that plug is much easier to access than the transom plug when it is in the cradle. It is right at the foot of the driver, so you get reminded real quick when you forget about putting it back in before getting on board, as the extra weight of a heavy person will cause some water to bubble up when you step in.

We have found this a very nice, often used feature. Among other things, I can wash and scrub out the boat while it's in the water.

hmason · Jun 12, 2015

That's interesting as our Whaler has a transom drain plug and a drain plug in the bow area. I'm not sure if it would self drain if I left a plug out but I could try. My current practice is to put it in it's cradle if we are not using it. I remove the transom plug and wrap it in the cord of the davit control so I can't forget to reinstall it when I launch it again.

Once I left it in the water overnight and we had a rainstorm. She accumulated a lot of water, so much that if I climbed in on the transom end, the transom nearly went under water. I used a hand bilge pump to bail her out. I will try pulling the plug to see if she will self bail. I'll use a hose to put water in and see what happens. She has a 25 hp 4-stroke so the transom bears quite a bit of weight. Howard

RNL · Jun 12, 2015

I towed a 13' and now a 15' whaler behind me. I've tried to see if she would "equalize" and stay afloat with the plug out at the dock. I have a 50hp yamaha on it. I am certain, based on my observation, she would sink by the stern left unbailed. The bow might be bobbing at the surface in the end but the engine would be 15' down. I keep a small bilge pump in her and have had no problems

hmason · Jun 12, 2015

Well that was my concern. At least my engine would only be 11' down.

caltexflanc · Jun 12, 2015

On my Whaler, a 2005 130 Sport the only plug I pull when it is in the water is the one in the middle. And to repeat, that is with no one in it. It tows like a dream BTW, including in pretty nasty conditions.

RNL · Jun 12, 2015

The whalers I've had and do have are the older ones. 1987 - my 15' only has the drain in the aft bilge and then one in the forward anchor well and only serves to drain the well. Mine tows great too but I don't trust the self bailing to cover me offshore in the older model I have , so I engage a fixed small automatic bilge pump , just in case. As long as I'm moving forward the water seems to empty OK. At the dock, with the plug out I've had to abort the observation of flotation aft when the water was too close to top of transom. I had to stand on the bow to balance the weight and bail with a bucket to make it safe enough for me to go aft and put the plug in w/o my extra weight pushing her under. They are fun though!

BandB · Jun 12, 2015

janice142 said:
I would suggest that dinghy drains be equipped so that the water can be used for something else. It's fresh water, after all.

On Algae, I keep her scrupulously clean in the summer thunder-boomer weather. Her pump goes through a filter and then into the water tank. If I were larger (bigger boat) I'd have it pumped into a separate tank for other uses.

Aside: Algae is 7' long and a plain old fiberglass dink. To the seats is 50 gallons. Filled, she holds 100 gallons of water. That's a lot if you like showers as much as I do. Of course my hair is half-way down my back so washing the hair is important to my happiness quotient.

I'd tried to figure out a way to use a spigot of sorts with a hose fitting. Haven't quite moved that to the front burner. Yet.

Aside for Ready2Go: The tarp I have for my bow has a plastic thru-hull attached. Thus, when it rains, I can screw on a hose and fill the tank with all that water. Not sure if your set-up could do something similar but there you have it. An idea since you have nothing else to do.

Dinghy's have a lot of uses.

You could use a bilge pump. It could create a decent flow for a shower.

Panope · Jun 12, 2015

BandB said:
You could use a bilge pump. It could create a decent flow for a shower.

Or lift the dinghy high overhead, open the drain and shower directly underneath!

Steve

Traveling without a dinghy

Nomad Willy

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janice142

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Marin

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caltexflanc

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hmason

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RNL

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