[C320-list] Reefer drain to sump and Dry Bunk...

[Jeffrey Hare]

Well, 

  One reason think of humidity is that the aft cabin bed was made up during
the whole trip, and the bedding wasn't even the slightest bit damp on top or
around the edges.

Since I was checking the engine and stuff before the trip, I had the
cushions out while doing that and they were damp when I pulled them out, but
dry before the trip started.

I sealed the cover when I put it back up with A LOT of silicone and it isn't
likely to be leaking inside the aft cabin.  That was my reason for sealing
it so well after installing my nav equipment.  I also noticed that some of
the settee cushions were damp on the underside as well after this bout of
humidity.

All that said, I'll give it another peek, because all that dampness has to
be coming from somewhere. I checked the water tank after I filled it and it
wasn't leaking around the cap.

As for the temps, we've been having some VERY humid weather here, and the
water outside the hull is quite cool, so maybe it's evaporating up through
the wooden covers and being stopped by the plastic on the bottom of the
cusions?

Also, the fridge isn't as well insulated as it should be in the aft cabin,
so unless we leave a couple of plastic bottles to keep the bedding away from
that wall when we're away from the boat, the cushion and covers gets wet
from condensation off the fridge wall.


Anyway, I have my suspicions (like you) that maybe it comes from elsewhere.

-Jeff

-----Original Message-----
From: Warren Updike [mailto:wupdike at hotmail.com] 
Sent: Wednesday, August 09, 2006 7:26 PM
To: Catalina 320 Mail List
Subject: Re: [C320-list] Reefer drain to sump and Dry Bunk...

Jeff, are you sure this is just condensation?  What conditions exist on your
boat to cause such condensation?

When I found my matress wet, I realized it was coming from the steering
pedistal cover in the aft cabin.  Based on what someone on this list said, I
removed the cover to see that the opening cut in the bulkhead was about one
inch from the bottom of the cover so that about an inch of water could
accumulate.  If the screws are not tight or the seal is not, it will slowly
drain into the sleeping area and run under the mattresses.  I drilled holes
in the bulkhead along the inside bottom line of the cover.  Then, I put a
thin coat of silicone grease on the seal, and screwed it back in.  One screw
was not tight, and I had to use an over-sized screw.  That did stop the
leak.

That having been said, the various methods to ventilate under mattresses are
for a reason.  I would tend to think that condensation would need an air
temperature well below those of summer: perhaps below 50deg. F.

Warren & Pattie Updike
C320, #62, 1994, "Warr De Mar"
Frog Mortar Creek, Middle River
Chesapeake Bay