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Looks like I’ve got a leak in my Port water tank. After carefully filling
the tank to within 1″ of the top I noticed water under the cabin sole. The
bilge pump came on a couple of times over the next few days while I was
running on the Starboard tank. Today I opened the access port and the
water is down to about 6″ from the top. That appears to be the lower level
of the leak.
This just happened in the last week or so. I must have overfilled the tank
and pressure caused a crack.
Anyone have to deal with this problem in the past? What did you do to fix
it. Looks like just getting access to the tank will require removing a lot
of furniture (if not the mast).Regards,
John Stevenson
http://www.svsarah.com
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John,
I’ve cleaned my port & starboard water tanks several times. Each has 3
inspection ports on the top. (You might have to pull out the plywood
bunk extension pieces to get to all of them.) Through those I can pretty
much reach all of the tank interior. With a flashlight and maybe a hand
mirror you might be able to find the leak and then seal it.Tor
http://www.silverheels.us
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You’re a luck dog. I had one leaky inspection port on my tanks. I
replaced them with SS plates. Anyway, the tanks are fiberglassed to the
hull and sole. They’re not particularly strong, but I’ve been filling mine
using the vent as an overflow (moved them to the bilge – Pearson apparently
liked the idea of venting tanks into the odd dead space resulting in wet
underwear and shoes in my case). So if you can get access to the tank by
removing the bed base and the front boards you may be able to fix the tank
from the outside. If the leak is on the hull side, you have a problem
because of the tabbing.Bob
On Sat, Apr 7, 2012 at 4:46 PM, Silverheels wrote:
Quote:John,I’ve cleaned my port & starboard water tanks several times. Each has 3
inspection ports on the top. (You might have to pull out the plywood
bunk extension pieces to get to all of them.) Through those I can pretty
much reach all of the tank interior. With a flashlight and maybe a hand
mirror you might be able to find the leak and then seal it.Tor
http://www.silverheels.us
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Tor,
Unfortunately I only have a single port on my tank, at the aft end. I may
have to drill some more holes through the bunk board and the top of the
tank.Regards,
John Stevenson
http://www.svsarah.comOn Sat, Apr 7, 2012 at 4:46 PM, Silverheels wrote:
Quote:John,I’ve cleaned my port & starboard water tanks several times. Each has 3
inspection ports on the top. (You might have to pull out the plywood
bunk extension pieces to get to all of them.) Through those I can pretty
much reach all of the tank interior. With a flashlight and maybe a hand
mirror you might be able to find the leak and then seal it.Tor
http://www.silverheels.us
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That’s probably the way to go, John. You need them anyway to clean the
tanks.Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
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Yeah, this lucky dog has not 1 but 3 leaky inspection ports per tank. I
have to open one whenever I fill up, watch the water level, and stop
filling an inch or so below the tank tops. If (whenever) I screw that
up, water overflows onto the cabin sole. I replaced the O-rings in all
those Beckson ports, but it didn’t help. They’re not designed to hold
water pressure. Bad fitting choice, Mr. Pearson.Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
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That’s why I replaced mine with a steel plate and ran the vent into the
bilge – I can control the pressure from filling by the height of the vent.Bob
On Sat, Apr 7, 2012 at 7:36 PM, Silverheels wrote:
Quote:Yeah, this lucky dog has not 1 but 3 leaky inspection ports per tank. I
have to open one whenever I fill up, watch the water level, and stop
filling an inch or so below the tank tops. If (whenever) I screw that
up, water overflows onto the cabin sole. I replaced the O-rings in all
those Beckson ports, but it didn’t help. They’re not designed to hold
water pressure. Bad fitting choice, Mr. Pearson.Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
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But can you quickly open that steel plate to check the water level, or
is it bolted and bedded down?Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
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It’s bolted. Why do I need to check the level? I use one tank at a time
until it’s empty. Usually when I’m in the shower and all soaped up.The vent height limits the pressure in the tank.
Bob
I’m not being terse. This is from my mobile.
On Apr 7, 2012 8:00 PM, “Silverheels” wrote:Quote:But can you quickly open that steel plate to check the water level, or
is it bolted and bedded down?Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
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Bob,
Freshwater tank levels probably don’t matter much in the ICW, but
they’ll matter to you as you start making longer passages and hanging
out in places with no freshwater, especially if you have crew on board
consuming, too. Even with a watermaker you have to watch it so that you
always have the second tank full and in reserve (for when the watermaker
breaks). A simple sight gauge might do the trick.Just another opinion.
Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
I am being terse. I don’t have much to say.
🙂
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You’re right – I hadn’t thought along those lines because it’s usually only
me and I can keep track of it. For me, the ease of filling (not having to
rip the cabin apart) is worth it. I installed a SCAD tank monitor (but
have not attached the water tanks). Another project, but they will be
attached real soon now… I’ve also thought of putting a sight glass on
the tank inside the access ports I cut into the aft bulkheads, too. Once
again, project not started…On that subject, I have a design for a water collection system that stays
on the forward lifelines and can unfurl in a few seconds to allow me to
collect rain water into all three tanks. It will mean dousing the
staysail, but that’s easy and quick.Bob
On Sun, Apr 8, 2012 at 9:52 AM, Silverheels wrote:
Quote:Bob,Freshwater tank levels probably don’t matter much in the ICW, but
they’ll matter to you as you start making longer passages and hanging
out in places with no freshwater, especially if you have crew on board
consuming, too. Even with a watermaker you have to watch it so that you
always have the second tank full and in reserve (for when the watermaker
breaks). A simple sight gauge might do the trick.Just another opinion.
Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
I am being terse. I don’t have much to say.
🙂
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And you’re right that the tanks need to be filled without leaking. That
one’s on my project list.I’d be very interested to see or hear about your instant rain catcher
design. I’m planning to make something along those lines before I set
sail again in fall. Even so, don’t count on it raining. I had only 2
sprinkles this whole winter!Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
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It sounds like you had a lovely winter! I’ll whip one up and let you know
how it works.Bob
On Sun, Apr 8, 2012 at 10:03 AM, Silverheels wrote:
Quote:And you’re right that the tanks need to be filled without leaking. That
one’s on my project list.I’d be very interested to see or hear about your instant rain catcher
design. I’m planning to make something along those lines before I set
sail again in fall. Even so, don’t count on it raining. I had only 2
sprinkles this whole winter!Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
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Tor is right. I’m going to need more access to the tank to locate the leak
and then seal it.
I took some pictures of the inside of the tank through my single access
port in the aft section. Naturally I can see no crack in the tank wall in
this section. So now I have to remove the sliding bunk board and cut an
access hole in the other sections of the tank.
If you want to see why I don’t drink the water in these tanks, just use it
for cooking (after running it through a Brita filter for taste) and
cleaning, go to http://www.svsarah.com/Sarah/ewWaterTankLeak.htmlRegards,
John Stevenson
http://www.svsarah.comOn Sun, Apr 8, 2012 at 10:05 AM, Robert Fine wrote:
Quote:It sounds like you had a lovely winter! I’ll whip one up and let you know
how it works.Bob
On Sun, Apr 8, 2012 at 10:03 AM, Silverheels wrote:
Quote:And you’re right that the tanks need to be filled without leaking. That
one’s on my project list.I’d be very interested to see or hear about your instant rain catcher
design. I’m planning to make something along those lines before I set
sail again in fall. Even so, don’t count on it raining. I had only 2
sprinkles this whole winter!Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
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$I installed a GE Smartfilter next to the galley sink and drink from there.
You can drink from the tanks but it tastes plastic-y. With the filter, it
tastes better than bottled water. Downside is $40 filters twice a year.
Upside is it’s pressurized water from the tanks so no extra stuff is needed
for it.Bob
On Sun, Apr 8, 2012 at 6:45 PM, John Stevenson wrote:
Tor is right. I’m going to need more access to the tank to locate the leak
and then seal it.
I took some pictures of the inside of the tank through my single access
port in the aft section. Naturally I can see no crack in the tank wall in
this section. So now I have to remove the sliding bunk board and cut an
access hole in the other sections of the tank.
If you want to see why I don’t drink the water in these tanks, just use it
for cooking (after running it through a Brita filter for taste) and
cleaning, go to http://www.svsarah.com/Sarah/ewWaterTankLeak.htmlRegards,
John Stevenson
http://www.svsarah.comOn Sun, Apr 8, 2012 at 10:05 AM, Robert Fine wrote:
It sounds like you had a lovely winter! I’ll whip one up and let you
know
how it works.
Bob
On Sun, Apr 8, 2012 at 10:03 AM, Silverheels
wrote:
Quote:Quote:And you’re right that the tanks need to be filled without leaking. That
one’s on my project list.I’d be very interested to see or hear about your instant rain catcher
design. I’m planning to make something along those lines before I set
sail again in fall. Even so, don’t count on it raining. I had only 2
sprinkles this whole winter!Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
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That’s what I use, too – after the generic pre-filter.
Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
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We filter ALL of the water that comes out of the tanks. We used an American plumber filter body, available at home depot, inline after the fresh water pump. We have a smaller one for the foot pump. We never use the foot pump though.
-p
Sent from my iPad
On Apr 8, 2012, at 18:59, “Silverheels” wrote:
Quote:That’s what I use, too – after the generic pre-filter.Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
Quote:
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Owners no more...
Thanks Dawn and Patrick! -
I hate having the tank vent into the bilge. If you overfill your water tank it dumps water into the bilge.
A buddy of mine has a Vagabond. His tank vents to tubes inside his stanchions. A vent tube is run inside the stanchion and through the deck. The vent hose is attached to the underside of the tube. I always thought this was clever. If he overfills his water tank it spills on his deck and can be seen when you fill the tank. I have to keep my ear close to the tank fill and listen for the sound of the water. Its easy to miss the sound the water makes when the tank reaches full. I’ve thought of doing something similar to some of my stanchions. I guess its on the list of things that aren’t really broken but should be fixed some day. I rarely work on that list.
Regards
Rich
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Hi Rich,
I routed my vents to the deep part of the bilge. There are three
advantages to this; 1, you can control the ultimate pressure the tanks feel
by adjusting the height of the vent; 2, salt water can’t get into the water
tanks; and 3, filling the tanks gives the bilge a fresh water wash down and
keeps it smelling sweet. I’m afraid that venting the tanks above the deck
will exceed the pressure the tanks can stand – 4.5 feet water column is
about 2.5 psi, although in reality it won’t fill above the deck fill at
4′. Remember in a hydraulic system the pressure at one point is felt
throughout the whole system.My vents are just high enough that at full heel water won’t slop out of the
vent – about 10″.Bob
On Mon, Apr 9, 2012 at 9:23 AM, wrote:
Quote:I hate having the tank vent into the bilge. If you overfill your water
tank it dumps water into the bilge.A buddy of mine has a Vagabond. His tank vents to tubes inside his
stanchions. A vent tube is run inside the stanchion and through the deck.
The vent hose is attached to the underside of the tube. I always thought
this was clever. If he overfills his water tank it spills on his deck and
can be seen when you fill the tank. I have to keep my ear close to the
tank fill and listen for the sound of the water. Its easy to miss the
sound the water makes when the tank reaches full. I’ve thought of doing
something similar to some of my stanchions. I guess its on the list of
things that aren’t really broken but should be fixed some day. I rarely
work on that list.Regards
Rich
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I found a simple way to monitor tank fills on Shay. Prior owner installed access doors aft of the tanks for storage. It was a simple matter to route a clear water line from a “T” fitting at the tank outlet up over the top of each tank to the vent line. I now have level gauges visible at the rear of each tank. You will have to install a simple shutoff valve at the top of each gauge or the pump will tend to suck air. Did a similar gauge for the bow tank visible inside on of the storage compartments. Works a treat.
Hank S.
Shay
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That’s a great idea!
Bob
I’m not being terse. This is from my mobile.
On Apr 9, 2012 10:55 PM, “hs” wrote:I found a simple way to monitor tank fills on Shay. Prior owner installed
access doors aft of the tanks for storage. It was a simple matter to route
a clear water line from a “T” fitting at the tank outlet up over the top of
each tank to the vent line. I now have level gauges visible at the rear of
each tank. You will have to install a simple shutoff valve at the top of
each gauge or the pump will tend to suck air. Did a similar gauge for the
bow tank visible inside on of the storage compartments. Works a treat.
Hank S.
Shay
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Well, I found one leak in my water tank, and hopefully the only one:
http://www.svsarah.com/Sarah/ewWaterTankLeak.htmlThankfully it is any easy one to fix and should not require cutting any
holes in the tank for access.
The only cutting I did was what I should have done years ago – cut an
access hole through the bulkhead aft of the settee. I found the hose barb
fitting for the delivery hose had broken (from fatigue I guess). I’m
letting the tank dry out a bit before I install a new fitting and delivery
hose.Regards,
John Stevenson
http://www.svsarah.com
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Happy for you, finding an easy-to-fix leak. You might still want to
consider additional access ports on the tank tops so you can clean them.Tor
Silverheels, P-424 #17
http://www.silverheels.us
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