Stern gland failure
Oct 19, 2008 16:59:00 GMT
Post by pjbyers on Oct 19, 2008 16:59:00 GMT
Our Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 49' 2004 has been on the hard in Trinidad for annual maintenance checks. We had experienced no problems with the boats performance prior to lifting. Maintenance complete the boat was re launched and moved 50 metres to a slip. We checked again for leaks and found that we were taking in significant amounts of sea water via the shaft opening. We were lifted back onto the hard and a surveyor and engineer were called.
Both confirmed that the tube surrounding the shaft had delaminated causing the leakage. These were removed for closer inspection. This revealed that the tube surrounding the shaft had completely delaminated. When relaunched the dried out material had swelled and closed tightly on the shaft, resulting in them both spinning together. The length of the pipe was glued to the outer hull with compound and the ends only secured with sitroflex type material. The spinning unit had ripped the soft rubberised end caps off allowing sea water to flow in.
We contacted Jeanneau to claim under warranty and they responded saying the problem was due to poor maintenance and misalignment.
Our boat has always been regularly maintened and the surveyor confirms no signs of misalignment. We are concerned that other owners keep a close watch on their sternglands and would be interested to hear from anyone else who may have experienced a similar problem.
The surveyor and the engineer both confirmed that in their view the problem had arisen due to manufacturer fault. The pipe surrounding the shaft had not been properly laminated and the overall design of the stern gland was poor. They both agreed there was no evidence of misalignment. The engineers have repaired ensuring that the tube surrounding the shaft is laminated lenghways rather than in circular manner around the tube and by fibreglassing the tube firmly to the hull at both ends. Good German technology.
Both confirmed that the tube surrounding the shaft had delaminated causing the leakage. These were removed for closer inspection. This revealed that the tube surrounding the shaft had completely delaminated. When relaunched the dried out material had swelled and closed tightly on the shaft, resulting in them both spinning together. The length of the pipe was glued to the outer hull with compound and the ends only secured with sitroflex type material. The spinning unit had ripped the soft rubberised end caps off allowing sea water to flow in.
We contacted Jeanneau to claim under warranty and they responded saying the problem was due to poor maintenance and misalignment.
Our boat has always been regularly maintened and the surveyor confirms no signs of misalignment. We are concerned that other owners keep a close watch on their sternglands and would be interested to hear from anyone else who may have experienced a similar problem.
The surveyor and the engineer both confirmed that in their view the problem had arisen due to manufacturer fault. The pipe surrounding the shaft had not been properly laminated and the overall design of the stern gland was poor. They both agreed there was no evidence of misalignment. The engineers have repaired ensuring that the tube surrounding the shaft is laminated lenghways rather than in circular manner around the tube and by fibreglassing the tube firmly to the hull at both ends. Good German technology.
