[sjf7918]

Welcome to club. I have a 79 18' with the same problem. I just finished reworking all the plumbing in the floor. One thing I did to mine is I sealed of the well in the floor off totaly. I installed a Bronze thru-hull fitting and put a cap on the new fitting. Then I drilled a 1/2" hole in the rear, lowest corner of the well so that in case of a leak through the well, water could drain out the hole. Then I sealed the livewell shut w/silicone. This should help the cockpit to bail better. It will not weight the stern down as much as it would if it were full of water. I can send you pictures if you would like. I also removed the splashwell like you have and installed a 3/4" piece of starboard (similar to marks) 9 1/2" high. It is sealed off and all the water in the floor drains through the existing plumbing in the floor that I just redone completely. Seems to work fine. Mark had a good idea on his 18 replacing the doors w/sealed hatches. Let me know if I can help

Steve