Should there be a gasket on the drain plug?

speedyox

New Member
Is there supposed to be some kind of gasket on the hull drain plug?

The hull drain on my 1986 capri 14.2 consists of a white plastic plug that twists into a white plastic flange. I believe it's all original from the factory. When the boat is in the water, the hull doesn't fill up or anything, and water doesn't drain out when I'm back on the trailer and pull the plug. But it does feel damp inside the back of the hull and the cuddy always smells pretty musty. The plug doesn't seem all that tight and the hard plastic to hard plastic interface doesn't appear to be an ideal seal. That's what's got me thinking that maybe there was originally some kind of gasket that I need to replace.

If there is, does anyone have spec for it showing proper size and material? Thickness/Diameter? Buna N, Silicone, Rubber? O-ring, washer?

Thanks for your advice.
 
I bought a pair of standard off-the-shelf dinghy 1/4 turn drain plugs. The package included two plugs with thin gaskets. It has been a while but I bet they were less that $20 for the pair. I see something similar on APSLTD.com for less than $5 w/o the gasket. RWO 1/4 Turn Drain Plug, BUNG ONLY. Similar price for the whole assembly on Catalina direct. If you call and ask, the plugs may include gaskets.
Mine generally stays dry unless I forget to put the plug in. If you can't find one with a gasket, cut a gasket. It would have to be thin material, like a plastic divider sheet from a 3 ring notebook. Better if you could find something softer, mine look like they were cut from thin vinyl sheet.
 
Mine is an 86 model as well. The drain plug is black plastic with a red round rubber o-ring. The previous owner treated this boat like it was one of his children, so I wouldn't be surprised if he replaced the original at some point. I like this drain plug because it can't be fully removed without conciously unscrewing it out of the drain hole.

The second pic compares my current plug with a SeaDog brand plug you can find at most sporting goods stores. I've found in previous boats that the threads on the SeaDog plug may not be the same as the threads on a sailboat. I test fitted this one and while it doesn't go in as smoothly, it would probably work in an emergency to get you back to shore. So it stays in my waterproof tool box onboard. Also in the pic is a rubber drain that expands when you pull the T latch down. I have two of these to plug the cockpit scuppers when I'm washing the boat. They're too big for the drain hole.
 

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Caprintx, I think you have the Seachoice Transom Drain Plug Screw Type that I saw on Amazon. Check it out, if so, you can pick up spare and it may be a replacement unit for other 14.2 owners as well. Let us know.
 

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