Adding to Factory Ballast Part 2

[kopp210]

There was a post a while ago showing how to add bags over the tanks in the back and plumb it in the the existing system.

I just doubled the weight of the front system in my 03 210. Heres how:

I added a fly high under bow bag up front under the seats. First I had to cut out the existing small cooler with a dremel, which was probably the most difficult part of the project. Then relocated the front battery to under the passenger seat.

The plumbing was fairly easy. I added a 3/4" nipple and Tee fitting where the existing fill pump is, and threaded another pump into the Tee. Then ran hose from the pump up to the bag and wired the pump into the same circuit as the existing front tank fill pump.

For the drain I threaded a pump into the fly high bag and wired it into the same circuit as the empty pump on the tank. The plumbing I Tee'd into the existing 1 1/8" drain line from the front tank right where it goes out the side of the boat.

I water tested the system and it worked great. The front bag filled and emptied the same time as the belly tank. I have some pictures that I will post up this evening.

[kopp210]

Pictures of Setup

[kopp210]

Sorry it took a while to get the pictures up I couldn't get it to work on my Mac. As you can see the pumps are really "Mcguyvered" in there. I threaded the inlets into the Tee and then put the pump bodies on.

Next step is to add inline switches to disable the add on system if I want to use the front space for storage.

[actiondcpd]

Wow I really like that setup. I have all the parts to do that but just haven't done it. I also made the mistake of buying a bunch of those tsunami pumps with the very awkward fitting sizes... oh well.

[Miljack]

thanks for the pics

that pump in the 2nd pic is the drain pump? It's on top of the bag? Did you put a tube into the bag to go to the bottom? Does it empty completely?

Also where are you filling and venting that bag?

thanks,
Jack

[mdboats]

Very nice kopp210! I like how you kept the bag and tank independent. Do you run any additional weight in the boat besides what you plumbed in?

Mark D.

[kopp210]

I tried the drain pump in 2 locations and got slightly different results.

With the drain pump on the top, as in the picture, the bag fully empties, but the pump pushes up on the front seat cushion when the bag is full. The Tsunami pump does an excellent job of priming and pumping out every last bit, so the pump on the top was not an issue. In this location the drain setup will allow air to vent off.

With the drain on the bottom in the designated "Drain" of the bag, the bag does not fully empty. That drain location on the bag is not the low point of the front compartment. The low point of the compartment is directly under the pump in Picture 2. The drain port is on the aft, port side of the bag.

I ended up using the drain port on the bag for 2 reasons. One, I don't care if there are a few gallons of water left in the bag. And Two, With the pump on the bottom I can fill the bag really full and not pop up the seat cushions.

Venting has not been an issue, very little air gets into the system with the fill set-up as shown.

Mark, I am running this and about 200 lbs of lead bars tucked under the nose around the bag. I had the wedges over the tanks for a while, but it was too much rear weight with the extra weight of the 8.1. Same weight I have run for the last several years except now there are no sacs on the front seats!