water tank leak

[obenton]

we have a leak in the water tank of our Californian 45. Started as a small trickle. we can still can keep water for three or four days. It appears to be from the bottom which is out of site. One boat mechanic has recommended opening the top via the hatch at the foot of the cabin berth and spraying some type of sealant and or taking out the washer, creating a hatch and approaching it from the front of the tank.Has anyone dealt with this issue? OB

 

[Larry M]

Are the tanks fiberglass? A few KK42's fiberglass water tanks leaked. The reported fix was to determine where the leak was through the inspection port which are at the top at one end. The tanks are long and not very deep. Then go through the floor over the leak by removing the teak parquet and cutting the plywood subfloor to expose the top of the tank. Then cut an access hole into the tank and repair from the inside with fiberglass or epoxy.

Do you know what the boat mechanic was suggesting to use as a sealant? If you go that route, I'd think you'd have to prep the inside of the tank so the sealant would stick.

Good luck with the project and please keep us posted.

 

[obenton]

water tank

yes it is fiberglass . and there is a hatch that exposes the tank. He mentioned cleaning the inside thoroughly and spraying the entire inside.We do not have parquet flooring - just plywood.Thanks

 

[Edelweiss]

Did you follow this thread about a 42" Californian water tank fix. If not, it might give you an idea what you're looking at. Start at about post #26 Capt Rob's water tank fix. He has some pictures which are self explanatory

http://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/s24/frp-water-tank-access-californian-42lrc-27978.html

 

[creekcrab]

Don't know about your tank but on my 1990 45 the fresh water tank is under the berth in the aft stateroom. I just took my bed out to gain access to the water level sending unit. Lots of screws but all in all not too bad to get it out. That gave me easy access to all sides of the water tank. Let me know if you have the same setup and I can give you a few tips to save time.
Mitchell

 

[obenton]

Sorry for the delay in responding. My water tank is under the aft bed but also under the main fuel tank. There is a hatch to access the top of the tank but it is small

 

[creekcrab]

The tank setup is opposite on our 45 with the water tank on top. Our tank is metal instead of fiberglass. I am not sure how difficult it will be to remove the top tank to get access to the bottom tank. Best of luck and let us know how you solve the problem.

 

[obenton]

finally getting around to the leaky water tank. Only access is a one foot square hatch in the aft cabin floor. The main fuel tank lies on top of the water tank under the bed but the tank extends another four feet forward. I'm thinking about putting in a bladder rather than taking out the floor. Anyone ever do this?

 

[Tellico Bob]

A friend of mine with a Marine Trader 50 Pilot House did this and it has worked out fine. In his case he had a metal tank with baffles that had to be removed. If your tank is the same as I have on my 1986 48 MY it is fiber glass and my be repairable. I have an access point at the foot of the bed and also the end of the tank from an access point in the middle stateroom in your case the ER?
Good luck with your repairs.

 

[obenton]

finally getting around to the leak. My mechanic feels we can cut a hatch in the top of the tank then pour in epoxy to seal the leak. Unfortunately the only exposure is a one ft. by one ft.hatch thru the aft cabin floor. I had a waste tank leak as well which was solved by sealing the bottom and placing a pick up tube from the top of the tank.Not sure if that would work in this case since the access is four feet from the front of the tank. I would like not to tear up the floor if possible. Has anyone approached the problem in this fashion.OB

 

[obenton]

finally decided the water tank could not be repaired in situ without major demolition. We cut the closet door to the washer dryer space and took the washer out and broke it down. It must have been original since there was no way to get it out without cutting some wood. We found the hatch under the washer that gave access to the forward two feet of the water tank.Unfortunately the leak seemed to be further aft and I was unwilling to tear up the aft cabin floor and take out the 200gal diesel tank under the aft bed. Our new tank will hold about 70 gal. of H2O.

 

[Capt Rob]

Latest update on my water tank leak. After patching the long crack as I described previously about a year ago I still had a small leak which would decrease as the water was used.
I was living with that and then I got brave and filled the tank full. Discovered how well my forward bilge pump worked as it was pumping a two inch stream of fresh water as the tank got full! Major leak. I was able to hook the dock water directly to the water system which was fine at the dock but as I have fresh water toilets means no flushing at sea, effectively turning the boat into a dock queen and I can’t have a boat like that!
Time to cut out the passage-way floor to access the whole tank. After removing the floor we cut the top completely open on the tank. All of the bottom corners and edges were broken except where we glassed it back together. Main problem is there was no support under the bottom of the tank and many years of pounding by 200 gallons of water found the weak point.
I am currently having stainless tanks fabricated and repaired the fiberglass tank to cradle the new tanks. Still a work in progress but the big fish that are hungrily waiting for me to feed them will just have to wait...

 

[obenton]

we finally have water. Took out the washer dryer and put in a 75 gallon plastic tank. Not a lot of water but we rarely stay out more than two days and our heads draw from the lake.Showers have to be quick.OB

 

[Capt Rob]

Hi everybody, I just wanted to show off the completed water tank leak repair.