What to cover the rod holder holes ?

B

bgreene

Banned
Saw a model at Westmarine with a rubber gasket attachment but too much money.

I want to keep water out of the rod holders - without it becoming too fussy.

Any " off the shelf " plugs ?

Maybe I should try a racquetball.
 
Am sure this has happened to someone, but when you trailer your boat and fuel it up you have to watch that the attendant don't put the gas nozzle in that rod holder. Oh want a terrible thought.:oh:
 
step up here said:
Am sure this has happened to someone, but when you trailer your boat and fuel it up you have to watch that the attendant don't put the gas nozzle in that rod holder. Oh want a terrible thought.:oh:
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Just in case you all dont know from the rest of the county here in NJ there is no self serve......but when I pull up with my boat those guys just walk up and hand you the nozzle and say "here you go". Gives you the feeling that somewhere along the way they have had that experience of putting gas where it doesnt belong and they want no part of messing with those damn boats.

as as plugs are concerned i have no idea....
 
i used to have a 19 mako with rod holders that were foamed in on the bottom. i think i used some old fashioned rubber sink stoppers to plug them.

never put gas in the rod holders, but had a friend put my live well feed in one. took me a while to figure out why the bilge pump came on every time we ran from spot to spot...
 
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It ain't purdy, but a piece of duct tape over the top works really well. And you can buy rod holder bottom drain caps. They have a fitting in the bottom of them... just run poly tubing from one to the next, daisy chain style and run the tube out the back to your splashwell... never have to worry about them again, and it helps keep your flotation foam dry.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/PERKO-SPD-2...ear&hash=item2eb29d53bb&vxp=mtr#ht_3149wt_908

Oh, and if you want to just seal the bottom off, so water doesn't get into your boat, just go to home depot or lowes and buy some rubber pipe caps in the plumbing asile. They are cheap, a perfect size, fit tightly and make the bottom of your rod holder watertight. The only problem with them is your rod holder can (and will) fill up with water eventually. So keep a battery syphon squeeze bulb around to take the water out.
 
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I am all for saving money, but you've got a beautiful boat. Spend the money to get the nice rubber gaskets. I've had them on mine for 6 years and they still look and work like the day I got them. They are fairly visible, so putting a cheap but effective alternative like rubber balls or duct tape isn't worth it.
 
buckleyjr said:
I am all for saving money, but you've got a beautiful boat. Spend the money to get the nice rubber gaskets. I've had them on mine for 6 years and they still look and work like the day I got them. They are fairly visible, so putting a cheap but effective alternative like rubber balls or duct tape isn't worth it.
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I totally agree, which is why I have the bottom caps with the drain in them. I can't be bothered with constantly opening and closing the caps on top, and this way I never have to worry about water getting down the holder when the cap is off. And they are not expensive either.
 
Not sure I can get to them since I re did the side rod holder sections and re installed to be fairly permanent......

I've just been looking for the right size plug but haven't found it yet, thanks all.
 
bgreene said:
Not sure I can get to them since I re did the side rod holder sections and re installed to be fairly permanent......

I've just been looking for the right size plug but haven't found it yet, thanks all.
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Ya, access to the base of the rod holders and the area under them is necessary for the drains to be installed. I think you're on the right track with the top plugs. :head:
 
I picked up a pair of stainless rod holders with a rubber cap at a garage sale. I think someone on here put rubber hoses on the ends that drained to the bilge to keep the water off the stringers. Maybe in Tsubaki's "Make my life easier" thread?
 
Today I opened up the side panels and found that the rod holders DID have a rubber flange on the bottom of each holder.

Only issue was - the small ( 1/4" ) hole at the bottom of each flange.

Anyway, went to Home Depot, got plumbers caps wiith clamp and installed.

Done.
 
bgreene said:
Today I opened up the side panels and found that the rod holders DID have a rubber flange on the bottom of each holder.

Only issue was - the small ( 1/4" ) hole at the bottom of each flange.

Anyway, went to Home Depot, got plumbers caps wiith clamp and installed.

Done.
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Which is what I said to do about 15000 posts ago. Just don't forget to get and carry a turkey baster along with you. Use it to suction out the water that will eventually accumulate in the rod holders. End of thread. :beer:
 
bradford said:
Ha!.... Destroyer you're funny! :you:
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LOL well thank you.. :)

But this time I was being serious. I use the same setup on my V, which is Greenies sister ship (both 96 V21s). And yes, I carry a turkey baster on my boat to suction out the water from the rod holders. It works great. Eventually the rod holders fill with water from spray, slop, washing, whatever... and since the bottoms of the holders have a solid cap on them to prevent any water from getting into the hold and the foam down there I needed a way to get the water out of the rod holders. A turkey baster works perfectly... it's long, slim and cheap and fits right down to the bottom of the holders.. a couple squeezes and you're done.
 
Its a boat, it gets wet! I never worried about it!! Of coarse this is from a guy that saw a huge black spot on his boat once, went over to see what it was, and it flew away! It was a swarm of flys on some old bait! The only cleaner or wax my boats have ever seen was a bottle of bleach from time to time!
 
macojoe said:
Its a boat, it gets wet! I never worried about it!! Of coarse this is from a guy that saw a huge black spot on his boat once, went over to see what it was, and it flew away! It was a swarm of flys on some old bait! The only cleaner or wax my boats have ever seen was a bottle of bleach from time to time!
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MJ, normally I'd agree with you, but after putting in the better part of a winter tearing out the deck and all the old, water saturated foam, then going thru the cost and work of putting in new foam and resealing the deck and etc etc etc... Well, I've come to believe that if I can keep the water out of there my foam will stay dryer longer. So I'm doing my damnist to do just that. The deck is sealed, I put in all new hatches and gaskets on the deck, sealed the rod holders bottoms, and repaired the tiny holes in the under gunnel rod holders corners. In short, I've made it as waterproof under the deck as I can think of.... and I'll be constantly checking to see if I've been successful.
 
Destroyer said:
LOL well thank you.. :)

But this time I was being serious. I use the same setup on my V, which is Greenies sister ship (both 96 V21s). And yes, I carry a turkey baster on my boat to suction out the water from the rod holders. It works great. Eventually the rod holders fill with water from spray, slop, washing, whatever... and since the bottoms of the holders have a solid cap on them to prevent any water from getting into the hold and the foam down there I needed a way to get the water out of the rod holders. A turkey baster works perfectly... it's long, slim and cheap and fits right down to the bottom of the holders.. a couple squeezes and you're done.
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I'm set up the same way - including turkey baster .
 
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