www.iFourWinns.com

I recently put my 2002 Vista 268 back into the water after a long winter. Yesterday I noticed water pooling in the forward bilge area. I don't believe it is sea water and I'm inclined to think that the water is seeping in from one of the water tanks. I have yet to fill the fresh water tank, and the bilge water is clear. If the water was from the fresh water, then it would have a pink color to it, due to the presence of the anti-freeze that was used. Would water from the waste tanks seep into the forward bilge if there was a leak present?

Thanks,

Dana

Don't know the answer to that one. Could it be water from your anchor locker possibly? Is it alot of water ? I wouldn't think the waste tanks would cause the condition you mention.

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One of 4 Previous (Sold) Boats:
2000 Four Winns 268 Vista

Current Boat: 2004 Chaparral 235 ssi cuddy

Could it possibly be coming from the shower sump that's right next to it? I would think that you would "know" if it was coming from the holding tank.

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2000 Vista 268

As the water in the bilge has defintely subsided my next move is to fill the fresh water tank. After that I'll run water through to the waste water tank and wait to see what happens. If nothing happens, I'll run the head, hopefully nothing will happen after that. At least I should have a better idea if there is a leak and where it might be coming from.

danam, I had a very similar situation when sea trialing our 328. Although these are different boats, it may be the same cause. As it turned out, there was no problem with the boat, rather it was the winterization work that had been done. The water pump is in the galley and they had disconnected the water line and used air pressure to blow out the lines. The water drained in the bilge and sat there all winter. In addition, when it was dewinterized they forget to reconnect this hose and more water was pumped into the bilge until they realized the mistake. Once everything was corrected, they pumped as much out as possible but that still left quite a bit in the bilge area.

What worked best for getting rid of the water was to get on a slow plane so the water migrates to the pump and turn on the fwd bilge pump. Get all you can that way and mop the rest with a sponge and bucket or if there isn't a lot, let it evap.

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2014 Vista V435
2011 Glastron GT180
2013 Sea Doo RXT-260

My original thought was that some sort of a mistake was made during the winterization process. I'm hoping that you are correct and that a hose is loose and not something worse. I've contact the marina where the boat was winterized, I'm hoping he'll get to look at it sooner rather than later.