Water in the bottom of the hull.

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cptndavid
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Water in the bottom of the hull.

Post by cptndavid »

I had about an inch of water in the bottom of the hull of my airplane. This caused the auto pilot trim to malfunction and the fuel temp.sensor in the right wing to go off scale. We removed the water and let the airplane dry for a few days , everything went back to normal. I found a drain hole that was dirty and cleaned it with a chop stick. I am now adding the hole cleaning to my check list.
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Steve
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Re: Water in the bottom of the hull.

Post by Steve »

David:

I didn't realize that a wading pool was on the DA42 option list... ;)

On a more serious note, at least in the DA40 AMM, there is a diagram of all of the drain holes, and one of the items in the Annual Inspection checklist is to verify that they are all clear and open. I found that it was easiest to do this check when the interior was out, since from a creeper under the airplane, it was easy to see light through the holes. You should also try to determine the source of the water (bad door seal, kids spilling their sippy cups, passenger with bladder issues, etc.).

Steve
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CFIDave
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Re: Water in the bottom of the hull.

Post by CFIDave »

Steve wrote: Wed May 06, 2020 9:43 pm David:

I didn't realize that a wading pool was on the DA42 option list... ;)
I'll bet David forgot to order the bilge pump option... :D
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ememic99
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Re: Water in the bottom of the hull.

Post by ememic99 »

cptndavid wrote: Wed May 06, 2020 9:20 pm I had about an inch of water in the bottom of the hull of my airplane. This caused the auto pilot trim to malfunction and the fuel temp.sensor in the right wing to go off scale. We removed the water and let the airplane dry for a few days , everything went back to normal. I found a drain hole that was dirty and cleaned it with a chop stick. I am now adding the hole cleaning to my check list.
Same happened to me two years ago.
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Re: Water in the bottom of the hull.

Post by jb642DA »

cptndavid wrote: Wed May 06, 2020 9:20 pm I had about an inch of water in the bottom of the hull of my airplane. This caused the auto pilot trim to malfunction and the fuel temp.sensor in the right wing to go off scale. We removed the water and let the airplane dry for a few days , everything went back to normal. I found a drain hole that was dirty and cleaned it with a chop stick. I am now adding the hole cleaning to my check list.
David - is your plane kept in a hangar or tied down? Thanks
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cptndavid
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Re: Water in the bottom of the hull.

Post by cptndavid »

I keep my airplane tied down. My airport has no hangers wide enough for the wingspan.
I did not think to order the bilge pump option because all of my boats came with at least one pump and one of the boats had three, they too were fiber. All of my prior airplanes were tin and one could drill a hole at the low spot.
I have to determine the intrusion point and seal it, In the mean time I will continue to check the weep hole and the bilge for water.
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Re: Water in the bottom of the hull.

Post by jb642DA »

Thanks
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hap
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Re: Water in the bottom of the hull.

Post by hap »

Hi David
Where was the drain hole?
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cptndavid
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Re: Water in the bottom of the hull.

Post by cptndavid »

The holes are under the cockpit, you can see them under the airplane, a creeper is nice for easy access. I use a chop stick to open them. Stick your chop stick in the holes and clear the hole.if the stick comes out wet there is water in hull. You can download the shop manual from the Diamond web site. You can than look up all things about your airplane.
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Re: Water in the bottom of the hull.

Post by CBeak »

This has me wondering about the DA40. I’m in a hangar....in the desert....but I get a warning for right fuel tank low on takeoff, and my autopilot trim recently failed while I was descending and about 1 minute before I was to cross the line below class B airspace.
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