Suspect that Muskrat Love Almost Sank Another QCYC Boat

I was ready to leave the club on Saturday, January 7 when I heard there were members out on Dock One trying to keep a boat from sinking.  Like any QCYC member would do, I went out to lend a hand.

One of the larger vessels in the club was listing very precipitously to starboard. The owners were out of town for the day. Andy Gerde, Dick and Elin Storey, Vice Commodore John and Debbie Hieber, along with some other members were doing anything and everything imaginable to save the boat. Andy and Dick Storey gained entry to the boat and hooked up an additional bilge pump.

We wondered whether the port side water tank might be empty. It was, so we added probably 1600 pounds of H2O ballast to the high side of the boat. Pumping and ballasting efforts paid off. Over the course of about half an hour, the boat resumed its normal trim.

After the water level in the bilge receeded, somebody reported that the water was coming in "through a hole in the side of the exhaust hose."

Most likely, muskrats.

The little critters are almost everywhere in Portage Bay. Their nests consist of tunnels dug into the bank. A sufficient distance back from the entrance, they claw out a 90-degree bend, angled up to get above the waterline (if necessary) and create a cozy spot for muskrat procreation.

To a muskrat with romance on the brain, the exhaust ports of our boats look like ready made tunnels, conveniently near the waterline. "Hey, hey, hey, babe! More than half the work is already done! Let's move in here, and we'll have more time for messin' around!"

It's that 90-degree bend that sinks, or can sink, a boat. The critters bite and scratch their way right through a rubber exhaust hose. It's a tough job, but visions of an impending honeymoon inspire them to dig, dig, dig, dig, dig and eventually they breach the exhaust hose.

If the breach is at a point where the exhaust hose is routed below the waterline, water begins entering the bilge.

Another member suffered a very serious loss due to muskrat damage two (I believe it was two) winters ago.

What to do? Rig up something to block your exhaust system. I use a piece of wood, secured by a rope. Some of the local boatyards will sell you a fancy set of stainless steel bars to secure to your exhaust outlet, and that has the advantage of always being in place so you won't forget to reinstall it.

Many of our members have *already* protected their boats against Muskrat Love. If you have not protected *yours*- the odds of your exhaust system becoming confused withi a love nest for muskrats go up. When we get down to just one boat in the marina without exhaust protection- guess where the little critters are going to go....