bertram31.com

Is there a drain plug in a 76 FBC? I thought I saw one but now I can’t find it. Damn boat is filling up with water (trailered).

one should be mid ship, just inside the cabin door T handle
and maybe one in the stern

Companionway, just forward of the water tank. Should have a T handle on it.

My 31 Express did not...a cordless drill with a 1/2" drill bit took care of that quickly.

One in the stern and one inside the cabin by the doors bulkhead.
Following season I bought than installed the fittings.

Odd that many of the boats did not come through with drain holes.
I've heard many reasons why...none too good in my opinion if the boats ever going to be on the hard.
Covers leak, bilge pumps fail and batteries die.

Which is the lowest point in the 31 hull when the boat floats?

In the 28 it is near the forward cabin bulkhead.
Mine had a plug in between the engines which was useless, so I removed it and filled the hole.
When I pull the boat I make sure that they place it at a very steep angle, so that all rain goes through the always open transom plug.
I also made a plughole at the main bulkhead so if theres any water inside the cabin it just goes through to under the deck and then out from transom hole. I’m terrified by what I hear about through hulls, so I try to keep them to a minimum.

The lowest point is the bottom.



Lowest point is about 3' back from the base of the front window. Its were the main bilge pumps are installed.

I prefer to store boat slightly bow proud to let water run aft and out the drain plug. When I come down to check on boat I can stick a finger or stick in there to verify its not clogged...much better then climbing underneath.

Found it. Appears to be only one, slightly off center right by the transom. Not very useful considering how the boat sits. Even on the trailer I can’t really get it tilted high enough for water to run aft.

That is probably not factory. They all were place up in the cabin just aft of the forward bulkhead. That is the lowest point when the boat is level or in the water.

Guess I’ll look harder tomorrow. Gotta clean out the bilge anyway. Spent the day removing the head and plumbing and then replacing all the fuel filters. I’m beat. And filthy.

Usually not to tough to find on the underside once boats out of the water...unless you happen to block your boat on it.

Doesn’t appear to have a drain except that one aft which is useless. I am going to install a self priming diaphragm pump to suck out the remaining water that the centrifugal pumps can’t get. Tires of 2” water down there.

Normally if the drain was installed other than factory, the boat should then have two plugs, one forward as described and then if at all possible one in the stern center of the lowest part of the bilge. On my boat that would be directly behind the stern bilge pump. Theory behind that is if the boat is not level, tilts either forward or back, you are sure to have the water drain out when on the hard. You probably will not get all the water out. I usually have a thin film of water after I suck it all out with a shop vac, just prior to covering her for the winter.

If you go through a lot of the posts about adding a third bilge pump, you will see that Capt. Pat recommended putting a bomar type hatch plate in the bilge, in the bulkhead you enter the cabin. That would allow you to close off the cabin so that water would not run forward and lay in the cabin, then you would add a third pump, in the bilge right between the engines. This would pick up the water that can not run forward, and the stern pump would collect the excess when you plane off. The bomar plate would also allow you to open up that section to allow water to run forward if ever needed.

http://bertram31.com/newbb/search.php?k ... mber+holes

Here is a link to one of the posts. For some reason I can search and find the post but can not get it to actually open. Not sure if it is the site or my computer. Maybe you have better luck than I did.

in my B-25 on the trailer the low spot is up between the v-berths. I am adding a drain plug there where the head water intake was. Otherwise I end up with about 35 gallons there quickly.

Or, tilt the trailer backwards and make the hole on the stern.