water in the hull

[luckydog]

I just bought a 2004 Parker 21 Pilothouse for a winter boat. I love this boat but I have recently noticed what might be a big problem. I have had the boat about a month, (its in the water) and recently noticed the boat is riding bow low. There is no water what so ever in the aft bilge but I can see water in the drain in the cabin. I am kind of amazed that there is no inspection plate in the cabin to see down into the hull, and no way for this water to drain. I have had the boat out alot, but the water does not drain aft. Did they really build this boat with no where for the water to drain?
I would like to install an inspection port and probably a forward bilde pump to prevent water accumulation in this area. Has anyone ever done this. I did see some threads of owners with similar problems but no good pics as to where to cut the inspection plate. Any help would be great. Thanks.

 

[Brent]

I dont know the setup on your boat but mine has a limber (drain line) and it was blocked. I used 2 sections of chimney cleaning rods and to remove the blockage

 

[luckydog]

Thanks for the reply. Can you tell me more about this drain line. Where does it run from/to. Did you run the rod down the cockpit drain itself? This could be the case as I believe my boat sat idle for awhile before I bought it. Any help would be great. Thanks!

 

[SOUTHWINS]

i have a 2003 2120 it has a inspection plate right in the pilothouse and a pump

 

[grouperjim]

i suspect your 2120 is like my 2320. there is a piece of PVC (maybe 1-1.25" diameter) that runs from the anchor locker to the aft bilge. it is also plumbed to the drain hole in the deck in the cabin. the PVC drains water from the anchor locker and cabin directly to the aft bilge. you can use a mirror in the bilge to look forward and see the drain exit.

it is common to look in the cabin drain hole and see water in the PVC pipe. some water will lay in there unless you jack up the bow a few degrees. i have to jack mine up a little on the trailer or else i'll get mosquitos breeding in there under the cabin. lol

 

[Brent]

I thought I replied earlier but Jim explained it best. The drain needs to be free flowing and any blockage removed then clean it with Simple Green, bleach, etc, let it soak and flush. I removed the standing water with a hand pump and found the drain with a mirror. I didnt have any luck using a snake so I bought 2 sections chimney cleaning rods to clear the limber and still had some standing water until the bow was elevated.

Best

 

[luckydog]

Thanks to everyone for your replies. I am getting a much better understanding of how this system works.
Southwins, I am guessing your boat is put away for the winter, but if you could send me a picture of the location of your inspection plate, that would be a huge help.
Once again, thanks to everyone for your help with this.

 

[greatcir]

You can see a post of mine that shows how I have kept the hull of my 2007 2120 dry at:

viewtopic.php?f=8&t=9306

Scroll down to the photos.

Basically, I found water entering at the rope notch in the anchor locker hatch and draining through the weep hole in the bottom of the anchor locker into the hull. I sealed it with a wood plug I glued into the notch and painted it black. Next was the hole in floor inside my cabin into which I inserted a wire mesh screen to catch debris and then covered with a commercial outdoor carpet pad over the floor and this hole. The next places taking on water (when I washed the boat) were the two wire run holes in the aft port and starboard corners of the boat. On one I put a piece of large water pipe insulation around it and held it with clamps so it can be easy to remove. The other side (port) had no wires so I used a piece of PVC I painted black and just dropped it over the wire run flange. As I have added stuff to my boat I have run wires down the PVC pipe as it lifts off the flange since it is not attached. Lastly, I resealed the aft hatch in front of the engine and later bought a better hatch cover that was not weak and flexible and sealed it well. Obviously, I like a dry bilge...........Pete