"Marty Schulze" wrote in message
...
Thanking those who responded. The fact about isolated bilges seems
clarified, and this is important for me to figure what is going on. Also,
I gather the contained shower sump keeps the soapy runoff out of the
bilge.

IF it is, in fact, operational, it is designed to collect shower drainage
*and other drainage that is routed to the sump* (extremely important
concept) and therefore keep it out of the forward bilge compartment. If it
has gone non-functional, it will, in fact, overflow and fill the compartment
with all drainage sources plumbed to the sump. You must inspect the sump.
You will likely see more than one inlet hose going into the sump, and only
one outlet hose. They should all be labeled. Since you admit that you
haven't used the shower in quite some time, you absolutely need to test the
sump pump to see if it is operational. Run some water through the shower
drain and see if the pump is turned on via the internal float switch being
floated by the shower runoff. If it does not turn on, which I believe is a
distinct possibility, you have found your problem. If the sump is
operational, then you know you have to look elsewhere for the water source.

By design, there is no way for water to enter the forward compartment
directly. That's why there's no pump in the compartment other than the one
in the sump. That doesn't mean that something hasn't gone wrong somewhere,
and is allowing water to enter the compartment, but it's not as likely as
water entering the sump by design, but the sump not pumping the water
overboard and therefore allowing it to overflow into the compartment.
Here's some possible scenarios:

1. Rain water is leaking into the head area (shower), possibly through an
open or defective portlight, and is draining by design into a non-functional
sump, then overflowing into the compartment.

2. Rain water is draining by design from one of the other plumbed drain
sources into a non-functional sump, then overflowing into the compartment.

3. One of the inlet hoses to the sump has come off the sump or is otherwise
leaking its contents into the compartment before it gets to the sump.

4. Rain water is leaking into the cabin, soaking the cabin floor, then
filling the compartment (reverse thinking from your assumption that the
water is first going into the compartment and then overflowing onto the
cabin floor).

5. Rain water is indeed leaking directly into the forward bilge compartment
due to some defect that has appeared somewhere in the boat, and then
overflowing onto the cabin floor.

Understand this. These self contained pumps are cheaply constructed and
very much prone to failure. Your boat is a 1998 model. If your sump hasn't
failed, it's past due. Mine is a 1999 model, and the wiring in the sump has
failed twice. And if the pump in the sump is non-functional, any water
entering the sump WILL overflow into the compartment, and then overflow onto
the cabin floor. I've had it happen twice. The first step in your
diagnosis should be to determine if the sump pump is functional. It's an
extremely easy thing to test. Takes two minutes by running water into the
sump from the shower drain and waiting for the pump to activate. Also, the
sump is designed to be serviced by the owner. There is a filter of sorts
inside the sump that collects hair and soap scum, and needs to be cleaned
periodically to keep water flowing correctly into the sump.

If the sump is operational, then your best approach would be to have someone
stand on the foredeck (and just about everywhere else) with a water hose,
spraying down the boat with as much water volume as can be mustered, while
you are in the cabin looking for leaks. The leak could manifest itself
directly in the forward bilge compartment, but allow for other possibilites.
The water could be taking a circuitous route to the compartment.