Anchor Well

Arnold and I put a lot of work into the investigation of leaks from the anchor well into the sail lockers. We first removed all chains and rope then removed part of the upper level giving us full access to the lower level. The enclosed photo shows the bottom of the anchor well as we found it. That dark wedge below the plastic access hatch, just above the bottom of the well, and slightly to the right, is the end of the wood wedge that we drove in from inside in those huge seas in the Australian Bight. That wedge saved our cruise if not our bacon, and I will probably keep it as a souvenir.

Arnold tried to drive the wedge back through and it crumbled. Fortunately I was able to get a good hold of it from the inside and pulled it out.

That wedge went through a double bulkhead. The wedge sealed the inner section but not the outer (i.e. anchor well side) due to its taper. Also, the 12G screw that we used to plug the other hole sealed only the inner section. My theory was that this allowed water to pass into the thin cavity between the two bulkheads and work its way into the sail lockers.

Using and electric fan heater and blow drier we managed to dry the area off well enough to enable us to plug the holes with International 2-part general purpose epoxy filler. Then I did some patch-up work along the edges of the bulkhead where I had done the fiber glassing.

The next day we filled up the anchor well with water almost to the level of the level of the inspection hatch. The good news is that the port side locker which had given us so much grief in the Bight remained bone dry! However, we got some seepage on into the starboard locker. I was prepared to fiberglass the entire bottom of the anchor well but the we had rain threatening us and no matter how much I tried the area with the blow drier I kept getting seepage of water from the bulkhead back onto the bottom of the anchor well. It is a pity because the area was all set up for the fiber glass job.

Nevertheless I am satisfied with what we did. We have properly plugged up the two holes through the bulkhead, cut down on the leakage into the boat, and now I know exactly what has to be done - wherever we can find hot, dry weather and a day or two of free time.

Removing the upper level was difficult since I had used a lot of Sikaflex in an attempt to fix the section (in case of roll over) and direct water entering from the top to the upper drains. However, I replaced the upper section with no sealer so that we can easily get back into the area for the fiber glassing repairs. The panel fits so snugly that I will probably leave it like that forever, relying on the anchor well hatch (lashed with ropes) to keep the rodes in during a roll over.

From there it is one short step to ask why I still need the plastic inspection hatch between the V-berth area and the anchor well. It is a pain because it leaks and we must seal it with silicone sealant. I plan to one day remove that inspection hatch and permanently re-seal the bulkhead. If I get a jammed chain in the lower level I will access it by temporarily removing the upper level.

The other photo that sneaked into this entry is of us having lunch with friends in Wellington.