What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

Water inside propeller blade

ATwemlow

I'm New Here
Has anyone experienced water ingress into sensenich propellor blade. Parking outside on ramp for a few months, and went to check the oil, and heard sloshing sound. put the sloshing blade vertical, and about 5 ounces of water dripped out over a couple of hours from inside the hub. I don’t remember what the hub end looks like but there must be a small hole somewhere into the void inside. I am guessing that this does not do anything good for the balance of the propeller until all the water is out. I think that I got the vast majority out but there must be some drops left inside. not sure how to dry it out.
 
Water in the hub is not a big problem, it will balance itself till it is slung out. But it should not be in there.

Now, water in the prop blade would be another issue.....:eek:
 
Water inside propellor blade

That happened to me. I parked my RV-6A on the ramp with the blades oriented vertically. The bottom blade got water inside and the prop was very unbalanced. I called Sensenich and was advised that "it can happen," and to ship the blades (both of them) back to Florida. I don't know what they did at the factory, but they returned them after a one-day turnaround and the problem hasn't recurred. If I park outside, I leave the prop horizontal, just in case.
 
We have seen instances where the plugs bonded into the root have worked loose. That would let the water come in. If Sensenich is willing to take them back that would be the best choice. The real answer should come from them.

Most of the complaints we know of are due to some of the lead shot bb’s used to balance the “tip weight” had broken loose and during the burping process, the prop sounds like a rain stick… Not exactly the effect most serious pilots are going for. Note this is rare and overall this is an amazing propeller in both performance and price.

All the more reason to follow the POH and burp the airplane / properly pre-flight the airplane. Thanks for the information we can include this in documentation in the future... hopefully, people read that document.

Rian
 
Last edited:
Back
Top