by Tony Treen » Mon Apr 19, 2021 3:26 pm
Same problem with everyone else with the drains blocking. Last season it came to a head, as went out to the boat (on a drying mooring) to find the anchor well full of water. High winds had blown Exe Estuary mud and sand into the well, rain had washed it all into the pipes, and the mess had set like cement. Poking and blowing had no effect, so had to bail out the well, and remove the wire braided pipes to clean them out.
So, a job this winter has been to fit a larger diameter pipe. What I ended up with was 1x 1/2" BSP plastic elbow, 1x 1/2" BSP plastic hex nipple, some 3/4" internal diameter (1" external) plastic pipe, and two jubilee clips for each drain. The elbow to the well fitting gives a better lead for the plastic pipe and avoids kinking. The pipe then simply pushes over the hull fitting. Note the 1/2" BSP - I learnt the hard way that to size BSP you measure the thread diameter and then subtract 1/4". I originally ordered 3/4", that being the thread diameter.
Checked by chucking a bucket of water into the well, and has worked a dream, even washing the bits of dirt (which are unavoidable where I overwinter the boat and take the cover off for access) through the drains, which previously would have immediately blocked.
Have put a photo up in the gallery - Wadudu Modifications