I just saw a 12 volt shop vac on EBay and thought that might be just the thing to empty the ballast tank. Open the valve insert the hose in the vent and your all empty. The wife may find other uses for it as well while your siting back in the cockpit drinking a beer after a hard day of sailing.
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nick maggio
how much water
How much water does it hold before it is full ,I would try a 12 volt bilge pump or some 12 volt type of pump without a tank that fills up and has to be emptedwhat do you think?
How much water does it hold before it is full ,I would try a 12 volt bilge pump or some 12 volt type of pump without a tank that fills up and has to be emptedwhat do you think?
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Ken Shubert
WHY?
Why would you want to blow out the water? It's certainly not stable that way and probably won't 'self right'. Just curious. Ken S/V WouffHong
Why would you want to blow out the water? It's certainly not stable that way and probably won't 'self right'. Just curious. Ken S/V WouffHong
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Rick Webb
Two Reasons
Folks have been pondering this for mostly two reasons. One to make it easier to load on the trailer using shallow ramps. The other he said he touches bottom enough at low tide that he can't get away from the slip. I suppose someone who is very very serious about racing and has big brass ones might think about it downwind in light air. I have just been curious but not enough to actually try it..
Folks have been pondering this for mostly two reasons. One to make it easier to load on the trailer using shallow ramps. The other he said he touches bottom enough at low tide that he can't get away from the slip. I suppose someone who is very very serious about racing and has big brass ones might think about it downwind in light air. I have just been curious but not enough to actually try it..
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Crazy Dave Condon
NO for several reasons
Should you try to presurrize the system to get the waterr out, you may bust the seal and then you have one hell of a leak problem plus the fact you have voided your warranty. Also, the boat without water ballast becomes very tender. IF you have the boat in the water without water ballast with folks on it, who knows what may happen. There was a MacGregor 26X this past summer with no ballast and two children drowned as a result. In addition, I took two boats one filled with water and one without water in the tank and the one with water in the tank won the race hands down. As for getting onto the trailer, you may not have the trailer back far enough. Suggest the use of pads as Jim Seamons did with his trailer bunk board. See archives. YOu do need to let the boat sit on the trailer at the ramp and drain which does not take much time. I could keep on and on but a tank without water could cause trouble and trying to pressurize the tank to get water out of the tank could split the tank. I guess everyone has a suggestion but I have been there and tried it. Crazy Dave Condon
Should you try to presurrize the system to get the waterr out, you may bust the seal and then you have one hell of a leak problem plus the fact you have voided your warranty. Also, the boat without water ballast becomes very tender. IF you have the boat in the water without water ballast with folks on it, who knows what may happen. There was a MacGregor 26X this past summer with no ballast and two children drowned as a result. In addition, I took two boats one filled with water and one without water in the tank and the one with water in the tank won the race hands down. As for getting onto the trailer, you may not have the trailer back far enough. Suggest the use of pads as Jim Seamons did with his trailer bunk board. See archives. YOu do need to let the boat sit on the trailer at the ramp and drain which does not take much time. I could keep on and on but a tank without water could cause trouble and trying to pressurize the tank to get water out of the tank could split the tank. I guess everyone has a suggestion but I have been there and tried it. Crazy Dave Condon
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Jeff Peltier
Experience by accident
I went out with a friend, who had recently purchased a used 260, to give him some pointers. As we started sailing, I commented that it didn't feel like there was any ballast in the tank. When he commented, I thinks so, I looked and the tank was almost empty. I pushed the valve in and out a few times, but only a shot of water came in before stopping. Clearly some type of restriction. We put a reef in to help control the boat, even though the winds were only 10 to 15. Clearly the boat was very fast, but also very squirrelly in this configuration and crew movement to keep the boat balanced was similar to a racing scow. Clearly one would sail it like it could capsize. When we got back, we pulled the boat out of the water and discovered the rubber seal had come unglued from the bottom plate and water pressure kept it firmly in place in the water, not allowing any to enter the tank. I agree with Dave. If you really need to get water out of the tank for some reason, don't blow it out. Drill out the vent hole so you can get a decent size suction line from a manuel or electic pump in the tank. 200 gallons would take about 10-15 minutes to pump by hand. Jeff Peltier
I went out with a friend, who had recently purchased a used 260, to give him some pointers. As we started sailing, I commented that it didn't feel like there was any ballast in the tank. When he commented, I thinks so, I looked and the tank was almost empty. I pushed the valve in and out a few times, but only a shot of water came in before stopping. Clearly some type of restriction. We put a reef in to help control the boat, even though the winds were only 10 to 15. Clearly the boat was very fast, but also very squirrelly in this configuration and crew movement to keep the boat balanced was similar to a racing scow. Clearly one would sail it like it could capsize. When we got back, we pulled the boat out of the water and discovered the rubber seal had come unglued from the bottom plate and water pressure kept it firmly in place in the water, not allowing any to enter the tank. I agree with Dave. If you really need to get water out of the tank for some reason, don't blow it out. Drill out the vent hole so you can get a decent size suction line from a manuel or electic pump in the tank. 200 gallons would take about 10-15 minutes to pump by hand. Jeff Peltier
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Rick Webb
Never Thought I'd Disagree With Dave But,
We are talking about a vacuum here not a compressor. The same thing used to blow up inflatables and have not popped one yet. For a test I took mine and blew up a garbage bag. It did not pop the bag so I am sure the tank could handle it especially if the valve is open. As for sailing without the ballast you'd have to be crazy or stupid and we know Dave not to be stupid. I am dubious as to how much removing the water actually reduces draft. I just thought I would pass along the find as it had been discussed earlier.
We are talking about a vacuum here not a compressor. The same thing used to blow up inflatables and have not popped one yet. For a test I took mine and blew up a garbage bag. It did not pop the bag so I am sure the tank could handle it especially if the valve is open. As for sailing without the ballast you'd have to be crazy or stupid and we know Dave not to be stupid. I am dubious as to how much removing the water actually reduces draft. I just thought I would pass along the find as it had been discussed earlier.
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Ron Mehringer
Some thoughts
One thing to consider is that even though the pressure from the shopvac is low, it is being applied over a large area. So just 1psi applied to 10sqft would be 1,440 lbs. That the principle that used in the bags used in the recovery of flipped over trucks, etc, on the highway. The counter point is that since the flood gate under the boat is open, it would limit how much pressure could build up. Personally, I like the idea of enlarging the hole in under the step, inserting a hose and pumping out. Just remember not to sail it that way. Ron Mehringer s/v Hydro-Therapy
One thing to consider is that even though the pressure from the shopvac is low, it is being applied over a large area. So just 1psi applied to 10sqft would be 1,440 lbs. That the principle that used in the bags used in the recovery of flipped over trucks, etc, on the highway. The counter point is that since the flood gate under the boat is open, it would limit how much pressure could build up. Personally, I like the idea of enlarging the hole in under the step, inserting a hose and pumping out. Just remember not to sail it that way. Ron Mehringer s/v Hydro-Therapy
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