Discussions on everything about the J/30 Sailboat!
With your one stop source
The J/30 Marketplace
Join or Renew
Class Membership
Search

March
M T W T F S S
1 2 3
4 5 6 7 8 9 10
11 12 13 14 15 16 17
18 19 20 21 22 23 24
25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Today's Birthdays
No Birthdays
Newest Members
zharv, Corey, Suzie, SSA-BlueJ, Liam Kersch
1017 Registered Users
Crew Manager Boat Websites

Boat Website subscriptions with
Crew Scheduling & Notifications

Created by former J/30 Rhapsody owner

J/30 Social Network
Popular Topics(Views)
976,298 Dacron Main
162,662 Ananda's Refit
Forum Statistics
Forums28
Topics3,983
Posts19,061
Members1,018
Most Online238
Feb 9th, 2024
Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Page 1 of 2 1 2
Mast drainage #17208
03/26/17 10:27 PM
03/26/17 10:27 PM
Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 36
Bermuda
S
Sean Offline OP
Senior Member
Sean  Offline OP
Senior Member
S
Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 36
Bermuda
Hi All
I was able to scope the inside of my mast and discovered standing water. It appears that the drainage for the mast is blocked. Is there a way to access the underneath of the mast to unblock /clean this without having to yank the mast?

Cheers

Sean

West Marine Affiliate Program

The J/30 Class Association has partnered with West Marine and is now a member of the West Marine affiliate program. You can support the J/30 Class when you make your West Marine purchases online. The J/30 Class Association receives a percentage of sales from your purchases when you click through from our website. Click the logo above and you will be directed to the West Marine website with a cookie that identifies you as a J/30 affiliate. You can also use any discounts that you may be authorized.
Re: Mast drainage [Re: Sean] #17209
03/26/17 11:38 PM
03/26/17 11:38 PM
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 2,668
Portsmouth, RI
Rhapsody #348 Offline
Past J/30 Class President
Rhapsody #348  Offline
Past J/30 Class President
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 2,668
Portsmouth, RI
Unfortunately there is no access underneath. Drill a small hole (1/4 inch) in the mast about 1/2 inch above the mast base to drain it.

Re: Mast drainage [Re: Sean] #17210
03/27/17 06:59 AM
03/27/17 06:59 AM
Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 36
Bermuda
S
Sean Offline OP
Senior Member
Sean  Offline OP
Senior Member
S
Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 36
Bermuda
Thanks Bill. Always good to have a resident expert on the forums!

Re: Mast drainage [Re: Sean] #17211
03/27/17 10:34 AM
03/27/17 10:34 AM
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 393
Rockwood, MI, USA
Russ Atkinson Offline
Senior Member
Russ Atkinson  Offline
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 393
Rockwood, MI, USA
I have a vacuum pump attached to a 1 gallon can that is intended for extracting oil from the crank. During boating season I use it for extracting residual water from the bilge, engine compartment, etc. If you have a wire exit hole near the base of your mast, you could run the small vacuum pump tube into the mast to pull the water out

Re: Mast drainage [Re: Sean] #17212
03/27/17 11:53 AM
03/27/17 11:53 AM
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 218
Scappoose, OR
C
Coastie Offline
Senior Member
Coastie  Offline
Senior Member
C
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 218
Scappoose, OR
If the mast is unstepped as in my case, can I drill a small hole all the way through the cast base vertically and to let water move to the bilge? Or similarly a horizontal hole through the base casting that could be mated with a similar size hole in the base of the mast?

I just sanded the entire sole in front of the bulkhead yesterday and any steps I can take now to keep water off this area in the future would be a good thing. I see a drain hole between the mast base and the bulkhead, but it looks like water could just as easily drain forward onto the sole into a hole there, so I was thinking of adding a block in front of the base to effectively dam this water coming off the mast and forcing it to drain through the hole at the rear.

The image I've attached is older, but it shows what I'm thinking about. There is a hole through the sole just in front of the mast base. What I would want to do is confine that water from the mast to the fiberglass area next to the base by sealing the edge of the teak and placing a block in front of the mast.

After sanding all of this down to bare wood yesterday I was pleasantly surprised that about 90% of the sole in this area is OK. The problem areas are just some rotted Holly that I think I can figure out how to replace. I'm quite sure that water coming off the mast is responsible for this rot.


[Linked Image]

Attached Files
Mast Base Drain.jpg [129.73 KBytes] - (384 downloads)
Last edited by Coastie; 03/27/17 11:53 AM.

Dave Graf
Re: Mast drainage [Re: Coastie] #17213
03/27/17 03:56 PM
03/27/17 03:56 PM
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 393
Rockwood, MI, USA
Russ Atkinson Offline
Senior Member
Russ Atkinson  Offline
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 393
Rockwood, MI, USA
Don't know why you couldn't drill thru the mast plate. You might want to check what's below it as I suspect it might be solid. My boat has a drain hole in the teak/fiberglass directly in front of the mast (about where your arrow is, though at the bottom of the raised step where the mast plate is located). The hole is large enough that I can stick a tooth brush in it to unclog debris. In your photo, the hole behind the mast near the bulkhead was possibly put there for running wires and not necessarily intended as a drain hole. I cannot image that it functions well as a drain
Question, what is the purpose of the turnbuckle shown in your picture?

Re: Mast drainage [Re: Sean] #17214
03/27/17 04:40 PM
03/27/17 04:40 PM
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 218
Scappoose, OR
C
Coastie Offline
Senior Member
Coastie  Offline
Senior Member
C
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 218
Scappoose, OR
My boat also has the drain hole in the sole forward of the mast apparently similar to yours. It seems to me that getting the water out of the mast and as directly as possible to the bilge would be an advantage. So drilling though the casting might be the best. The damage to the sole in this forward area of the sole happens on both sides of that drain hole. I know there are multiple other sources of water here besides the mast, but that is likely a very big contributor. Once I repair the Holly I think I will use some CPES on this area in an effort to slow down the decay.

As to the turnbuckle I will defer to anyone else that may have an idea about that. I can only say it was there when I bought the boat.


Dave Graf
Re: Mast drainage [Re: Sean] #17215
03/27/17 05:36 PM
03/27/17 05:36 PM
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 2,668
Portsmouth, RI
Rhapsody #348 Offline
Past J/30 Class President
Rhapsody #348  Offline
Past J/30 Class President
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 2,668
Portsmouth, RI
Some boats may have been modified with a mast hold down required for some off-shore certifications to restrain the mast.

Re: Mast drainage [Re: Sean] #17216
03/27/17 06:11 PM
03/27/17 06:11 PM
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 63
Westerly, RI
Chris623 Offline
Senior Member
Chris623  Offline
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 63
Westerly, RI
Drilling straight down through the mast step will not work as it is solid FRP and aluminum. If the step has no debris in it, it should drain aft through the low area in the step. See the link below for a picture. It would be in this area where it would be best to drill a small hole in the aft section of the mast. A right angle adapter and a short bit would work with the mast up.

Re: mast bolted to step? [Re: Conundrum]

-Chris

Re: Mast drainage [Re: Sean] #17217
03/27/17 06:47 PM
03/27/17 06:47 PM
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 218
Scappoose, OR
C
Coastie Offline
Senior Member
Coastie  Offline
Senior Member
C
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 218
Scappoose, OR
Oh boy, now I get to clean up the mast step and make it all pretty too? Checking the screws and their condition makes sense to do now too. My step is really nasty looking now, but if it can be removed then I can drill it all pretty in the drill press and clean it and paint it and then reinstall it. I will also check to see if that small hole to the rear of the mast could be enlarged to act as a better drain.

I don't recall seeing the adjustment slots, is that what they were talking about in the Conundrum thread? I can only be thinking about getting my boat back to work, the concept of making go fast is for a whole other day.


Dave Graf
Page 1 of 2 1 2

Moderated by  David Erwin 

Who's Online Now
0 registered members (), 34 guests, and 1 spider.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Photos
2023 Clipper Cup - Conundrum USA32866
Windy Wednesday night
Hurricane Gulch San Pedro, CA
Truckin'
Endeavour (246) Sailing in Prince Edward Island
Recent Posts
Hull # 229 Falcon parts for sale
by Sunrise. 03/16/24 08:26 PM
Adjusting Throttle & Transmission Controls
by Rhapsody #348. 03/10/24 08:25 AM
Engine Cover Steps
by David Erwin. 03/10/24 01:35 AM
Cushions
by Corey. 02/25/24 10:02 PM
Sold: #2 Dacron Jib
by Brent. 02/17/24 05:12 PM
J/30 Survey
by David Erwin. 02/16/24 06:43 PM
looking for j30 center table
by wilybilds. 02/16/24 04:49 PM
1984 J/30 - Hull #488 Shamrock
by Bruce Irvin. 01/30/24 12:12 AM
Cabin Table Wanted
by B Davis. 01/20/24 11:03 PM
Fuel Fill O Ring
by watchoverya. 01/11/24 05:35 PM
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.6.1.1