Bass Boats And Rain Leaking Into Storage Areas

[zildjian]

hey guys,

i just bought my first boat, which is a bass tracker 190 tx and i got caught in the rain for the first time out on the water. i didnt realize until the next day, but all my storage spaces were soaked on the inside! even the storage areas underneath my seats. the carpets are drenched. and for my big storage areas that have locks on them that hold my rods, and tackle have a lip around each door that has a drain if any rain water gets on deck, which i thought would be fine because thats what it's there for. come to find out the next day each deck storage and seat storage ares were soaked!

i can't see how this is normal? has anyone ever had this problem? if so how do you fix it? i'm not even sure how the rain got in there. and its a brand new boat! lol

just sucks...

-zildjian

[Fishing Rhino]

In a heavy rain, some water will "leak" through the locking mechanism. Water will collect in the hollow area and gradually seep into the storage area because the shaft is not watertight. It may have a rubber gasket, but water can leak past that as well. Generally, the water should be confined to the area below that latch. When you have a heavy rain, the drain may not be able to drain away the water that runs into the "gutter" fast enough, and it may run over the gutter into the compartment.

Though it is a new boat, check the drain to make sure there is nothing restricting the flow of water. Most of those drains, like the one in the foot control recess are pretty small. Another thing to check is, does the lid block the drain when it is closed.

In any case, the best thing to do is remove everything from the compartments to let them dry, use a wet or dry vac and thoroughly vaccuum not only the compartments but the deck carpet as well. Any decent shop vaccuum should remove most of the water, leaving the carpet only slightly damp to the touch. It should be thoroughly dry with just a couple of hours in the sun, or within a day if under cover.

It's also a good idea to leave all the hatches open between trips, provided you have a secure place such as a garage, where you keep your boat. If closed, the edges of the covers will take "forever" to dry. The more air circulation, the better. Mildew thrives in closed areas. Even if your compartments are dry, chances are you will have some small amount of water in the bilge. That's all it takes for mildew to grow.

Be sure to open the drain plug, and have the trailer tongue high enough to ensure that all the water drains to the transom, leaving as little water as possible in the bilge.

[joefish]

_{If it's a new boat under warranty I would contact the dealer about this issue. I don't believe the compartments should be soaked, maybe damp but not wringing wet.}

[RyneB]

I had a Tracker Pro Crappie and it sat outside uncovered. It never got water in the compartments, and it wasnt sealed up too good. Im not saying you have a problem, but i have a 2000 Ranger and a 2002 Tracker and both have been in some heavy rains and the only time that water gets in the storage compartments is when i open them in a storm. If i dont open them, they stay bone dry.

[Long Mike]

I have a 2004 Tracker TV-18. I have only one compartment that I can count on to stay dry in a heavy rain or high "seas." Trackers of that vintage and earlier do not have drain channels around the hatch covers. So, after a wet day, I open all of the hatches and let them thoroughly dry out before putting the boat cover on.

[Wayne P.]

The 2009 Tracker PT 170 TX does not have any compartments that are waterproof or even water resistant. I keep stuff I want dry in plastic containers with lids.

[zildjian]

yeah i don't understand it. i just used the wet vac on the inside of all the storage units and underneath my seats. so aggravated. after work for the past two days i've been opening them all up and letting them air dry. today i put this silicone transparent caulk around the drain hole fitting thats in my drain lip that goes around each storage door. so no water if any was going under the fitting and leaking out into my storage. i took some pictures today while working on this. then i went to the hardware store and picked up some little containers that collects water and prevents mildew and mold to grow, which i noticed on my wooden ore and on my plastic baggies. i couldn't believe all of this in a matter of 2 days. sucks because i couldn't let my boat air dry overnight from the rain because it never stopped! until the next day in the afternoon then started raining again after i got home from work. everything looks pretty good after today. except im not sure what to do when it rains again while im on the water. my seats don't have a rain drain lip around them and they got soaked under neath the seats! i

'll put the pics up in 2 mins...

[zildjian]

and don't get me wrong, this was after a couple of days when the rain hit. and the spots that look dry under the seats arn't! they just arn't as soaked as the darker areas.

[hooah212002]

That is....unacceptable, IMO. Especially for a brand new boat!

[zildjian]

yeah i knew it was too good to be true.... all my lures that i had in cases where soaked. looked like i turned my water hose on and sprayed away in my storage areas. inside all my cases was humidity built up. everything was just damp. i didn't want all my crank bait hooks and others to rust up, so i quickly took them all out and gave them a good wipe down. and i took all my other cases of lures i bring with me out of my boat and only leave some little stuff in there now. all my soft plactic baits looked water logged i guess from the humidity inside the storage after 2 days of collecting. i managed to save most of them, and i have A LOT!

so now what do i do if my minor fix with the caulk wasn't this real issue and happens again? i have nothing to fix for the storage under my seats. if it rains again im screwed.

so what iam i supposed to do now, not fish my boat in the rain?! i don't think so! but reallythis is crap! my real issue is that i don't want mildew and mold to grow on my things in the storage area and carpet!

hate this.

[tnriverluver]

So glad I didn't buy that new Tracker TXW I was looking at!!!!! Dry storage should be just that. I have owned many many boats and never had storage compartments get wet like that even after fishing tournaments all day in pouring blowing rain where the auto bilge would run nearly nonstop.

[Fishing Rhino]

Brand new? Take it back to the dealer, and tell them to fix it.

I think the carpet under the seats is a bad, bad idea. What makes it even worse is that it is readily apparent that rain will get into that compartment, and the carpet will soak up all that water. If it were just painted the water could run to the stern and drain away when you pull the plug. There appears to be nothing that prevents water from running under the seats into that area.

It had to be a real pain to vac that area. If it weren't a new boat, I'd suggest removing the carpet from that area. If you want the padding to cushion what you might stow there, cut a piece of carpet that will fit, and just set it in there. When it gets soaked you can take it out to dry.

[MarkH024]

Yeah that's not right. And if that is the way tracker boats are made, then I would never consider buying one again. I almost got one brand new but I shopped around for used boats and settled on a 2001 Ranger R73. I have never had any of my compartments with water in them even with down pours to 3 foot waves crashing over the sides...no joke. Let us know how you resolve it. That must be a real pain in the arse. Good luck

[Nice_Bass]

my tracker does the same- but only in the most heavy of down pours. the rod locker is the only one that stays dry- too much water for just the one small hose on the side lockers. Double check to make sure all the hoses are connected to the nipple connector and not just dumping water straight to your compartament. Under the seats will get wet- i keep only spare life jackets and bouys under there, and open after every use. No biggie really, I have only had what happened to you happen to me once in three years, and again it was in what felt like a tropical storm. The rest of the time they work as advertised. The dealer is not going to do anything with or to your boat- dont count on that, there is nothing they can fix.

[zildjian]

my tracker does the same- but only in the most heavy of down pours. the rod locker is the only one that stays dry- too much water for just the one small hose on the side lockers. Double check to make sure all the hoses are connected to the nipple connector and not just dumping water straight to your compartament. Under the seats will get wet- i keep only spare life jackets and bouys under there, and open after every use. No biggie really, I have only had what happened to you happen to me once in three years, and again it was in what felt like a tropical storm. The rest of the time they work as advertised. The dealer is not going to do anything with or to your boat- dont count on that, there is nothing they can fix.

yeah i didn't think they would. i did caulk the nipple around the head of the nipple and underneath. also did the same for tubing to the nipple. everything dried to a tight seal, so well see how that works. but for underneath the seats will suck when it rains!

thanks for the comment, since im not the only one that this happened too.

-zildjian

[unageo09]

Call the dealer up and describe to them the situation and see what they say. If there is a problem I'm sure they'd try to make it right. Especially if you just bought the boat.

[Tbomfish]

I have a 2017 TXW 175 - Storage leaks like crazy.  The rod locker is the only box that stays relatively dry even in a drizzle.  Build quality just isn't that great on the storage, but the boat does what I need it to do otherwise.  I worked on it to see if I could stop the leaks - caulked the little drain hoses & even tried installing some weather seal, but I like to fish not jack with boats.  Solution was to put everything that matters in water tight containers.  Use Plano 3700 water tight boxes for all tackle & Plano water tight ammo boxes for everything else.  It works fine - can take it out after a good soaker in about 5 min & let the boat dry out.  Can have it all back in place in about 5 minutes.  Don't need to unpack the water tight bins.  However, if you get lazy and don't open everything up to dry out properly, things will get nasty.  This process will have to do until I have a Z521c in the garage.

[A-Jay]

39 minutes ago, Tbomfish said:

I have a 2017 TXW 175 - Storage leaks like crazy.  The rod locker is the only box that stays relatively dry even in a drizzle.  Build quality just isn't that great on the storage, but the boat does what I need it to do otherwise.  I worked on it to see if I could stop the leaks - caulked the little drain hoses & even tried installing some weather seal, but I like to fish not jack with boats.  Solution was to put everything that matters in water tight containers.  Use Plano 3700 water tight boxes for all tackle & Plano water tight ammo boxes for everything else.  It works fine - can take it out after a good soaker in about 5 min & let the boat dry out.  Can have it all back in place in about 5 minutes.  Don't need to unpack the water tight bins.  However, if you get lazy and don't open everything up to dry out properly, things will get nasty.  This process will have to do until I have a Z521c in the garage.

Hello and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ 

Sorry to hear about your challenges regarding water intrusion in your rig.

Seems as though the OP hasn't participated in the forum here in several months or this thread in particular in several years.

A-Jay