Grumman Gang FAQ
Water Leaks
After the last flight I didn't replace my canopy cover. True to
my luck, we had a torrential rainstorm last night before I got back
to put it on. I figured th at I would have a lot of water in the
pilot's seat, and in the front floorboard. I didn't. In fact,
some papers that were ri ght under the pilot's feet didn't get
wet.
However, I had water all the way in the back floorboard. A tissue
box back there was soaked and the carpet is soaked. Even more
strangely, I had water all up in the pilots' feet area, all over
the rudder pedals and mechanisms.
We routinely get water into the cockpit when left standing in the
rain. From what we can see, it is getting in from the key lock on
the canopy. Sometimes, while under acceleration during the take-off
roll, we have water come down from the plastic flashing around that
area. We initially suspected the weather stripping around the
windscreen but the problem persists.
Water - I have the same problem when I don't use the canopy cover
and from all my tests it seems to come from the NASA air vent.
The way the a/c sits the vent takes in water like a small funnel
and then it drips down along the inside of the cockpit between
the skin and the interior fabric. It can make things rather humid
inside there until it gets dried out.
Your problem could be like that or a leak along the windscreen
since it is in the area of your feet --- but just had another
thought - could the rain been blown with your a/c facing into the
wind and the rain water came in the radio cooling tube and run in
that way?
Water leaks can be mysterious at best, unless you actually see the water
entering the cabin. You may need to get out your flashlight and lay under
the panel while someone hits the airplane with water from a garden hose.
It may be that both chunks of water you have are from a single leak, with
a non-obvious path between them; e.g. a leak at the base of the windshield
allowing water in around the rudder pedals, then the water finding its way
to the read along an outboard corner or via the center console. Water
(and other fluids like oil and fuel) can often travel great distances
undetected and emerge someplace that has nothing to do with where the leak
actually occurs. You also may have two (or more) leaks someplace.