I want to decide whether or not to install self bailing on my Tolman
to go offshore. From what I can see, self bailing is installed on
boats with sealed decks with the scuppers roughly 3" above the deck.
My boat has no deck because I think it is important to have access to
the hull at all times. My current floatation is from two compartments
with screw on covers at bow and stern. I can even get into them if
necessary. This lack of deck means that any scuppers would be far
above the bottom of the boat and would not drain much water. Instead,
I rely on the inherent dryness of the boat (very high bow and sides)
and the completely sealed dry well in front of the motor and a large
3500 gph pump just in case. From my reading, I see that scuppers seem
to cause a lot of problems too. However, one web site stated flatly
that any boat going offshore had to have self bailing. So, thoughts?