OH CHIT! There is water in the boat.

[amcmac]

These were the first words my wife yelled at me when she dropped me last night. Guess who forgot to put the plug in. Water got up to about the floor level on my X7. About half of the starter was in the water. It was getting dark so I couldn't see the tranny very well. How screwed am I? Should I be doing anything. Any help is much appreciated. Also, do you guys have any routines or processes that help you not to forget the plug?

[tex]

Lay it in the driver's seat!

[OldGlory]

tex said it best (IMO)...driver's seat! That way it will end up where it should be, or where it shouldn't be

[CantRepeat]

I put a small lanyard on mine and I lace it around the steering wheel.


If the water was that high I wouldn't even question it, I would drain and refill the transmission twice. I'd run it for say an hour and check it for foam.

[dmminfla]

I put mine in the cup holder on the dash.

[coz]

Originally Posted by CantRepeat

I put a small lanyard on mine and I lace it around the steering wheel.


.

I put mine in the cup holder on the dash.

I put mine in the threaded hole on the bottom of the boat so no water gets in

[06197ttlq9-footer]

Usually I am the one that puts the boat on the trailer and as I am being pulled out of the water then I remove the plug. It remains out until I arrive home and after the bilge is wiped with a towel the plug goes back in. When arriving at the lake as the boat is being backed into the water I double check it visually. 20+ years and I have put the boat in once without the plug because I laid it in the floor in front of the drivers seat. And the one time I did it the boat didn't get off the trailer because of my visual double check. It's a drain plug use it to drain the remaining water from the hull and put it back.....no problem.

[MattsCraft]

I only forgot it once; however I was still on the trailer. (V-Drive) Part of my launch routine is after the boat is in the water, still hooked up, I start the boat, lift the rear hatches and check to make sure the engine is getting water via the Perko flush kit (love that thing) and the rear bilge and hoses for any water. The one time I forgot the plug, water was gushing into the bilge, quickly had the driver pull up, put in the plug and all is good.

Using this routine will guarantee everything is working properly etc. before you leave the dock! This only takes a few seconds and I think the safest and best insurance policy you can have!

[loeweb]

Put mine in the glovebox. I guess I have been lucky so far in that I remember to lift the motorbox before every outting, and put the plug in at that time.

[vision]

Originally Posted by coz

I put mine in the threaded hole on the bottom of the boat so no water gets in

LOL

I agree. Seems to be a safe location.