saturated keel

[rdhill]

I have a1977 Com-Pac 16 bought last fall. I've sailed about 6 times and noticed I was getting water in the anchor well and the forward bilge. Looked close the last time out and there is a small hole in the aft end of the anchor well with water bubbling up. About two gallons in 3 hours on the water. The keel was weeping water when I got home with the boat on the trailer. I drilled a 3/16 hole in the forward lower tip of the keel and about a gallon came out. This boat needs a deck off rebuild because all the inside wood is rotted and the bilge fiberglass is delaminated, but my questions are: should I be planning to remove and replace all the concrete in the keel and if I patch and seal the keel for now is she safe to sail for the rest of the summer.
Second problem is the ceiling of the cabin is delaminated. The outside and inside fiberglass are still attached to the outside and inside layers of the plywood, but the internal plywood layers are shot. Can I just epoxy the outside and inside back together and then strengthen the deck by adding a layer of plywood on the inside? Thanks.

[hinmo]

Not really an answer to above post, but a further question.

1) How do I know if my keel is saturated?....other than added weight, who cares?
2) is it safe to drill a couple holes in the exterior of the keel off-season for draining, then filling with West-System?

Thanks

[Duckie]

I'm a bit concerned with ice forming inside my keel during winter.  If water is inside the fiberglass and soaked the concrete, I am afraid that it will expand and crack the keel open. 
Am I worried for nothing?

Al

[relamb]

I've heard of the keel expanding and cracking, and also the same with the rudder on the CP27.  Water gets in the top where the rudder shaft enters the fiberglass.
Being concerned therefore:
a) On my 1989 CP23 I drilled a couple of holes below what looked like maybe be faint crack in the lower part of the keel.  Nothing came out, it was completely dry, so I epoxied them closed, sanded and refinished, including the crack which must have been only a surface crack in the gelcoat.
b) On my 1988 CP 27, somebody mentioned drilling a hole in the bottom of the rudder (and also the keel) every year, letting it drain, and then repairing in spring.  My boat was in the water all winter in FL, and hauled out now for a bottom job.  For the heck of it, I drilled a 3/8" hole in the top of the rudder for a breather vent, and two other holes in the bottom.  nothing came out of one hole, but about 1/4-1/2 cup of water came out of the other.  In the process of sanding down to bare gelcoat, the leading edge of the rudder appeared to have some minor dings.  Sanding through the expoxy barrier coat, they immediately started seeping rusty water.   ...so there's water in there, but didn't seem to be alot.
Prior to my purchase the boat was in and out of the water every year in Cleveland, so 26 years of freezing/thawing didn't affect it, despite the water being inside the rudder.
c) to find where the water was coming in, I sealed off the holes except one, jammed an air nozzle into it with 50psi and a duct tape plug around the air nozzle to make a good seal. Soapy water did indeed show bubbles and a slight leak around the shaft, but not bad especially for 50psi.  I should have blown out a seal if there was one in there.

My solution - do nothing for now.  I'll plug the holes that I drilled, maybe dry and put a little caulk/seal where the shaft goes into the rudder, and forget about it.  If the boat's up north where it's going to freeze, I might drill another hole or two in the bottom of the rudder in winters.  I will certainly do the same test on the keel.
Won't do anything else unless a lot more than a half cup comes out, in which case I'll drop the rudder and see what I have to do (can't get to it while on the boat).
My  concern besides freezing would be deterioration of the resin.  Boats blister because water dissolves resin over time.  On the outside, you have bottom paint, barrier coats and gelcoat.  But what about water on the inside of the hull or rudder?  That which did drain out of my rudder sure had a strong fiberglass smell.