2001 Sport Nautique Project Boat

[NautiqueJeff]

The ballast system for these early boats is so funny. The little aerator pump you see on the right side of the picture above (in front of the muffler) is the empty pump, and it connects to a simple T so that it pulls water from both tanks at the same time when it is on. The ONLY thing controlling which tank empties is the VENT on the tanks. That's what the dials behind the driver's seat control. You can open the port vent, the starboard vent, or both. The tanks themselves don't even have valves, although there is a valve before the little aerator pump.

Same thing for filling. One pump, on a T, with the VENT controlling which tank is filling.

This totally explains why a cracked hose would cause so many problems. Since everything in this system relies on air pressure, a cracked hose that is allowing air to enter the system would totally stop it from functioning properly. One of the drain hoses on the starboard tank is completely shredded. I am going to replace it tomorrow and see if that fixes everything.

[GMLIII]

You are correct Jeff . That whole system relies on air pressure to fill. Those knobs behind the drivers seat can be finicky. I always struggled as to whether the knobs were in the on or off position as far as air flow. The tanks take Forever to fill. Definitely the "Generation One" ballast tank system. Somewhat enhances the wake but not much once activated/filled.

[glassywaters]

Jeff, I'm sure you want to keep it original, but as mentioned above, the ballast system really isn't much. Honestly, it would be worth considering just removing them and installing a single fat sac back there.

The Sumo Long 800 fits perfect back there and adds just enough weight to make a nice wakeboard wake.

800 LBS - 65x18x18 (Max FLow Link 4 x 1)

[NautiqueJeff]

Yeah, I have really been torn on what to do with the ballast. If I can just replace three hoses and it all works, I'll keep it original, just so all of the original controls and gauges will function. If replacing the hoses doesn't fix it, it is all coming out.

Got more disassembly done today. All of the old hoses are removed now, which is always a pain. I was going to run the new hoses tonight, but I realized that if I do that, I won't be able to remove the panel that runs under the ballast tanks, and that will make replacing the steering cable pretty much impossible. I stopped tonight with the hoses removed and the panel under the ballast tanks removed, so I am ready to replace the steering cable tomorrow. Then I'll replace the three ballast hoses and drop it in the water to see if the ballast system works. If it does, I'll pull it back out of the water and reinstall the gas tank, after a good cleaning.

Here's what it looks like under the ballast tanks. I can finally get to the steering cable connection at the rudder!

[GMLIII]

Major project underway, hope the hose replacements do the trick and there is nothing more complicated in the mix

[NautiqueJeff]

Steering cable is in! It was a pain to move the gas tank and ballast tanks, but this one was actually easier to route than the one in my old '98 Ski Nautique once those items were moved.

Now I have one-finger steering again, which I love!

[NautiqueJeff]

I also replaced the ballast hoses today. I took the time to look at the whole system, and I really have to wonder what Nautique was thinking when they designed this.

Check this out.

The fill pump is mounted in front of the engine, next to the thru-hull fitting. A hose runs from the fill pump to the empty pump, and then from the empty pump to the T fitting that feeds the tanks! That means that when you run the fill pump, it pushes water through the empty pump to reach the tanks!!! Same thing when you run the empty pump -- it pulls the water from the tanks, then pushes the water through the fill pump and out the bottom of the boat!

Crazy setup. No wonder people say it is slow. And no wonder a cracked hose prevents both the fill and the empty functions from working!

I replaced the hoses from each tank to the T fitting, and from the T fitting to the empty pump. The hose from the fill pump to the empty pump appears to be OK.

It looks like rain for the next few days, so I probably won't pull it out of the garage to test it until sometime mid-week. When I do test this, while everything is out of the back of the boat, I will also check the muffler and exhaust hoses for water leaks, and then the entire bilge area will get a good pressure washing and general cleaning.

Here are the new hoses.

[NautiqueJeff]

I had a few minutes between storms today, so I pulled this boat out of the garage and dropped it in the water for some testing.

There's good news, and other news.

The good news is that the ballast system actually works (except for the gauges)! The other news is that there are a number of exhaust leaks that I can see now that all of the floor is up and the gas tank is out. The muffler has multiple leaks, and the fiberglass tubes that run from the risers to the hull are leaking too. The muffler is $600 from NautiqueParts, so I plan to pull mine out and take it to my fiberglass guy and have it repaired. Same with the tubes.

Here's the ballast system filling! You're looking at the water coming out of the EMPTY pump after being pushed through it by the fill pump. This system is so weird.

Here's the leaking Hull Hugger muffler. That's with the engine off! There are other small holes in the muffler too. Hopefully my fiberglass guy can reseal the whole thing.

[brit_hunsicker]

Those leaking mufflers are a pain. I’ve been in on some resealing projects. One ended up leaking again and one held for at least a few years and then was sold. They sure are pricey. And not a lot of fun to install. I had to replace rubber hoses, fiberglass tubes, and a muffler on a 96 SN last year. Have plenty of dawn dish soap handy!! Needed a helper for that project. Did a muffler on a 92 SN as well last year that I managed by my lonesome. It’s just a good thing my grandma wasn’t around to hear my choice of vocabulary that day.


Sent from my iPhone using PLT Nautique

[brit_hunsicker]

I don’t miss seeing that old black corrugated tubing either. Man that stuff got brittle and sure held a lot of bilge grime. My OCD was settled down last year when I finally ripped all of the ballast and bilge lines out. So glad to see that gone and updated with new tubing.


Sent from my iPhone using PLT Nautique

[NautiqueJeff]

Feeling pretty good. I just pulled the muffler and the fiberglass tubes, and it took about 20 minutes. I'll take them to the fiberglass shop tomorrow. We'll see what happens...

Hoses are just a little bit dirty...

[Treybizttu]

Looks like you've already got it sorted but if you or anybody else needs a hull hugger I think I've still got one that I'll give to somebody in need for shipping cost. I can't verify function but it looks okay.

[NautiqueJeff]

Got the muffler and the exhaust tubes back from the fiberglass shop today. They look good. I'm planning to pressure wash the bilge tomorrow, and then install these and see how they work. If everything looks good, I'll reinstall the gas tank and the back seat.

[NautiqueJeff]

Pressure washed the bilge today, and installed the refurbished muffler and exhaust tubes.





Once I had the exhaust installed, I pressure washed the carpet too, and it looks pretty good!



Fired it up and checked for leaks. No leaks!

[GMLIII]

Looking great, hope you get top dollar when you sell it.