Replacing ballast valve

Kevin · Post by **Kevin** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 7:55 am

The vent tube idea is interesting but I don't know if it would work. It seems like if you laid the boat over it would drain either into the cabin or at least over the side if you ran the line overboard.

I've had the Dwen laying on her side for what seemed like a very long time. She didn't self right until I got the sails loose and pulled down. The water in the sails seemed to keep her layed over.

Duane Dunn, Allegro · Post by **Duane Dunn, Allegro** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 9:27 am

The vent tube is a mod that many people have done. A common way to do it is to run the tube forward under the vee berth then up to the anchor locker drain tube so it vents overboard if water ever does leak out. In theory if you turn the boat on it's side you would vent ballast overboard, but the small tube certainly can't drain the tank very fast so you won't loose much. Eventually you will come up against a vacuum lock that will stop the flow. It's the upside down glass effect. Be sure and put a loop in the tube up high in the bow so water in the anchor locker doesn't drain into the tank. Some even get fancy and put whistles in the line so you can tell when the tank is full and close the transom valve.

BobK · Post by **BobK** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 8:34 pm

Frank C, I just drilled through the transom and routed the wires up to the helm with other control cables. I am surprised at some of the respones, maybe we should keep mods to ourselves.

Dimitri-2000X-Tampa · Post by **Dimitri-2000X-Tampa** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 6:09 am

Bob, don't take it too seriously, its all in fun and jest. Sometimes, people who know each other pretty well just can't resist a "jab" here and there especially when a bunch of us are engineers and you know how much engineers love to change things.

Post by **kmclemore** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 8:05 am

BobK wrote:Frank C, I just drilled through the transom and routed the wires up to the helm with other control cables. I am surprised at some of the respones, maybe we should keep mods to ourselves.

No, Bob, there's lots of us who haven't commented on it, but that think your mod is pretty slick... it's all horses for courses, naturally, but I liked it!

As for thin skins, Moe, who the hull are you to call US ENGINEERS thin skinned...!!!???!!! Jeezz... Some guys. Harrumph.

(In case you hadn't guessed, Moe, I'm only kidding! Heck if you lived nearby I'd hire you to go through my boat's electrics... they're a mess and you're a master! Any cance of you getting to Phila?

Jeff Ritsema · Post by **Jeff Ritsema** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 12:13 pm

I have a vent tube installed on the port midship hull about 1 foot above the water line. It is nice having the passive system. I also have a "Tank Watch" indicator installed on the top of the ballast tank and is linked to an LED signal light when the tank is full. The LED is visible from the helmsman station which is an added safety net regarding the ballast tank status. The LED goes off if the tank is not full. Under all sailing and motoring conditions, I have not yet seen any time where the LED went off. I have also checked the tank level numerous times through the manual vent to assure the accuracy of the Tank Watch system.

richandlori · Post by **richandlori** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 3:34 pm

Jeff
I got to hear more about the LED ballast tank indicator! That sounds great. Can you give some additional details about components, instalation, and any "warnings" if I was to try the same Mod?

I like the thought of a quick glance check to make sure the ballast is full. Have you ever drained it a bit and verified that is works?

Thanks

Rich

PS: I live in California, but will be flying out to Grand Rapids, MI tomarrow for a three day business trip to US Filter, what type of wether can I expect?

Regards

Jeff Ritsema · Post by **Jeff Ritsema** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 4:55 pm

RichandLori wrote:Jeff
I got to hear more about the LED ballast tank indicator! That sounds great. Can you give some additional details about components, instalation, and any "warnings" if I was to try the same Mod?

I like the thought of a quick glance check to make sure the ballast is full. Have you ever drained it a bit and verified that is works?

Thanks

Rich

PS: I live in California, but will be flying out to Grand Rapids, MI tomarrow for a three day business trip to US Filter, what type of wether can I expect?

Regards

Rich,
I have info on the ballast tank meter and the LED, but I think I'll wait to post it until I've snapped a picture or two to accompany the info. Should be posted by the time your back home. You missed the best weather month of Sept that we've ever enjoyed in Mich. Set all sorts of records. The forcasts are for generally sunny weather but highs in the low 60's and lows in the 30-40's. The Mrs. and I are going out tomorrow for a season ending, UGH!, sail in the afternoon. Should be interesting though- forcast for 25-30 Knot winds and waves building to 5-7 ft on Lk Mich.
You can leave your shorts home- take a sweater. No snow. That's in the Upper Penisula of Mich. Hope you enjoy your stay in our fair city.

Go Blue.
Jeff.

Jeff Ritsema · Post by **Jeff Ritsema** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 4:55 pm

RichandLori wrote:Jeff
I got to hear more about the LED ballast tank indicator! That sounds great. Can you give some additional details about components, instalation, and any "warnings" if I was to try the same Mod?

I like the thought of a quick glance check to make sure the ballast is full. Have you ever drained it a bit and verified that is works?

Thanks

Rich

PS: I live in California, but will be flying out to Grand Rapids, MI tomarrow for a three day business trip to US Filter, what type of wether can I expect?

Regards

Rich,
I have info on the ballast tank meter and the LED, but I think I'll wait to post it until I've snapped a picture or two to accompany the info. Should be posted by the time your back home. You missed the best weather month of Sept that we've ever enjoyed in Mich. Set all sorts of records. The forcasts are for generally sunny weather but highs in the low 60's and lows in the 30-40's. The Mrs. and I are going out tomorrow for a season ending, UGH!, sail in the afternoon. Should be interesting though- forcast for 25-30 Knot winds and waves building to 5-7 ft on Lk Mich.
You can leave your shorts home- take a sweater. No snow. That's in the Upper Penisula of Mich. Hope you enjoy your stay in our fair city.

Go Blue.
Jeff.

Hubert · Post by **Hubert** » Mon Oct 04, 2004 5:52 am

I replaced the vent plug with a 3/4" ball valve. This is much easier and faster for the crew to open & close ( 1/4 turn)

Frank C · Post by **Frank C** » Mon Oct 04, 2004 12:03 pm

BobK wrote:Frank C, I just drilled through the transom and routed the wires up to the helm with other control cables. I am surprised at some of the respones, maybe we should keep mods to ourselves.

Bob,
Some comments remind me of eighth grade ... I can still hear my Dad commenting at the Olds dealer that radio, A/C and power windows were just something else that could need fixing (circa 1960?):!:

Anyway, my ballast valve is led to the pedestal via an old throttle cable. I like your solution better. Also, my ballast vent is led to the anchor locker via a one-inch plastic hose, over-looped at the bow to prevent locker drainage. This is a completely passive vent solution ... you never need to open it, you never need to close it. The ballast tank is open-air via the looped hose.

An LED ballast indicator won't add much value for me, since I believe in consciously forcing a slight over-fill by walking to the bow just before closing the aft valve. Maybe I'd like to have a dual buttons on that electric valve, one at the helm and the other at pulpit.

Eric Lowe · Post by **Eric Lowe** » Mon Oct 04, 2004 12:36 pm

For those on the list with older 26Xs, I think the smaller ballast valve on the port side (as well as some of the earliest starboard side units) was absent half of the seals mentioned above for newer models. As a rigger for the Alameda California dealer for many years, we experienced a lot of leaks in the early ballast tanks (both into & out of) until I walked into a local RV supply one day and purchased a complete black waste valve unit with seals on BOTH sides of the gate! As the consummate KISS subscriber, I guess Roger felt he was either saving weight or money (probably both) by installing only half the valve!

While we're on the subject of ballast leaks, it bears repeating that the ballast tank should be either full or empty. In other words, never sail or power at high speeds with a partially filled ballast tank.

Eric Lowe

Erik Hardtle · Post by **Erik Hardtle** » Mon Oct 04, 2004 1:01 pm

I did the vent tube thru the anchor locker... I love it. Never had any problems with it. (putting it in was a bit of a pain... but worth it.)

I also put a small piece of ribbon on the top of the valve that gets sucked in when the tank is filling, and pops out when full.

The ballast handle is from a west marine bilge pump that I tapped the end on... it's longer than the one that came with the boat.

Check out my website for more mods... click on the WWW button below.

Dimitri-2000X-Tampa · Post by **Dimitri-2000X-Tampa** » Mon Oct 04, 2004 2:48 pm

Frank C wrote:Some comments remind me of eighth grade ...

Ok, thats it....I'm going to delete all 680 of my posts now!

Sorry to those of you who have joined after July 4th and don't know what the heck I'm talking about...

Why not! Just add a TV card and Sat-dish .... how the hull else ya gonna track these 'canes, t-storms, toronados .... ?? On good authority, the fact that they're usually 2,000 miles distant is just a mild buffer, certainly not a real margin of safety.
... gotta stay updated on earthquakes, traffic jams, too!

Moe · Post by **Moe** » Mon Oct 04, 2004 3:23 pm

Dimitri, you might want to read Frank's post again. He wasn't commenting on the grade level of the posts. As I read it, he was commenting that they reminded him of something his Dad said, about things being too complex, when he was in the 8th grade, around 1960.

Lighten up!

--
Moe

MacGregorSailors.com

MacGregorSailors.com

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