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Catalina 25 Specific Forum

Looking for expert advice on Catalina 25 sailboat

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kettu7
1st Mate

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29 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2012 : 13:13:26

Hey guys. My quest for my first sailboat is still on, I've looked at a few more boats, both Catalinas and not, but haven't quite found the one yet. That sailing course that I took a while ago combined with your much appreciated advice has given me quite some knowledge about what to pay attention to, thanks again for that!

Something I've seen on one of the boats that I inspected was this kind of discoloration on V-berth walls: https://www.dropbox.com/s/em14qmkngpgjf04/Photo%20Jul%2010%2C%202%2029%2018%20PM.jpg. What could it possibly be caused by? A water leak in or near anchor locker? Something worse maybe?

Edited by - on

dragonf1y
1st Mate

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USA
34 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2012 : 13:20:08

I know when we sleep in the v-berth and it's cold over night (which is almost always in the PNW), especially since we added a memory foam mattress to the mix, you can get condensation under the cushions. Sometimes a lot. If you never tipped up the cushions to dry that out, I could see that moisture wicking up into that material and staining.

I'd say it's more likely that anchor locker might not be draining properly or perhaps the hatch above the v-berth is leaking onto the cushions which absorb the water and it gets wicked up the sides like that from the cushions. Any idea if the cushions were moldy or mildewed on the bottom? In the future I'd look at that and unzip the corner on one to see the state of the foam inside.

Edited by - on

piseas
Former Treasurer

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USA
2017 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2012 : 13:29:37

Personally, if it were me, I would not care what caused it. Seeing that would make me move on to the next boat, especially if the owner said nothing to you about it. Was he there to ask? or did he not know?
Also are there any cracks on the outside? Probably under the water line and you can't see them.
Do you want your first boat to be a project or do you want to start sailing immediately?
Steve A

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kettu7
1st Mate

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29 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2012 : 17:59:35

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by piseas
 Personally, if it were me, I would not care what caused it. Seeing that would make me move on to the next boat, especially if the owner said nothing to you about it. Was he there to ask? or did he not know?
Also are there any cracks on the outside? Probably under the water line and you can't see them.
Do you want your first boat to be a project or do you want to start sailing immediately?
Steve A
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

That was a while ago and the owner wasn't there when I came to inspect a boat - his friend showed it to me. When I asked the owner about this thing later, he said he didn't know what it was from as he hasn't sailed this boat since last year for family reasons. At that time I didn't spot any cracks in the hull, not even below waterline (she was on the hard), so I just thought I would post this to gather some opinions and be better prepared in the future.

As to whether I do or do not want a project boat - obviously I would rather spend more on a good solid boat, but there's so few suitable boats for sale in NYC market that I would consider buying a boat that has a few minor fixable defects, but otherwise in a good condition.

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kettu7
1st Mate

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29 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2012 : 18:02:55

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by dragonf1y
I'd say it's more likely that anchor locker might not be draining properly or perhaps the hatch above the v-berth is leaking onto the cushions which absorb the water and it gets wicked up the sides like that from the cushions. Any idea if the cushions were moldy or mildewed on the bottom? In the future I'd look at that and unzip the corner on one to see the state of the foam inside.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

I think Anchor locker or the hatch leaking into the V-berth is a likely explanation too. Superficially I didn't notice any mildew on the bottom of the cushions or on the foam inside, so I tend to think it's the anchor locker rather than the hatch, but it's really hard to say what's inside the cushions unless you can tear them apart and see for yourself, isn't it? :)

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hinmo
Navigator

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USA
248 Posts

Response Posted - 07/10/2012 : 22:47:13

my two cents:
1) Sailed/raced my buddys older O'Day 27...performed nice, seemed big, can't comment on quality
2) in another life, I owned a CD-25, sailed nice. slow, seaworthy, but it wasn't the larger 25 model and it had "on your knees" headroom and limited space below decks, and a lot of teak to maintain. Also had the aux in a lazerette that stole cockpit space (but looked nice!)
3) C27s nice, but ditto the thru hulls and inboard....I just sold my C34, small part of the reason was all the thru-hull's maintenance and worry

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Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
9080 Posts

Response Posted - 07/11/2012 : 07:44:58

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by kettu7
 ...but there's so few suitable boats for sale in NYC market that I would consider buying a boat that has a few minor fixable defects, but otherwise in a good condition.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">It's rare that you find a used boat that isn't in need of something... A few of us here have sold true gems

, but hardly any of us have bought them. As you may have heard, BOAT stands for Break Out Another Thousand... Make sure your budget has a few for after the purchase.

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awetmore
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1144 Posts

Response Posted - 07/11/2012 : 07:55:29

I wouldn't walk away just because there is a little bit of water staining on the V-berth wall carpet. I'd probably want to remove the carpet anyway, I personally prefer to have plain fiberglass walls since they are easier to keep clean.

I don't think that anyone sells a boat that needs nothing, normally boats are being sold because the seller isn't using it enough anymore and doesn't want to pay the moorage fees. If they aren't using it anymore than they also haven't been taking care of it and it's going to need a little work. I didn't consider my boat a project because it didn't need anything major (hull/deck/etc were in good shape), but I've still spent well over 50 hours (maybe closer to 100) working on it (both in making improvements and in catching up on deferred maintenance). Occasionally someone is going to sell a nice boat because they are moving up to something larger, but that doesn't seem to be as common in my home market (Seattle) at least.

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wmuchmore
1st Mate

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USA
56 Posts

Response Posted - 07/12/2012 : 19:53:03

If you haven't bought a boat yet, why not check out my 1980 C25 tall rig,fin keel? I'm putting it up for sale on Craigslist for $4,000, but open to offers.
The boat has a CDI furler with 135 genoa, Datamarine depth finder, 5 hp Mariner outboard, RayJeff radio. The hull is in excellent condition. Two reef lines, halyard and topping lift lead to the cockpit through Spinlock sheet stoppers.
The sails are admittedly tired but fine for non-racing.
The boat is in the water in Bayshore, Long Island.
If interested, please e-mail me at muchy1@verizon.net
Mike Muchmore
"Calamity Jane #2038

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Tomas Kruska
Admiral

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Czech Republic
522 Posts

Response Posted - 07/13/2012 : 00:24:43

That carpet on the walls is not original. If I were you I would check if its possible to take it off easily.

The anchor locker leak depends on the model year. I have 1978 and the anchor locker is not completely sealed from the V-berth.

This is my anchor locker during hatch repair. You can easily see that there is a fiberglass "bucket" that has drain hole in the bow but If the drain is clogged you have water on the walls.

Before:

After:

I think that starting from 81' or 82' Catalina changed that and sealed it properly.
Your leak can also be from stanchions bolts but that can be checked easily with the bucket of water splashed over the cabin.

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