Ballast Question

I installed two Jabsco Ballast puppies - one to the two side sacks (direct drive) and one to the front and rear sac. The front and rear are vented as they are both enclosed under the seat and in the ski locker but the sides are not as they are visible. I fill and drain from the same holes under the boat (one for each pump) but I would like to drain out the side so I know when the sacks in the locker and under the seat are empty. How do I make the water drain out the side of the boat instead of under the boat?

put a check valve and tee between the pump and thru hull. also check valve the new drain line off the tee. drill a hole in your boat and run the line to the hole and a thru-hull.

can't you install a pressure switch on those pumps? never worked with reversibles.

I don't think you have much of an option with reversable pumps since they require that you fill and drain through the same line. I visually check mine and it is not too big of a deal. If you wanted that type of system you should have gone with the priming style of airator pump where you have a seperate pump for fillign and emptying.

^ thats what check valves do. control flow in one direction only.

Most factory systems are reversible pumps such as Mastercraft. My friend has an X2 that uses Reversible pumps and it drains out the side not the same way it came it. I thought a check valve would work but am having problems grasping the concept of the water going out the side by using a a check valve. Wouldn't the pump dry up as no water is passing though it but out the side because of the check valve?

right after the thru hull, you put a check valve that would allow water to fill but stop water from emptying. then you put a T in the line so you can add a empty line and on the empty line you would install a check valve in the direction that would allow you to empty. here is a sketch

I just finished putting the exact same setup in my 97 Prostar. In the sketch above, the circle should represent the pump, if that's not clear.

I've got my thru-hull going into a ball valve (in case of disaster somewhere in the system). From the ball valve it goes into a check valve, then into the T. One outlet of the T goes into another check valve and then out the side of the boat. The other goes into the pump. I'm using a single pump, so from there it goes into a three-way manifold where I can direct the flow to the rear, front or side sacs.

I had it out on the lake for the first time on Tuesday night and it worked like a champ. Blows away dealing with a Tsunami pump thrown over the side.

If you want, I can take some pics tonight and post them.

(Message edited by dgunthert on August 09, 2007)

Are you all using spring loaded or just swing check valves?

I used swing check valves. The swing moves completely out of the way so water flow is not restricted at all when the valve is open. Take a look inside a spring loaded valve. There's a significant flow restriction even when the valve is open.

dqunthert

Thanks for the info and it would be awesome to see some picks and some more info on the check valve would help. I am also still wondering how the pump does not dry up when the water is not passing thru it and out the side? Thanks

I have a couple of swing check valves in my ballast system and they work as designed....it has restricted some flow, but not enough for me to worry about.

mispella - nice sketch. I guess some of us are "visual" learners.

"am also still wondering how the pump does not dry up when the water is not passing thru it and out the side? Thanks"

not sure what that means

So on reversible pump systems, does someone have to stare at the bag to make sure it doesn't over-fill/empty?

Rob,

I didn't get a chance last night, but will definitely get some pics for you tonight.

As for the pump, look at the diagram above. Remember, the circle is the pump. Water is always passing through it, either from the thru-hull or from the sacs.

Here's what my system looks like. Ignore the "drain hose to bilge line" in the top sketch. It actually has it's own thru-hull fitting, as the second sketch says.



(Message edited by dgunthert on August 10, 2007)

Nacho,

You've got a couple of options. You can put a vent hose on the sacs to make sure they don't overfill. Then you just turn the pump off when you see water coming out the overflow. I didn't bother since both of mine are right out in the open.

For draining, the Ballast Puppy pumps have run dry protection so they'll automatically shut down after a few seconds of running dry. I wouldn't really recommend relying on that, though.

If you want to get really fancy, you could put some sensors in there to cut the circuit, but that would get tricky if you had multiple sacs running off one pump. Again, my sacs are on the floor, so keeping an eye on them is not an issue.

right on. some little buzzers would work too.

I love my system. 3 bags, 1800 lbs, and you can't see a thing...

I'd love that, too. But I'll definitely take my 97 Prostar, Titan tower, bimini, and homemade ballast setup for the < $16k I've got invested in it.

uh, ok... nice ride, i guess...

Mine was less, but it gets me on the water. have fun.

Now you've got me curious. You're profile says old school MC. What do you have and how'd you hide 1800 lbs?

2 600's under the front seats
custom 800 in the back

tristar 220

the 6's don't get full, so i'm est. the water at 3-400 per side. closer to 1600 in water then a couple hundy in lead. maybe 2 total.

started looking at props yet?

Ah, I get it now. I considered the same kind of setup, but the physics just didn't work. The volume that was actually available just couldn't give enough weight. From what I measured, I'd only end up getting 200 or less under each seat.

I haven't looked at props. Hell, I'm not even sure what's on there. It has worked so far, though, so it hasn't been a big priority.

Thanks dqunthert

The sketch is awesome. Just wondering if you could let me know the type of check valve you are using and where I can get one - perhaps on line. I don't have a lot of room between the thru hall and the pump so I am a little concerned about how much space the t-fitting and check valve will take.

Here's what the swing check valve looks like.

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productList&No=0&Ntt=swing%20valve&Ntk= i_building_products&pad=true

You're going to need probably at least 6-8 inches between the thru-hull and the pump.

If you're worried about the check valve, you probably don't have room, but I'd highly recommend adding a ball valve as the first fitting after the thru-hull as shown in the diagram. That way you can shut it down if you have pump, valve, or hose issues downstream. Last thing you want is a 1" hole in your hull with no way to shut the water off.

I used PVC ball valves for all of mine. I think you can get PVC swing valves as well, but I didn't find them near me.