Is my boat waterlogged?

Recently bought a 2001 SeaArk 170. Bottom of hull is dented pretty bad from stumps he hit over the years. I noticed when I took it out that the boat sits level while fishing, but as soon as I give it gas the boat leans hard to the front left and pushes in the water. When I removed drain plug the other day, noticed some water and small chunks of styrofoam coming out. I’m guessing it’s waterlogged and needs replaced? Or would a dented hull cause it to ride like this? Previous owner swears it didn’t leak or do this but I don’t think he’s being honest about it

How bad are the dents?

Ive heard of the foam in Tracker Grizzlies getting waterlogged and guys taking it out. I’m not sure if that’s a thing with other brands or not but it would seem like they’d all be using a similar foam product?

Floatation foam used to be open cell meaning it would become waterlogged.
At some point in time manufacturers changed to closed cell foam that is not supposed to become waterlogged. I have cut the floor out of an older 60's model boat. Removed all the waterlogged foam, replaced the floor and poured new foam through holes in the floor. Then fiberglassed the floor in. This was on a glass boat

Pretty bad but they are on both sides not just the left one

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Originally Posted by DockShootinJack

Floatation foam used to be open cell meaning it would become waterlogged.
At some point in time manufacturers changed to closed cell foam that is not supposed to become waterlogged. I have cut the floor out of an older 60's model boat. Removed all the waterlogged foam, replaced the floor and poured new foam through holes in the floor. Then fiberglassed the floor in. This was on a glass boat

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ya and with it being an older boat it might have open cell. I’m gonna have to pull it all out more than likely. Just wasn’t sure why it doesn’t lean at all while not moving

I can't explain that one. With the foam out a lot of the dents could be hammered out from the inside. To check weather it is waterlogged a small hole drilled from the deck and a wire inserted will tell the tale.

Here is some stuff for you to consider

Why A Boat Pulls To The Right or Left: Fix It The Right Way!

4 Most Common Reasons Why Your Boat Leans To One Side

Boat leaning to one side while throttling up? | Boating Forum - iboats Boating Forums

It wont be waterlogged unless it was stored outdoors, should be pretty easy to tell by the condition of the carpet/interior.

Id be more concerned that the hull is compromised from all the dents (welds cracking, supports bent, etc), and overall condition of the boat since it sounds like the guy obviously didn't care about the boat much if he put large dents in it multiple times.

If the interior looks bad, then yeah you probably need to do a full restoration here.... pull the flooring and replace if needed. Pull all the foam out and beat the dents back out of it along with checking all the support ribs and welds. Then put new flooring down and some new foam (for noise dampening mostly) and new carpet. It is a HUGE job and not one you are going to do in a couple hours on a saturday. If you get into it and find damage, you'll need to find someone who can weld alum and fix that as well.

Some of the foam is structural to the boat. On some of the glass boats the foam holds the boat ridged. Thier are different grades of foam as well depending on how strong the foam is required to be.

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Originally Posted by DockShootinJack

Some of the foam is structural to the boat. On some of the glass boats the foam holds the boat ridged. Thier are different grades of foam as well depending on how strong the foam is required to be.

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On alum boats its is for noise dampening and floatation if "sunk". There are welded struts and ribs that are the structural reinforcement.

Contact manufacturer and ask them what foam they used. My 1989 Tracker PF16 has closed cell sprayed in foam.
SeaArk is a top notch company and is known for their quality. They used to have a lifetime warranty on their hulls. Don't know their terms and limitations tho.

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Originally Posted by Kevin22

It wont be waterlogged unless it was stored outdoors, should be pretty easy to tell by the condition of the carpet/interior.

Id be more concerned that the hull is compromised from all the dents (welds cracking, supports bent, etc), and overall condition of the boat since it sounds like the guy obviously didn't care about the boat much if he put large dents in it multiple times.

If the interior looks bad, then yeah you probably need to do a full restoration here.... pull the flooring and replace if needed. Pull all the foam out and beat the dents back out of it along with checking all the support ribs and welds. Then put new flooring down and some new foam (for noise dampening mostly) and new carpet. It is a HUGE job and not one you are going to do in a couple hours on a saturday. If you get into it and find damage, you'll need to find someone who can weld alum and fix that as well.

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The carpet is original and not in bad shape. He claimed it was always garage kept but lied about some other things so who knows..

Closed cell foam should be fine

Give a call to SeaArk, they are a tuff boat with hull warranty. They are in Arkansas. Worth your time to give them a call.

:hesaid

Or maybe it’s not waterlogged? If it only does it under acceleration and not while fishing or at low speeds, could it be a trim tab or bent skeg? Not sure if those would cause a hard lean tho

Does the boat have trim tabs?

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Originally Posted by DockShootinJack

Does the boat have trim tabs?

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I adjusted the trim gave yesterday, hopping to take it out on Sunday and see if it helped

Look up the manufacturers weight for the boat and the trailer, add the weight of the motor and a couple hundred pounds for gear. If you are grossly over that you are waterlogged...

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Just for information purposes, I recently helped a friend redo his Sea Arc same boat as yours. Completely dis assembled rewired with new seat bases and carpet. The foam is nothing but blocks of open cell foam just cut and shoved in every nock and cranny. I doubt it is water logged. First thing I would check would be to see if motor is mounted square on transom. I also doubt the dents would affect it. Probably a unique characteristic to that hull design coupled how you might have it loaded.

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Originally Posted by Cray

Just for information purposes, I recently helped a friend redo his Sea Arc same boat as yours. Completely dis assembled rewired with new seat bases and carpet. The foam is nothing but blocks of open cell foam just cut and shoved in every nock and cranny. I doubt it is water logged. First thing I would check would be to see if motor is mounted square on transom. I also doubt the dents would affect it. Probably a unique characteristic to that hull design coupled how you might have it loaded.

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Ya I noticed it was just blocks of foam in there. I moved a spare battery I had around the boat for weight distribution and it held a little. But still leans some. I can get it to about 25 mph before it starts to lean now

My guess would be motor tucked into transom too far. Power trim? Trim it out. If not move the pin one hole away from transom. Also look at the "torque tab" under the anti-ventilation plate. For a boat wanting to go left you want to turn the tab CCW looking from top. (moving front of tab to the left)
If the boat is not listing while stationary then it is unlikely a weight issue.

Yes bad dents can cause the stern to force bow down causing it to suction to the water & not break loose. Do you by chance have a hydrofoil on the motor because they can cause the exact same issue with forcing bow down. Been there done that.

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Originally Posted by Les Young

Yes bad dents can cause the stern to force bow down causing it to suction to the water & not break loose. Do you by chance have a hydrofoil on the motor because they can cause the exact same issue with forcing bow down. Been there done that.

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I do not have hydrofoil. And I now also think the dents is what’s causing it, after playing around with weight distribution some more

Can you post a picture of the dents? I’m just curious how big they are.