1995 181 Transom

[Vandee]

Pulled the motor to install a jackplate and found wet wood and some indication of rot. It’s hard to tell how far it goes. Seem that the splashwell drain tubes are to blame. Stringer and knee braces sound solid with the hammer test. Found 2 spots on the transom that don’t sound great. The plan for now is to attempt to dry with heat lamps for 2 weeks then start drilling around and see if I can figure out how far the damage goes. If it is not just localized right near the splashwell drain tube then I’ll start digging out the transom. If it hasn’t traveled far im wondering if it be possible to fill the void with some type of resin or epoxy.
F33D1688-36D2-4C40-B7DB-094B96A11E56.jpegD9D558AA-467B-4FBB-81E8-9252ADD11A3B.jpeg7D35CC3A-4517-4BCE-B159-DD88681948A2.jpegFC3C99DC-5429-4309-A1E6-09E2B0192AE5.jpeg

[Jasonrs]

Nice job cleaning it all up back there, good luck

[MMosher]

Ya need to pull ALL the through hull fittings including the engine.

[Vandee]

Ya need to pull ALL the through hull fittings including the engine.

everything is pulled. Only thing that hasn’t been removed from that back of the back is that transducer in the bilge. Stuck really good.

[trashmanssd]

I have been doing research on this subject in preparations for pulling the motor on my brothers 1999 Champion this winter to inspect the transom and hopefully ad a hydraulic jack plate. Google search marine wood hardener and seacast. Those are the 2 things I have been looking at so far. Hardeners for wet and slightly rotted transom spots, or seacast if there are large areas to replace or its junk.

[MMosher]

Right on. Any wicking coming from anywhere yet?

everything is pulled. Only thing that hasn’t been removed from that back of the back is that transducer in the bilge. Stuck really good.

[Vandee]

Have 2 drip stains running from the bottoms bolt holes. Not a lot of water coming out. However digging further the knee braces are wet and rot has set in. Stringers are damp up to the live well can’t reach up any further to check how far they are wet. At this point I’m thinking I will keep the lamps going for a few weeks. Plug everything up and put the motor back on without the jackplate. I’ll just baby it and fish for the rest of the summer and fall. This will give me time to finish up insulating the garage so I’ll have a warm workspace to tackle going forward. Not sure if going forward I’ll be pulling the cap yet or if that can be avoided.

[jdrautoworks]

Mine was interesting, the splash well was cracked and the tie downs were showing a little bit of brown discoloration. Went to reseal the motor bolts and torqued them down and crushed the fiberglass well before the 45ft. lbs. Got it cut apart and most of the damage was in the center of the transom and at the upper top sides well away from any water entry points.

[Vandee]

Right on. Any wicking coming from anywhere yet?

I drilled some exploratory holes in both the inner and outer stringers a day or two into using the heat lamps and things were wet. I have had nothing drip or weep out of the transom at all. However today, about a week into lamps, I now have water dripping out of the outer stringers? Am I wrong in thinking that the heat could be pushing the water into the stringers?

[MMosher]

Probably not, the stringers sound wet.

I drilled some exploratory holes in both the inner and outer stringers a day or two into using the heat lamps and things were wet. I have had nothing drip or weep out of the transom at all. However today, about a week into lamps, I now have water dripping out of the outer stringers? Am I wrong in thinking that the heat could be pushing the water into the stringers?

[Vandee]

Probably not, the stringers sound wet.

Yup reached under the first floor drain by the seats with a screwdriver and driver side string doesn’t ping nice. Looking more and more like I’ll be pulling the cap this winter.