www.iFourWinns.com

I've noticed that for the last two seasons on most trips everything in the ski locker ends up getting wet and the carpet soaked. I now use an absorbant cloth to plug the drain hole which captures most of it. We get water even when we are careful in and out of the boat. We don't ship in water either. Everything else checks out but haven't inspected the packing for the shaft. We have a half cooling system and that is all tight. We use the ski locker to store our day stuff (now in water proof bags). Just curious as to what the heck is going on. This is our first power boat and we are still on the learning curve. So, anybody have an idea?

The Liq

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2007 Four Winns Horizon 190 Season Four
Frontiersman 18.5' freighter canoe with sail rig
No fuel problems if you just float. Bugger that, I'm burning fuel this season.

As for the Admiral... A happy wife is a happy life.

There is no packing for the shaft with a stern drive, if you are getting water in the bilge, you want to have the bellows for the driveshaft inspected though, it can also come in through the gasket around the transom mount. However, we had a similar problem in my 88 200 Horizon, the problem was that the anchor locker drained under the bow sole right into the ski locker. The water would then run under the gas tank to the bilge. I had our bow cover re-done to cover the anchor locker and that took care of the problem.

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88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

I have found the same thing on mine... have not found the source either! I keep my life jackets in there, so is a pain in the a$$ to have to constantly dry them out after each day out.

Just one of those niggling things I guess.. Maybe this is just on the 190s...? Any other H190 guys out there have the same problem??

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Alec

2006 Horizon 190
VP 4.3GL/SX, Sunsport

Thank you for some clues. I will check the bellows for the drive shaft and the gasket around the transom mount. I guess that would be an in-water examination to see if it is seeping in? Not the weather for it here yet. I know it isn’t the anchor locker because we don’t deploy the anchor very often and we don’t leave the boat out overnight in the rain. The water isn’t a huge problem but after a full day on the lake it is a pain in the a$$ to pull the carpet and all the gear out each night let alone repacking the next day. It just seems to be really odd to have water in the bilge on a dry outing. I can see it happening on one of our rough water anal clenching days but not on a passive day. The other thing to note is the bilge pump is mounted so far away from the lowest point all the water that does collect sloshes around from stern to bow the whole trip. Again, not a big complaint for a whole day of fun but really, what is up with that?

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2007 Four Winns Horizon 190 Season Four
Frontiersman 18.5' freighter canoe with sail rig
No fuel problems if you just float. Bugger that, I'm burning fuel this season.

As for the Admiral... A happy wife is a happy life.

What I would do is to make sure all the water is out of the bilge before launching the boat. With the transom drain plug out, jack the front of the boat up as far as you can. Then after replacing the plug, back the boat down into the water with the engine compartment open and look carefully, let it sit if you can for a while. If you see no water that's good, but if you have a cooling system leak it is still possible to get water in the bilge that way. Start the engine and look carefully around all the cooling system connections and drain plugs, starting at the transom and working foward. If you still see no water, I know some late model FWs have a clamshell drain for the anchor locker on the lower bow area, in rough water I have read that water can come in that way too. Ours was a result of the bow cover not being made right and once I had it re-done that was the end of water in the ski locker problems.

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88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

You know, looking at my post count it is a sad reflection on the amount of times I am on this site. I get better information here than elsewhere so thanks for replying.

Well, we don’t have a clamshell drain for the anchor locker. The launch check is what I’ll do as right now there are no docks in place where I launch so we should be able to find some quiet time. The boat is already bone dry from winter storage. It would be mighty nice to find something that doesn’t require a mechanic.

I’m posting a new thread on using the mooring cover for rough water.

The Liq

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2007 Four Winns Horizon 190 Season Four
Frontiersman 18.5' freighter canoe with sail rig
No fuel problems if you just float. Bugger that, I'm burning fuel this season.

As for the Admiral... A happy wife is a happy life.

I agree with LouC, check for a leak, you should not have much water in the bilge, let alone the ski locker. As to the placement of the bilge pump, that's an issue to take kback to your dealer - I'd be upset if the bilge didn't kick on with as little as a quart of liquid in there. Plugging the drain hole from the ski locker to the bilge is not a good idea. Liquid must be allowed passage to the bilge to be pumped out. The water flowing into the the ski locker from the bilbge must be addressed another way, or damage to other less exposed or visible areas could result.

If your boat is out of warranty, then it's time to look at the bilge pump and float switch. Can you snap a pic or two and post them? I'd be curious to see how much water can be in the bilge before the pump kicks on, and how much is left when the pump kicks off.

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2007 Horizon 200
4.3L GXi/ SX 225 HP

Not sure how much water you're talking about but on these boats didn't the anchor locker have a secondary drain back through the ski locker to the bilge? I think I remember a few comments about the fuel tanks settling and blocking water so that it kept the ski lockers wet. If you sit with quite a bit of weight in the bow, the drain for the anchor actually goes under water and that might cause water to enter the boat and run back through the ski locker.

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"No Losses"

I have the same problem in my 2006 180H. I let the dealer know when I took it in for service and he said it was not intended to be a dry storage area but that he would check into it as they had to replace the exhaust bellows and trim gauge cable due to a hungry muskrat. I got the boat back and still have the same problem, I have used a marine grade caulking in spots where I thought it might leak but with no success. When I put the boat away last fall I was eyeing the horn suspiciously and wonder if there is any way water could be penetrating the hull there but I havent picked it up from storage for this year. Lets stay in touch and see if we can figure this out.

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Ottawa Dan
Ottawa Ontario
06 180 Horizon
"Never enough time"

That's why I like this forum. Freaking brilliant. What a dolt I am. The horn! Damn fine idea. I’m all over that come the first launch. KISS – Keep It Simple Stupid or is it SMS – Stupid Man Syndrome? Man, I’m getting older. No wonder the Admiral is more amused with me lately.

The Liq

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2007 Four Winns Horizon 190 Season Four
Frontiersman 18.5' freighter canoe with sail rig
No fuel problems if you just float. Bugger that, I'm burning fuel this season.

As for the Admiral... A happy wife is a happy life.

I bought a 92 Horizon 190 last year and experienced leaking all year long. At first I thought I
had it figured to be the gimbal bearing and was confident it would be gone with that and a new
bellows. However, that did not solve the leaking problem.
Seemed to only happen when the boat was docked and even in nice weather. When I was having it winterized for storage
I asked them to check everywhere for leaks.
They said they check everywhere around the transom and engine and found nothing. The manager said he has seen
where the thru hull transducer for the depth finder leaked on older boats and they will check that out when putting
it in this spring.
I will post their findings - and would love to hear from anyone who has had this issue.
Bill in Michigan

Welcome Bill!

Where are you from and where do you boat in Michigan?

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2001 Horizon 260 - 7.4 Volvo GSI DP

are you sure the transom of the boat is in good shape? a good family friend had a similar problem, it seemed the only way to diagnose was to sit and watch the bilge fill up slowly.

There could be pin holes/small gaps in the transom letting water in behind the drive.

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Rob

Present: 1999 Formula 280SS
Past: 1989 180 Horizon

http://www.robcamerondesign.com

I have noticed this in or h210. I was surprised a few times when the bildge kick on and pumped water out. I wondered if it was people getting in and out of the boat, but just seemed like it was too much. When I pulled the boat out last year it took a minute or two to drain out. I'll pay more attention to it this year.

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2008 H210:
- Two tone Navy Blue, Silver and Yellow
- 5.0GXi/SX 270hp
2006 Dodge Ram 3500 4x4 5.9 Laramie

We are in the Ann Arbor area and keep the boat on a chain of lakes but take it to Leelenau
and Holland areas frequently.

Appreciate everyone's comments on the leaking