Carver Owners Forum

I am new to the forum and currently have a contract on a 2007 46 MY. During the hull survey water was found dripping from the underside of the swim platform on the port side. The boat has been inside in heated storage for 5 months. The marina cut out all the caulk on the underside of the platform and more water came out the starboard side. Are leaks a common problem? What is the best repair option?

Water in the swim platform are a common issue with a lot of carvers. They are normally a cored deck. If water gets into the core it will normally wick and over time destroy the integrity of the structure. I am not sure where your water is coming from, but it is possible it is in the core. During a survey, they will sound the swim platform with a hammer and a moisture meter and be able to tell you if there is water in the core of the deck and how bad it is. How bad it is depends on how fast you get on it, before you need to replace the core.

The culprit and where water can get in, is where the screws go into the swim deck where the storage box is. Last summer I removed the inner liner on my storage box, removed the screws, drilled out the holes a bit and injected epoxy in the holes to seal them up to prevent more water intrusion. This will hopefully slow down the problem.

If your swim platform is worse than that and is saturated, you will have to remove the fibreglass skin, either on the top or the bottom and have the swim platform recorded and repaired.

If there is a lot of water saturation, over time your platform will become soft and punky.

Hope this helps.

Greg

Welcome aboard.

Leaking swim platforms are common on just about any brand given time. What it'll take to repair really depends on the type of platform, how the water is getting in, and what if any damage is present and how widespread. If the core is saturated, that's something your surveyor should have determined right away but since you didn't mention that in your post, it's either not saturated, he didn't report it yet, or he missed it, but leaking water should have been a clue for further assessment.

Is this a one piece unit or is it a hollow 2 piece platform?

I did the same as Tireless mentioned on my 405 several years ago. The oem storage box screws were not sealed or poorly so. I didn't have any issues but oversizing the holes and epoxy fill will make sure there's nothing to worry about. I hope everyone with similar setups take notice before it becomes a major issue.

+1
A pre-emptive repair is a great way to go forward. Doesn't sound too good water dripping out after 5 months in heated storage, is the water clear or stained ?......hopefully the surveyor will check and comment.

There may be another explanation. On the 396, 444, and I think the 46, AC water exits into the hollow swim platform, travels aft, and drips out the two openings at the bottom, aft end of the platform. The side swim platform sponsons are not part of the hull structure but an add on. Water can build up in there, particularly if the boat is bow heavy. When the caulk between the side swim sponsons and the hull starts to separate, water will seep down the side of the hull at the joint between the hull and the sponson. A solution would be to snake a hose from the AC water exhaust to the exit hole in the swim platform.

Thanks for the replies. The surveyor was pretty thorough checking for moisture but I will have him reconfirm. The boat yard has removed the caulk in the seams on the underside of the platform. The drip had come from the port side seam. When they removed the caulk from the starboard seam more water came out. Not a lot of water. The water is pretty clear. There is a row of about 8 screws on the underside of the platform near the hull. I included a couple of pictures. I should also add there is an extension on the swim platform. You can see where it was glassed to the original platform in the pictures. Does anyone know what the screws are for?