Brodhead Pietenpol Association

Original Posted By: Aron(at)hrn.bradley.edu
Hi allWhat is done to prevent trouble from rainwater filling up the hollow aileronhorns? And the rudder and elevator(flippers)horns just the same. Also if thePiet is tied down and the magnito recess,shelf fills with water it wouldjust pool there. Is this a problem? Also are there any drain holes in theplywood flooring to allow rain drainage? I live in Washington state,the westside. the rains are frequent here and I expect to fly in rain ,no joke.Cheers ,Steve Yahn________________________________________________________________________________

Original Posted By: TLC62770
HI STEVE ON OUR PIET WE ARE INSTALLING WEEP HOLES IN THE BOTTOM OF THE FUELSAGE .WHEN YOU INSTALL THE COVERING INSTALL 1/4 IN. NYLON GORMETS RO ALLOW WATER TODRAIN OUT . LOOK AT YOUR CAR DOORS AND TRUNK LID . THEY SHOULD HAVE WEEPHOLES IN THEM . IF NOT USE A 5/32 DRILL AND PUT THEM IN THE LOWEST SPOT YOUCAN WITHOUT BEING SEEN FROM THE OUT SIDE . REPAINT THE METAL SO IT DOESN'TRUST , AND EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE RUN A WIRE UP THE HOLES TO KEEP THEM CLEARWHEN YOU WASH THE CAR OR THE AIRPLANE GOOD LUCK . TLC62770(at)AOL.COM________________________________________________________________________________

Original Posted By: "D.J.H."
>Hi all>>What is done to prevent trouble from rainwater filling up the hollow aileron>horns? And the rudder and elevator(flippers)horns just the same. Also if the>Piet is tied down and the magnito recess,shelf fills with water it would>just pool there. Is this a problem? Also are there any drain holes in the>plywood flooring to allow rain drainage? I live in Washington state,the west>side. the rains are frequent here and I expect to fly in rain ,no joke.>>Cheers ,Steve Yahn>We had trouble with water collection in the rear of the fuselage. We keptit in a hanger but one day on a rough landing the tail wheel ripped rightoff the plane, with some of the wood staying on the tail wheel brackets.Found out later that the plane had been stored outside some of its life andthe owner poked holes in the covering to let out all the water at leastonce. The wood had just rotted away. When we repaired it we put some draingrommets in the lowest spots of the fuselage (with the tail wheel on theground). We actually used seaplane grommets but that was probably overkill.Didn't have the shelf for the mag. You may want to put a few small holes inthe rear of the shelf to allow any water to drain but this might also allowa little oil into the cockpit. A few small holes in the floor by the rearseat would allow water to drain into the rear fuselage and out the drainholes in the rear. This was never a problem and don't remember if there areany holes there. BTW, this was in western Oregon, where it rains over 100" a year. Flying inthe rain isn't too bad; most of the water blows right by. But when you stopyou get soaked. This isn't recommended but in that part of the country ishard to avoid once in a while.Happy building!Jim________________________________________________________________________________