Hull	Updated:1/1/03 Printer Version

If you have a problem withyour Maxum, you first go to your dealer and demand that it be made right. We paid big money for our boats and deserve to get what we paid for.

Second, call William Barrington, US Marines president, @ 800-346-6596 and ask him.

Third, call Dustan E. McCoy, Brunswick Boat Group, Pres. (Sea Ray, Boston Whaler & US Marine) @ 800-346-6596. 10/2001 James

Tip: When re-striping your boats pin stripes. You should be aware that there is a clear plastic protective covering over the pin striping that MUST be removed after application.

I noticed my back door hinges were getting loose quite often on my 3700 SCR. Upon investigating I noticed that they have no plywood backing. They are just screwed through the Fiberglass. It's easy to get to the back of them threw the bilge. I cut some plywood strips and glued them to the back from inside the bilge then screwed the hinges back now it's nice and solid I hope this can help someone. P Bruno ppbjb@snet.net

R Groleau found the transom door hinges are simply screwed into the body of the boat. "The screws in my boat stripped, so I added backing plates out of the marine plastic. I solved the problem and will ensure that no major damage is done should the door screws pull out and destroy the gel coat."

You bought a fiberglass boat, So why is there water in your bilge?
As with so many items there is more than one answer to this question. Here are some that I and other owners have found. If you found another, or have other solution please send them to me at: billegates@aol.com

Here are the problems we found:

1.- Your air conditioners condensate water might be draining into your bilge.

2.- Your sump pump might not be working.

3.- Your stern deck hatch might not seal tightly.

4.- Water may be coming through your engines side air intakes.

5.- Water may be coming in through your oval windows and or deck to hull seal.

6.- Your water heater relief valve may be opening up.

7.- The rear hatches for the power cords and fenders do drain into the bilge.

8.- Leaky water connections.

9.- Unsealed screws in the swim platform. (From: Mike Stevenson. mstevenson@mangobay.com)

And here is what we did about them:

1.- Your air conditioners condensate water might be draining into your bilge. In Maxum boats, if the air conditioner was mounted below the water line so that Maxum could not drain the condensate overboard by gravity, Maxum in many cases would simply lead the drain hose into the bilge. To find out more about this and the cure go here on the Air Conditioning section of this website.

2.- Your sump pump might not be working. This is a maintenance item, your soapy scum runs into the sump pump, it lodges itself inside of the float switch and can tend to hang it up. It must be periodically cleaned as well as the hair screen inside the basin. If the float switch does not operate the showers gray water will overflow the basin end up in the boats bilge.

3.- Your stern deck hatch might not seal tightly. Water from rain and washing can get under the lip of the rear hatch. There is no gasket seal and the side channels are shallow and can not carry away large volumes of water. Further in some installations there are only 2 drains, not the preferred four, one in each corner. I have found (Clean Seal Inc. 800-366-3682, makes a Part # 104 weather stripping to which I have attached to the hatch itself. They make more styles of weather stripping than I have ever seen. I was tempted to attach the weather stripping to the floor for the seal but suspect I would have destroyed it in short order by going in and out of the stern hatch. I have tried the weather stripping Maxum uses on the boat but it is just not right. And Clean Seal gave me more choices and a tighter seal. To buy Clean Seal products by the foot, retail, they are sold by Mid-Atlantic Supplies, Ph # 302-422-3812 for about a dollar a foot. I have also gone to multiple stores and have acquired the material to add the 3d and 4^th drains to the rear hatch but to date have not installed them. JC 8/00

4.-Water may be coming through your engines side air intakes. After a strong rain I find water under my fuel tanks, I don't know what to do about it. Do you? James 7/00 biff@13-inc.com has an answer, To stop rain from entering the bilge from the side vents, install a screen on the inside. It shouldn't impede air flow but it should stop some if not most of the water from going inside. I got this idea from someone who needed to stop the bugs from getting in that way on a smaller boat. biff@13-inc.com 8/00

5.- Water may be coming in through your oval windows and or deck to hull seal. I have found three out of four of my Oval windows leaking, I've siliconed around the gasket to the metal and also siliconed the top center of the gasket where the hinge indents it. It's helped. I have also gotten water when out in Heavy Seas through the window seals and I suspect through the deck to hull seal to the point of soaking the rugs. First, these were very large pounding seas and I was VERY glad I was in our Maxum. I consider this leaking above and beyond the design limits of the boat.

6.- Your water heater relief valve may be opening up. Dick says: "ATTACH A 21/2' LENGHT OF PLASTIC HOSE TO THE PRESSURE RELIEF VALVE ON THE WATER HEATER (4600SCB) PUT THE END INTO A 2 LITER PLASTIC BOTTLE AND NO WATER WILL GO INTO THE BILGE. EMPTY THE BOTTLE ABOUT ONCE A MONTH.THEY TELL ME IT'S NORMAL TO GET WATER FROM THE RELIEF VALVE WHEN YOU TURN THE WATER HEATER ON AND OFF AS WE DO WEEKLY. Ladyz@utm.net

7.- There rear hatches for the power cords and fenders drain into the bilge. The seal in the rear of the boat around the doors looks good but in 3 occasion particulate matter plugged the drain holes and caused our power cords and adapters to go under water. They leak badly. To prevent this from happening a 4^th time I drilled (2) 1/4" holes in the bottom of the stern lockers 1" up from the bottom. Just in case they plug up again. JC 8/00

Roger Wothe, rwothe@environmentsinc.com The owner of a 4100 SCA writes. Can't say the same thing (Dry) for the rear bilge. I did find that the locker for the electrical connections on the aft platform drains into the rear bilge. The gasket around the plexiglas door is not adequate. I have temporarily plugged the through hull and periodically pump the water out of the locker. When I haul out the boat I will run the drain to a through hull near the starboard exhaust. 9/00

8.- Leaky water connections. With a dry hand feel the water connection pipes for leaks, I had one that was under the bathroom sink. You could not see it but I felt the pipe coming down and it was wet. I removed the medicine cabinet and repaired it.

9.- Smell maintenance, small amounts of chlorine bleach in the bilge will help keep the smell down, 1 part chlorine bleach to 4 parts bilge water is a good ratio. Using "Fabrize" to kill the odd smell helps. Using an electronic air cleaners helps. And leaving the boats AC on dehumidify is ideal. KEEP UP with the chemicals in the holding tank or your smells will come back.

10.- Water in the bilge, Dear James, I read with interest the E-mails regarding water in the bilge in a 4100SCB. I had a 4100SCB (recently traded for a 4600SCB), and also had water in the bilge. It turned out to be coming from the unsealed screws in the rub rail on the swim platform. In some cases the holes were drilled but no screw inserted. The same problem was on my new 4600SCB. My boat was tied up at the dealers dock and came loose and damaged the swim platform and needed repair. When the rub rail was removed sure enough there were screws missing. Water would come in during deceleration from the following wake. Thanks for a great site, Mike Stevenson. mstevenson@mangobay.com

11.- Just a couple of experiences to add to your archive! I own a 4100 SCR with Cummins 370Bs.
I was in NYC at Chelsea Piers and bumped into a fellow 4100 owner... We hit it off pretty well cause we both bought new and had like experiences. One worth mentioning was WATER IN OUR ENGINE ROOM BILGE. And we came up with same solution independently. In the storage compartments under the rear seats and in my fender wells on the Transom, each has a drain tube that went into the bilge. We both created a sleeve with two nipples on it and spliced it into the Main drain tubes that runs from the back corners of the engine hatches' rim or trough (whatever you want to call it) and goes directly overboard. That took care of a lot of it. But another leak was at the middle aluminum cross hatch support. The water was also leaking between the cross support ends and the gunnel or trough for the engine hatch. At that juncture, the wall of the trough tapers down to allow the cross support to fit flush. At that point, I used some boat life caulk. Has helped an awful lot in the amount of water in my bilge. Had already ran thru all of my thru hulls...so the drill was tedious. Best wishes to you and everyone this boating season. Sincerely Bill Bauer billb30@hotmail.com

Fiberglass and Gel Coat

Gel Coat Stains
When you've asked just about everyone you can think of, ask the manufacturer.
And that just what I did, I called Cook Composites the manufacturer of the US Marines Gel Coat used in the Maxum Boats. I spoke to their Gel Coat representative, Larry and discussed, the problems some owners are experiencing (myself included) with "Yellow Deck" and "Styrene Blotching." Terms Larry was somewhat unfamiliar with. He did however know of the problem and was an additional source of information on the subject. Fact of life #1, Gel Coats yellow and loose their gloss when exposed to UV rays. The same type of fading happens with paint on a house and on a car. What can we do to slow this down and possibly prevent it? Wash the boat often, washing removes the pollutants that drop on the boat that were in the air, sulfur from the power plant, exhaust emissions, bird droppings, etc. Keep wax on the boat, be sure to use a UV stabilized wax, or one with a UV stabilizer in it. Regular wax without UV stabilizers or UV stabilization protects for 2 to 3 days and then stops. High priced polymer waxes are no better than regular waxes. Never use Pledge or similar products on a Gel Coat they contain oils which can penetrate the Gel Coat which is porous causing you tremendous staining. Rubbing compounds generally contain an amount of oil also, therefore you must always water flush the area after using a rubbing compound BEFORE applying wax. Now as to the question, does Gel Coat contain Styrene? Larry says yes, BUT the Styrene is Polymerized by the time you get it. Why use Styrene anyway? Larry's the Styrene is necessary to connect the polymer bonds in the material so that it can properly catalyze. Also, additional Styrene is sometimes added in the building process by the Boat Manufacturer as a thinning agent depending on the material density, flow through the gun and the temperature.
With all that said what are the stains really. My best guess is that the stains on the decks are probably Gel Coat that was not waxed and the "Yellow Deck" is Gel Coat that was not waxed with a UV Protective sealant. There is a smaller chance that the problem is Styrene. The blotches are most likely caused by fiberglass repair while in the plant, they have a distinctive spray pattern to them. The repairs were most likely voids in the molding, very common in the boat building process. The repairs should have been UN detectable, and indeed were until the UV hit them and they changed color.
Now that I have them, how do you get the discoloration out. Soap and water was the first thing Larry said. Tough Enough Bilge Cleaner was the choice of US Marine. Larry said to go through your cleaners from mildest to the strongest. As you exhaust your cleaners he suggested using both families of organic stain's the first would be Acetone or other fast evaporating thinners theses are in the Aliphatic family. The second would be Xylene or Tylnene these are in the Aromatic family. Larry says Like dissolves Like. Meaning you have to find out what you have that's causing the stain and find a like product to lift it. In the later part of our conversation he suggested fine sandpaper. The end. James Clausen 5/02 billegates@aol.com

Cleaning Fiberglass and Gel Coat, I remember one summer 5 years ago going out to Ace Hardware and buying and buying a gallon on cleaner on a isle end cap. I used it for the summer on the interior of our boat (a 26' sports fisherman) to clean the everyday wear and tear. The interior's wax started not to sparkle and the boat became harder and harder to keep clean. I finally read the cleaner. It was made to clean all right, but the instructions on the back in small print said it was made to be used before painting your house and was specifically not to be used on fiberglass, or any other surface that was not to be "Painted Immediately". The lesson is use only an auto cleaner, or a boat cleaner, and be careful on the boat cleaners, West Marine sells two types of cleaner in their stores. One that will remove some of your boats wax called "Boat Soap" it's pink in color and one that will not called Crystal Boat Wash. Read the small print on the labels and stick with the same products that work. Acetone works great on cleaning down to the Gel Coat, just remember to read the directions, and clear the area with water when you are done. Acetone will remove your wax so when you use it, re wax your gel coat. When working with Acetone keep in mind that it is very volatile.

Interior Fiberglass, Acrylic, (bathroom molded pieces) as well as counter and sink tops, "Gel-Gloss" one step cleaner polish is the best. Pink spray can white top.

Gel Coat Repair Kit… Did you know that your Maxum dealer sells a gel coat repair kit? Yep, Color "Dream White" Part # F55-39853. "Easy to use"

Is your hulls Gel Coat showing a Brownish Yellow Stain? B Robinson's 4100 SCB was, and here's his story. "Some of the 1998 41' SCB's had a gel coat problem, too much Styrene in the gel coat which shows up as a Brownish Yellow stain. It can be corrected by using a chemical spray called TUF-ENUF F-239 industrial strength - Wallace + Sons, St Augestine, FL. 904-794-5161. Just spray it on and it leaches out the styrene stain, then power buffing with 3-M Heavy buffing compound and finish off with waxing. This information from Jerry Titus of Maxum Marine." I have heard of styrene staining from the owners of Maxum's, under 37' but this is the first report of a styrene stain in our size range. James. 9/99. Since then there have been (spots) in some boat, easy to fix with the right stuff. James 2/2001

We too, '98 41 SCA, have gel coat discoloration problems. One on the port side of the fly bridge is the size of two spread hands. biff@13-inc.com 8/00 An additional note. Once the stain is properly removed, it will not come back. 8/00

Dave form Maxum says, After I got your last inquiry I called our infield fiberglass repair specialist, a person that has done a number of these types of repairs. Assuming we are working with a problem caused by UV Rays, we tackle the repair using bilge cleaners and wet sanding it into the area. Your instuctions for Tuff-Enuf are sound and we have found once the area is worked it doesn't come back.

As you wet sand the cleaner into the gelcoat the area should turn a bright yellow. This isn't something to be concerned with as long as you don't over sand the area and go through the gelcoat. Once this is done the area needs to be buffed using a high speed buffer.

If your contact has really reached the end of his wits, find out where he is and maybe there is a chance our "guy" can swing by and take a look. It wouldn't be warranty but we might be able to offer some assitance. If you need Dave to set this up please E-mail me and I will forward your request to him. James 5/2001

The Maxum pregnant bulge, The first time I saw our "boat to be" it had the trim tape in the stern all buggered up. As part of the sale it was repaired. Then I buggered it up, 4 times, At first I couldn't see why I was causing the trim tapes in the stern to become ripped, until I looked at the boat from another angle, directly up and down. And here's what you see, about 30 inches of unprotected boat. Not an inch of run rail to be found.

Here's an overhead view and a side view of the area where there is no rub rail protection.

View from the stern quarter on a 4600 SCB, note the white clamp on the 1" SS grab rail? We use it to dress the power and water lines, (raise them to this level) to hold them out of the water and also to hold that extra fender.

Here's a view from the stern of our 4600 SCB with it's two new rub rails.

Here above is a 4100 SCR with the same lack of hull protection, about 30" of hull with no rub rail.

D Kendrick the owner of a 4100 SCR has had some reoccurring problems with the trim tabs on his boat. "The first failure was caused by someone stepping on the oil line at the transom and kinking it. It broke off shortly after the boat was put in service. The second failure was caused by the mechanic who installed the repair fittings wrong so that they "blew off" under pressure. I have noticed that the oil pump/reservoir is mounted tilted at an angle on the back on the transom. This causes the oil pickup to be on an angle. The angle is made even larger when underway. This prevents filling the reservoir completely because the oil runs out when underway. So far I have just kept an eye on the oil level to be sure there is oil available. I plan to remount the pump/reservoir at a better attitude and relocate it for more accessibility (it is behind the generator) but that it low on a long list of more important fixes. Dkendric@aol.com