Tub drain access

[horhay1946]

I need to change the drain hose on the aft cabin tub on a 81 Tri cabin. I cannot find any access hatches or anything else. I do admit that my size does not allow me to crawl in some of the spaces, but I can access most areas. I have found many interesting things since the purchase and repair, such as a State water heater, and two extra gas fill on the port deck. These gas fill are abandoned and have been connected together to prevent someone filling the bilge with gas.

Anyway I an thinking I will have to cut an access hole in the mid bilge behind the port engine to be able to access the drain hose.

[larryeddington]

been down there in my 84 tri-cab and here is what I found. Mine has a full size bed over the fuel tank. The bed in the center of the cabin pretty much at the foot of it, which is forward, I have a removable hatch that is under the carpet there. Lifting the hatch cover, which is just plywood and not very large, you find a sump pump in the lowest part of the hull, the bath drains to it and a float lifts and pumps out. Now getting to the drain in the tub itself is another matter, I would guess it is accessible from the port side of the engine room, the same as the tub faucet. As you said you are a large fellow so you need to get a small person to dive in there, ( my son does this stuff for me, 45 but small enough to get in there assuming that is where you can gain access.

I think yours has bunks on each side, I bet the floorboards come put once carpet out of the way. Start digging down there and I bet you find a solution.

[horhay1946]

I finally found the access. The access Is through the vanity in the head. You remove the lower cabinet and you can get to the tub drain. I thought the sink was draining in the bilge but there is a T in the line to the sump. I am guessing that the hose is 30 year old stuff and was coming apart. The drain in the tub is zinc or some other pot metal that just broke apart.

One thing I found interesting was that the hose was held in a corner with modeling clay. I have never seen this before and I think there might be other ways to do this.

Right now I am awaiting parts to put it all back together and hopefully it will last another 30+ years.

[larryeddington]

what you call modeling clay may be a putty type of stuff derived out of production on natural gas and other gas such as propane and butane. Years ago they used it in the auto industry as well to deaden sound and hold things in place. Was not very good IMO.