brown water, not good I bet right?

[Mooneys]

I was installing my new jackplate yesterday and noticed a weird brown stain on the back starboard side of the transome under the swim step. Upon further inspection it was a wet brown drip mark running from my tie down hook to the bottom of the hull. I checked inside the hull and there was no water there and it's been 48 hours since it was in the water. I am guessing but brown water seaping out of a bolt hole means a wet transome right?

What should I do?

[Chris]

Could someone have used some non SS hardware?

[JW]

Transom is probably damp, but don't panic. Make sure all of your thru transom hardware is stainless steel and re-seal them all with good 3M 5200 sealant.
After that, just drive the boat like normal and watch for stress cracking. That's a thick transom there, but it will crack over time. When it get's bad, get it fixed. Not too big a deal if you just re-inforce it from the inside with new big knee braces tied to the stringers and to the underside of the splashwell. Buddy of mine had his done this spring for under $800.

[Mooneys]

It all looks like SS so I kind of think it's a damp transom.

JW - I saw B-Mac over at S&F redid his old Starflite and that looks like a great job he did, but I also saw someone with a different boat reinforce with Aluminum knees and an Aluminum plate bolted to the transom and stringers. Any reason not to use Aluminum instead of wood and fiberglass?

I also see a lot of posts about removing the wet foam in front of the bulk head and under the floor. If I do this over the winter do I need to put anything back for structural strenth or is this foam just for USCG floatation regs?

[JW]

Fiberglassed transom knees bonded to original stringers are the most correct way to beef a transom, while bolting new stuff on top of old is second choice.