06/03/2012 07:17:03 AM
|
SinOrSwim
Member
Posts: 73
Joined: 06/30/2009
|
Not mine, thank goodness but unfortunately we had a houseboat in our marina sink Friday. Steel Hull, not sure of the brand. Was put on the water Thursday and was on the bottom Friday morning. Sad to watch them cut a hole with a torch in the sides and see it dragged along the ground and onto a trailer.
This makes the third in three years. Let's hope we don't add to it.
I'll try to post a couple pictures later.
|
|
|
|
06/03/2012 08:56:06 AM
|
42gibson
Member
Posts: 144
Joined: 11/19/2010
|
That gives you a sick feeling in your stomach that does not go away soon.
-------------------------
1991 gibson 44 executive
454's
norwich,ohio
docked on the good ole ohio river in marietta
|
|
|
|
06/03/2012 09:24:12 AM
|
stmbtwle
Admiral
Posts: 2142
Joined: 04/22/2003
|
That seems to be a problem with old steel houseboats. I feel for the owner, who may have just purchased it.
-------------------------
Willie She's a tired old barge but she's paid for! http://s71.photobucket.com/alb...p;current=ef324993.pbw
|
|
|
|
06/03/2012 09:50:55 AM
|
SinOrSwim
Member
Posts: 73
Joined: 06/30/2009
|
|
|
|
|
06/03/2012 10:28:36 AM
|
jtalberts
Member
Posts: 137
Joined: 11/23/2011
|
I'll pay them $20 for the parrot on the front. We have the same one in our boat and it bit the dust when we were moving it.
|
|
|
|
06/03/2012 01:09:56 PM
|
TonyB
Admiral
Posts: 218
Joined: 09/05/2011
|
Originally posted by: stmbtwle
...........I feel for the owner, who may have just purchased it.
Exactly my thoughts.
-------------------------
Never wrecked a boat while awake or sober Kemah, Tx. - Galveston Bay
|
|
|
|
06/03/2012 01:51:22 PM
|
SinOrSwim
Member
Posts: 73
Joined: 06/30/2009
|
They have owned it for several years.
If you notice the big rip on the front hole in one of the pictures. The chains were just ripping through the metal when they tried to pull it. Then, they cut holes in the middle and wrapped the chains around the blue portion you see in teh picture. Same thing, the metal just started slicing.
But yes, as an owner it gives you that sick feeling in your gut because you know if could just as easily be you in that position.
I don't know what recovery costs but I assume it isn't cheap. I also don't know what the DNR or anybody fines you for fuel etc contamination or the possibility of???? No idea.
|
|
|
|
06/03/2012 06:42:43 PM
|
stmbtwle
Admiral
Posts: 2142
Joined: 04/22/2003
|
That's the very reason I have NINE bilge pumps on my boat, 3 watertight bulkheads and three bilge alarms...
The EPA, DNR or whomever can fine you for any spill... one of the many reasons you should have liability insurance.
-------------------------
Willie She's a tired old barge but she's paid for! http://s71.photobucket.com/alb...p;current=ef324993.pbw
|
|
|
|
06/04/2012 06:03:27 AM
|
EastTNBoater
Admiral
Posts: 226
Joined: 11/27/2002
|
Priest is a Corps lake. I am sure they will come calling. At least it was shallow there, so his recovery costs might not be too bad.
|
|
|
|
06/04/2012 07:37:43 AM
|
TonyB
Admiral
Posts: 218
Joined: 09/05/2011
|
Hopefully, someone put up those floating containment sack looking things. If not, and spills would probably be dispersed by now.
I had a 48 ft shrimp boat sink once on me and there was virtually no evidence of it in the way of pollution. Raised the boat and the Coast Guard report kinda brushed the whole thing off.
I am assuming that this boat had gas engines and gas spills are not that bad. Most of the gas evaporates in a few days.
-------------------------
Never wrecked a boat while awake or sober
Kemah, Tx. - Galveston Bay
|
|
|
|
06/04/2012 07:45:26 AM
|
GoVols
Member
Posts: 87
Joined: 08/08/2011
|
What lake was this on? I heard from my marina that 4 boats sank on Percy Priest over the holiday weekend, but they didn't know what types of boats exactly. There was a boat that sank at our marina last week as well. Tuesday we had a big storm tear up 2 areas of our marina. Those area are now accessable by boat only. Fate Sanders marina got really torn up. 3 different docks broke loose and floated together. My neighbor's houseboat used to be docked there. He was told his boat would have been squished and sank if it were in the same slip. Thankfully, there no one's boat was there and the slip simply collapsed on itself.
Crazy stuff!
-------------------------
16x66 Sailabration on Percy Priest Lake near Nashville.
|
|
|
|
06/04/2012 08:29:02 AM
|
EastTNBoater
Admiral
Posts: 226
Joined: 11/27/2002
|
Sorry, I thought it was at Priest.
Two houseboats and three other boats burned at Watauga up here in East TN two weekends ago.
When they had the fire where my parent's boat is at Cove Hollow on Center Hill several years ago, the Corps made the owners recover them all from the bottom. That was expensive - $5,000 - $10,000 per boat.
Edited: 06/04/2012 at 11:11:02 AM by EastTNBoater
|
|
|
|
06/04/2012 02:17:42 PM
|
SinOrSwim
Member
Posts: 73
Joined: 06/30/2009
|
This was Saylorville Lake in central Iowa. Boating Capital of the World......okay maybe not. 
It is a Corps lake. One thing that probably saved some cost is the fact they could reach the boat with the cable from the wrecker from shore to drag it across the bottom over to the ramp. I'm sure that saved a ton of cost. I know in the past they have had to use air bags to re-float the boat.
They were outboard motors. Which, if they would have been thinking probably could have (still might be able to) salvage. Take the plugs out, drain the cylinders and then fire them up. If they could have gotten them running they could have saved two outboards which would defray some of the cost. As it is, I'm sure they will have to pay someone to haul it away.
|
|
|
|
06/05/2012 08:47:32 AM
|
ShoreBound
Member
Posts: 79
Joined: 02/15/2011
|
I am amazed at how the cabin has been torn loose from the hull. Do you think that was from cables around the back of it, or could it have sank at an angle and torn loose, or could it have been the volume of air inside the cabin when it sank, that tore it loose? I have seen a couple of pontoon houseboats get water in them and turn over, but not sink. The pontoons rusted through at the water line, and then filled with water and turned over. Jelly-side-down is never any good, either. Harder to drag out of the lake!
|
|
|
|
06/05/2012 12:10:25 PM
|
FranticallyRelaxing
Admiral
Posts: 370
Joined: 09/10/2006
|
I sometimes worry about ours, it's 24 years old now. But all the prior owners took care of her, and so have we. My biggest sinking worry isn't the hull springing a leak, it's things like the thru-hull fitting, valve, strainer and hoses supplying cooling water for the genny. For that boat to sink that fast, I'm almost willing to bet that their problem was something other than the steel hull...
-------------------------
 1988 SkipperLiner 53x14 1995 Tracker Party Cruiser 32 *for sale* 2003 Chaparral 260 SSI 2000 Allegro Bus 40' DP
|
|
|
|
06/05/2012 12:21:33 PM
|
TonyB
Admiral
Posts: 218
Joined: 09/05/2011
|
Originally posted by: FranticallyRelaxing........ For that boat to sink that fast, I'm almost willing to bet that their problem was something other than the steel hull...
YOu are probably right.
Your concerns are real and not just because it is steel. Poor installation methods can cause a fiberglass boat to have the same weak areas. It is difficult to inspect your own stuff. Have you considered hiring a sueveyor that is familiar with steel hulls? In addition ot visual inspections, many surveyors also have UT testers - Ultra-sound testers that are made for steel surfaces.
-------------------------
Never wrecked a boat while awake or sober Kemah, Tx. - Galveston Bay
|
|
|
|
06/05/2012 04:18:26 PM
|
ShoreBound
Member
Posts: 79
Joined: 02/15/2011
|
I owned a steel-hulled pontoon houseboat for several years. When it started leaking severely late one night, I had it pulled, welded and recoated. That was about 8 years ago. It is still floating in my marina, although not as level as before. My pontoons rusted out from the inside, so when you knew you had a problem, it was already a bad problem. I heard one time that they used to put some mineral oil inside the steel pontoons, which would slosh around and keep them from rusting. Anyone else heard about this? I knew a guy who filled his pontoons with foam, figuring that would keep him floating. When the water finally worked its way into the foam, he couldn't pump the water out. End of story! End of boat!
|
|
|
|
06/05/2012 05:49:13 PM
|
FranticallyRelaxing
Admiral
Posts: 370
Joined: 09/10/2006
|
Oil may sound like a good idea, but since oil floats on water, I doubt it would be much of a buffer...
Our boat is built with 2 watertight bulkheads at either end of the cabin. So, hopefully, even if my engine compartment were to totally fill with water, the rest of boat would have enough floatation to keep it from sinking. But if I spring a leak from the middle, that might not turn out well. I've found that a little water on top of the hull seems to create rust about 1000x faster than all the water on the bottom. So I'm pretty diligent about making sure the top of my hull stays dry!
-------------------------
1988 SkipperLiner 53x14 1995 Tracker Party Cruiser 32 *for sale* 2003 Chaparral 260 SSI 2000 Allegro Bus 40' DP
|
|
|
|
06/05/2012 09:29:16 PM
|
harvrbt
Member
Posts: 179
Joined: 08/07/2009
|
I have heard the idea of putting water soluble oil in the pontoons?? My pontoons have bulkheads and there are like 6 or 8 compartments on each side. It would have to be a pretty big deal to sink it I would think.
Fred
-------------------------
Yesterday was the best day of my life..... I bought a Houseboat!! Check out our blog of our houseboat refurbish!! http://fredsfriendlyblogspot.blogspot.com/
|
|
|
|
06/06/2012 09:02:40 AM
|
SinOrSwim
Member
Posts: 73
Joined: 06/30/2009
|
I think people would be surprised if you had some real thin areas in a steel hull and it started leaking how fast that water would come in. Then, if bilge pumps aren't working, can't keep up or have run out of power, it wouldn't take long before some of the through hull outlets are now letting A LOT of water in.
I had heard through the rumor mill they had the bottom blasted and re-coated this spring. Sometimes I wonder if that is like flushing out an old radiator?? It leaks more after the fact. Some of that rust is sort of the glue holding it together? I don't know as I have never owned a steel hull. Mostly, just because I don't want the maintenance of one.
|
|
|
|
Topic Tools
