So, I read posts that I should fill the water ballast and pull the boat out of the water to check for leaks. This I did, and found no leaks EXCEPT that water was pouring out of my centerboard trunk and continued to do so until the water ballast was dry. I looked at the online Mac26x owners manual and noticed 3 valves into the ballast compartment. The main one on the transom, the air vent, and then one called the fill valve which I could not find on my boat. It supposedly sits in a recess of the bottom of the hull with a threaded bar running up to the top of the ballast tank and must be tightened down so it doesn't leak. I was hoping tightening that was the simple solution to my leaking problem. But, I cannot find it on my boat. Now, my boat is a 1999 Mac26x with the ballast vent up front under the V berth (unlike the diagram which showed it under the companion way step). So, is mine just a newer model that doesn't have a fill valve.
If so, then I apparently have a big leak in the centerboard trunk. How can I search for that leak? How dangerous is it to operate the boat with that leak? It just means the ballast tank is always filling and doesn't seem to affect the performance of the boat.
If so, then I apparently have a big leak in the centerboard trunk. How can I search for that leak? How dangerous is it to operate the boat with that leak? It just means the ballast tank is always filling and doesn't seem to affect the performance of the boat.