Hoping you may be able to help resolve this as putting it together 17 years ago is much easier than taking it apart today! I’ve apparently cracked the freshwater holding tank on our 1999 Hunter 310 on last hard sail. It is located under the vberth. I have removed all decking screws on the topside and all joiner screws underneath, but the decking still cannot be removed to access tank underneath. I suspect that when built in 1999 the manufacturer glued the decking to the joiner pieces between the vberth decking pieces? If you have any manufacturing records or means to validate how to remove that decking above the fresh water tank it would be most appreciated. Otherwise next step is the saw! Thanks, Tim
Accessing fresh water tank on 1999 Hunter 310
- Thread starter Tim Ferris
- Start date
Sorry Tim, but I bought my '99 new in the late fall of 1998 and there is no detailed literature on the construction of the forward V berth over the tank. I remember working in this area way back when and thinking that there is no way the tank would come out without a battle. Chain saw for the rough work
and a Multi-tool for the finer work. Maybe a bit extreme but it won't be pretty.Before you take any desperate measures, do you have definite proof that the tank is cracked. I can say that mine is very firmly mounted and not given to movement under rough sea conditions. The poly tank walls would have to withstand a large stress in order to crack unless it was defective right from the factory. Any chance it could be the outlet connection at the bottom of the tank on the starboard side that's leaking ?
Appreciate your input Ralph. The tank is definitely leaking, hoping to find a loose fitting vs cracked tank. Either way, I gotta get in there first! Next step may literally be the saw. Wish they builder thought about the future access to such things. I'm just sure they glued those vberth sections together :-( Merry Christmas!
The one thing I can offer here, is that in all the work I've done on our boat (and it's extensive) I don't remember finding any glued joints other that glassed bulkheads. As I suffer from advanced OCD and cannot do a simple reno or repair job without building it to last forever, there are many places I have been into the boat where I would have used glued joints. They didn't and gluing would have been easy and almost no cost.
I haven't been to the boat in a month or so with our miserable weather here but have a ton of projects on the go. Gotta get up there. If you can hold off for a while, I'll take a close look at the v-berth and see if I can figure anything easier than chopping to get into the tank.
Hi @Ralph Johnstone, no surprise to see you commenting here. I've so appreciated your advice over the years. (It's Stephen in Ottawa with the 1999 H310.)
I have a leak somewhere and am trying to access the outflow at the water tank too. Were you ever able to have a look at your tank access?
I unscrewed it all and was able to raise the forward edge above the rest, hoping I could slide the panel forward, and even used a mallet to gently coax it forward but to no avail.
Thx.
I have a leak somewhere and am trying to access the outflow at the water tank too. Were you ever able to have a look at your tank access?
I unscrewed it all and was able to raise the forward edge above the rest, hoping I could slide the panel forward, and even used a mallet to gently coax it forward but to no avail.
Thx.
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I did look at it and see I did not reply way back when. My reply now is .......... phhhhtttttt, it can't be done without a lot of wood cutting, at least in my identical model.
Again I would recommend moving heaven and earth to ensure it's NOT a fitting leak. Invest in a $20.00 borescope from amazon.ca. It uses wi-fi connection so your cell phone is your screen when using one.
@Ralph Johnstone I was able to peek through the crack enough to see it's not the tank or outflow that's leaking. I've progressed enough to discover the culprit. What a relief. No sawing today!
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You'd be well advised to purchase a few lottery tickets. Luck like that does not come around very often.