Muffler leak

[87 Sunsport]

I have an 87 Sunsport. Over the years I've experienced the inevitable floor rot, transom rot,stringer rot. This year it's water leaking out where the exhaust hits the stringer on the driver side (seems to be always that side). We tend to put obese passengers on the port side, and you get better air heelside. I'm not proud of this, but when duct tape will do it...

My approach would be to start chiseling away at the soft stringer where the stainless exhaust
enters the stringer and pack it with marine sealant.

Salty, you alwalys steer me right, got any solutions with chewing gum?

[Salty87]

chewing gum, i never thought of using that, duh

i'm having flashbacks...mine was doing pretty much the same thing/same side. i think you've got the right idea, just wrong end. i'd take the super traps off and seal up that end really well. there's a groove in the back side of the super trap that holds sealant, load it up. when i put mine back together i also sealed the inside of the pipe, where the super trap overlaps the exhaust pipe...about an inch inside the pipe. i used 5200 planning on never doing it again. you might want to go with 4200 or something less 'permanent' if you plan to overhaul it.

on the positive side, i don't think the transoms rot on these boats. my boat leaked like that for at least 6 years, transom was fine.

[IUFAN24]

I have a 87 Sunsport with the exact problem on BOTH Sides. What is the super trap? also - I am about 99% confident my foam is saturated from all of this - any ideas on how to drain all of that out?

[Salty87]

I have a 87 Sunsport with the exact problem on BOTH Sides. What is the super trap? also - I am about 99% confident my foam is saturated from all of this - any ideas on how to drain all of that out?

the super trapps are on the transom where the exhaust exits. you might have flappers instead of traps though. either way, that's probably the end where water is getting in.

bad news, if your foam is soaked there's only one way to get it to dry...pull it and replace. it will never dry out. you can cut a hole and test a spot, under a seat or something. you'll probably end up with stringer and deck repairs/replacement too...might wait til the end of the summer.

[John D.Fullerton]

Salty 87

I am having a similar problem as Sunport 87. I have an 87 TS6M – water is coming over the stringer on the left side abeam the left rear motor mount. I believe I have isolated the leak to the left exhaust pipe. Is it possible for the exhaust pipe to have a hole in it, or is there a weld after it comes through the floor from the risers and the rubber exhaust hose?
The boat has the traps removed. The boat takes on a lot of water as I keep it in a boathouse. When I pull it out on the trailer, the water running out of the left exhaust will fill a water bucket in 24 hours. You have mentioned about sealing the outside of the pipe. Is that just inside the rubber exhaust flaps?

Another thought, is it possible that water is coming in at the transom through the ski platform bracket bolts? The 2 left side upper bolts will turn. I did not force them as I was afraid they might be lag bolts without a washer and nut on the inside and would strip.

Obviously in order to make this repair I would probably have to lift up the floor from the riser back to get at the pipe.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Regards
John D.

[Salty87]

hi john

the exhaust pipes are pretty bullet-proof. i doubt there's a hole. you'd get alot of hot water coming in the boat if that were the case. if you wanted, you could remove the exhaust hoses and pour a gallon down each pipe, see if a gallon comes out the other end. this is what you're dealing with, w/o the deck and foam (your stringers or engine area might be slightly different):



if you can zoom in where the exhaust exits the transom at the top of the pic, you'll see that there's not much to it. 6 or 8 screws thru the fiberglass.

you can also get a look at the inside of the bracket bolts in that pic. good chances your hardware is crusty behind the transom.

you could get away with just opening up the floor in the three areas where your platform brackets are. just big enough to get a wrench on the nuts. i think sealing the exhaust pipes is probably enough. however, most likely, you've got soaked foam. the stringer areas where the motor mounts attach to don't do well with standing water. if you open the floor, dig down to the hull and see if the foam squishes water out. good luck