How boats sink!

[Greg QS]

Hi all . I see a lot of you following my post on Quick Gyro. I was cleaning up and making some new labels for my fuel manifold when I moved a box of zincs and clamps.

AND

WTF! I barely bumped it. This is the genset line to the sea strainer. Just snapped off. Thank god I did it. Yes its a charged line. I put the T fittings in only 3 years ago for winterization purposes. I had it apart last year because I put in new water hoses. I am going to have to pull other stuff apart to check things out. Scary !

 

[Mako]

Jeez Greg, that's horrible.
The T-fitting looks like bronze, but is there a chance the screw in nipple was a poor-quality bronze or maybe even brass?

 

[psneeld]

Even bronze nipples can break because they are thin may break after only a couple years of 24/7 running A/C if the water contains a lot of silt or you intake is close to the bottom for much of the day. It's like, wet sanding the inside of the nipple 24/7/365.. if the AC doesn't run all the time it may take lo ger than a few years.

 

[Greg QS]

My feelings exactly.

Does anyone have a feelining about schedule 80 pvc for these parts. or maybe Marlon.

 

[luna]

Although the picture is not that clear, from this distance it looks like corrosion caused the failure, not erosion that you would expect from a water & sand slurry moving at high velocity.
I also wonder if the hose barb fitting was brass not bronze.

Is that a knurled female garden hose fitting on the adaptor in the near port of the T?

 

[Greg QS]

yes it is. A port in the t for winterizing. Never had an issue with the caps. I have them on all the small sea strainers. Been doing that for decades.

This was a short nipple. Most likely a brass part. The bronze nipples normally have an area for a wrench.

 

[guy with a boat]

yes it is. A port in the t for winterizing. Never had an issue with the caps. I have them on all the small sea strainers. Been doing that for decades.

This was a short nipple. Most likely a brass part. The bronze nipples normally have an area for a wrench.

The brass part was an oversight, correct? Just confirming you wouldn't intentionally use brass in a seawater line.

Glad you caught it in time.

 

[SIBERNUT]

Was it bonded? Bronze between hoses should be.

 

[luna]

The picture shows a failed fitting in a T. What went on the end of the failed fitting?

I also use Brass Garden Hose threaded caps on the Fresh Water Rinse connection port atop my strainer lids. The difference is that there is a Bronze valve that isolates the salt water from the brass cap 99.999% of the time. When the valve is actually open, the engine is at rest, the seacock is closed and there is fresh water running through it.
It's been there 18 years, is always dry when removed and shows no corrosion.

 

[lwarden]

A friend bought some of the flush kits from SBMAR and amazingly they had brass nipples between the cap and ball valve, so on the salt water side. He complained and ended up replacing them with Groco bonze ones. The SBMAR guys were unapologetic, surprising for a bunch of guys who are known for a high quality approach.

I also have brass fittings on the fresh water side of my flush setup.

 

[ofer]

Tony(SBMAR) and his crew have an attitude as soon as you question them. they think they know it all.

 

[Greg QS]

Yes it was bonded. Yes and oversite on my part. Though it was worth sharing, A simple mistake and it could have been tragic.

 

[twistedtree]

Part of the challenge is that a lot of parts are really hard to get in Bronze. Close nipples come to mind. Groco makes a few, but not nearly enough for typical needs. Luckily in your case, Groco probably offers a hose barb that will fit.

 

[Portage_Bay]

I'm taking your experience as a "heads up" to remain diligent in my through hull management. I'm anal about closing them before leaving the boat. Hopefully trouble will be spotted when closing or opening the valve I'll be continuing that practice. Some are damned hard to reach. But dealing with a sunken boat is even harder.

 

[HeadMistress]

There's one more thing that sinks boats...BOAT-US magazine published an article on it a few years ago: old hoses connected to an open below waterline thru-hull.

10 years is the average max working life of any hose because rubber and plastics dry out over time, making them hard, brittle and prone to cracking and splitting. I see posts on various sites and forums from people bragging about hoses that have been in use as long as 30 years. Not a disaster if one splits open while you're aboard and paying enough attention to hear it, but the most common reason why boats sink in their slips when no one is aboard.

--Peggie

 

[SIBERNUT]

Couple more things - ice maker water from shore. And , the sneaky shaft water that damn near got me a month ago

 

[Mako]

“the sneaky shaft water that damn near got me a month ago”

I wonder how many power and sail boats have been flooded due to old PSS dripless shaft seals, compared to the few drops per minute from poorly adjusted traditional packing glands.

 

[RT Firefly]

“the sneaky shaft water that damn near got me a month ago”

I wonder how many power and sail boats have been flooded due to old PSS dripless shaft seals, compared to the few drops per minute from poorly adjusted traditional packing glands.

Greetings,
Mr. m. But, but...the "dripless shaft seals" are new and improved.

 

[rslifkin]

Stuff like this is why I've become a big proponent of having enough bilge pump capacity (real capacity, not nominal ratings) to keep up with a failure of the largest underwater fitting. And high water alarms. That can be the difference between a sunken boat and having enough time to find out about a failure and do something about it, especially if nobody is on board when it happens.

Of course that's no substitute for monitoring condition of underwater fittings.

 

[psneeld]

Helped raise hundreds of boats during my assistance towing job.

Lots of things let water in, but one main cause they sink is insufficient battery/ bilge pump capacity.

It is ultimately less about water coming in than getting it out in a timely manner. Progressive flooding is a big enemy too.