Ballast Tanking Filling

[jao1972]

I have a 1994 Hunter 26 that just had some hull work done (repaired a through-crack forward of the centerboard/swing keel pocket). Just got the boat back in the water, and now the ballast tank doesn't appear to be filling completely.

The boat sits bow-high in the water. It is obvious from the water level on the boot strap. By checking the vent plug at the base of the companionway steps, the ballast tank is full.

Has anyone had any problems with this? My thoughts are that some channel or piping was clogged when the crack was repaired. The cut-away schematic in the owner's manual does not clearly show how water gets to the forward part of the ballast tank.

 

[Deucer]

Um...not sure what the issue is here. While you suspicions might be right, I have doubts. I'm under the impression that the tank is pretty much one large void underneath the sole.

Depending on how you load your boat, you might check that you're not missing something there. If you drained your fresh water tank and you have a lot of gear (like a spare battery and full gas tanks), you might sit a little stern down.

There's a lot of theoretical ways to see if you have enough water in the tank (like capture the water as you empty the tank) or weigh the boat empty and full of water, I'm thinking it's more bother than it's worth. Maybe somebody here who's pulling their boat can time how long it takes to drain the tank. Then you can drain yours and see if the time is close (on level ground, it should be close enough). To change the angle of how the boat sits, you've got to be talking about 10-20% or so of the water in the tank. Ok, I'm stream of conscious problem solving here...you could also put something of know weight (probably about the area of the mast) and see if it levels out the boat (250-400lbs at the mast should level the boat). If you think you're short more than that, you might think twice about sailing the boat because you're giving up a lot of your righting ability. Hope any of this helps.

 

[jao1972]

Thanks for the reply. I think my first step will be to contact to Hunter to see if they have more information on the tank layout. I think it is a great idea you had to determine how much weight and where will level it. That will give some indication of what is going on.

I also considered drilling an access hole in the top of the tank at a location below the v-birth. Obviously I would rather not drill another hole. Also, if the top of the tank at this location is not the same height as the top of the tank at the companionway step, I could have problems.

 

[twalker H260]

This image of the tank top during assembly might help you. I wouldn't drill an access in the v berth area because as you can see from the image the only other spot near the same level as the air valve is the base of the mast. I believe the top of the tank with the exception of the mast base and the air vent is all located below the water level outside the boat - a hole in any other are could cause flooding!

http://sbo.sailboatowners.com/index.php?option=com_mtree&task=viewimage&img_id=6863&Itemid=257

 

[jao1972]

Thanks! That is exactly what I needed to know!!!

I need to take a closer look at the boat this weekend to try to figure out what is going on. It will have been sitting in the water for little over a week and may have corrected itself.

 

[soling42]

I suppose if your whole crew was sitting in the stern when the WB tank was first checked and plugged you could have had an air pocket toward the bow. Check under the aft bunk for water in the bilge and then move weight(crew) fwd, rock the boat and ck the filler vent for air again. It should be filled completely to the vent plug.

These are small boats and rather sensitive to extra weight being poorly placed in the boat. Try to keep added gear to a minimum and distribute it around the boat evenly. My 1st issue with this boats design was the placement of 100s of lbs of battery(s)/galley storage/cooler/outboard all on the starboard side creating a noticeable list. I moved the battery to port(and added a 2nd one), slid my 8hp OB as close to the rudder as possible, cleared the heavy stuff out of the galley and kept most porky gear forward.

Aside from taking on water in the bilge(which you should check under the aft bunk) there's no reason your 26 should be laying low in the stern. Some owners have re-powered with 120lb+ 10hp 4stroke OBs, fuel, anchors, etc which may be part of the issue too. keep it light.

Hope it's a simple fix and above all don't drill any holes. Mike

 

[Sublime]

I have a 1994 Hunter 26 that just had some hull work done (repaired a through-crack forward of the centerboard/swing keel pocket). Just got the boat back in the water, and now the ballast tank doesn't appear to be filling completely.

The boat sits bow-high in the water. It is obvious from the water level on the boot strap. By checking the vent plug at the base of the companionway steps, the ballast tank is full.

Has anyone had any problems with this? My thoughts are that some channel or piping was clogged when the crack was repaired. The cut-away schematic in the owner's manual does not clearly show how water gets to the forward part of the ballast tank.

So everything was fine, you had it hauled and when put back in you started having this problem and hadn't rearranged anything inside? It makes no sense.
How did you check the water level in the tank? Did you send a rope down the vent hole or did you just look into it?

 

[jao1972]

Yeah, definitely won't be drilling any holes.

Everything was fine before. Haven't added any extra weight to the boat or shifted things around. Boat was hauled to repair to the hull crack, and now it's sitting stern low. I checked the vent hole, and water is to the top.

As I said originally, the crack went through the hull. It was located just forward of the centerboard pocket (actually originated from it). The boat yard injected some sealant (?) into the crack before glassing. My first guess was that they clogged some channel, preventing the forward section of the tank from filling. After looking at link soling42 provided, I can't see how anything could have been clogged.

The photos are for a 260. I assume the tank on a 1994 26 is the same. Might be worth a call to Hunter.

I am going to look closer at the boat this weekend. I wish I had one of those devices for looking into walls, etc. Without it, it's guess work.