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Lessons Learned - 2000 SAN Ballast Install
Recently, I finished installing a push-button, impeller pump based automatic ballast system for my 2000 SAN. I will post pictures soon, but thought I would also share the lessons I learned while doing the job (and some I learned from others). Some of these have been posted elsewhere, but not all.
Plumbing:
1. Use strong magnets to locate your thru-hulls. By this I mean, use a set of magnets (1 on outside, 1 on inside) to locate where you will drill you holes. This allows you to confirm that you have enough space/clearance.
2. Make sure you have enough room for not only the thru-hull, but also a 90 degree elbow (if you are using one… including the turn radius of when you screw it on). I got lucky on this one, as I did not confirm this. This also means that if you are drilling multiple holes for multiple thru-hulls, make sure they are far enough apart from each other for you to screw on the 90 degree elbows (if you are using them).
3. Use the correct sized hole saw with drill bit guide for your thru-hulls. Do not cheap out and use a Harbor Freight or similar cheap set (like I did). Get one that is ever so slightly larger in diameter than the hole you want and make sure it is deep enough to go completely through. The Harbor Freight set I used worked, but I had to essentially burn my way through the last mm or so.
4. Mask the gelcoat around where you are going to drill thru-hulls (including where the hole saw will cut). Drill pilot hole (confirm location). Start cutting with hole saw in reverse until you are through the gelcoat. Then you can switch to forward.
5. Unless you have some very special tools, you need a second person when screwing in the thru-hulls. I recommend that after you apply your 3m sealant to the mushroom (4000 or 4200 depending on your confidence level), you get your helper in place (under the boat) to hold the mushroom (use some sort of pliers or other tool that they can catch the bumps in the inside of the thru-hull on to hold it in place). Then you go inside the boat, apply the 3m sealant to the hull floor around the thru-hull where the nut will go. (Note, you may want to reinforce with some cutting board material… the bigger the thru-hull, the more I would recommend this.) Screw on the nut. Then put on the 90 degree elbow right away (if you are using them). Use Teflon tape or plumbers goup on the threads (having used both, I prefer Teflon tape). Some will tell you to let the thru-hull set before putting on the elbows, but I would rather get all of these assemblies in the direction I want them in before the 3m fully sets up. Otherwise, you may find yourself with an elbow that you cannot get to be pointing where you want it without it being too loose (or risk over tightening and breaking your thru-hull free). When screwing on a 90, you will be torqing the thru-hull quite a bit. If it slips while the 3m is still setting up, no big deal. If it breaks free after it has set up, then you have more work to do.
6. Do not use scupper thru-hulls. Use mushroom type. I prefer locating them on the bottom of the boat, rather than the transom, so I can fill and empty while underway or at rest.
7. Use bronze ball valves on your intake thru-hulls. My setup has thru-hull, 90 degree street elbow, bronze ball valve, threaded hose barb, hose, pump, etc.
8. Carefully plan where your pumps are going to be, making sure you have clearance for the hoses and for changing the impellers. I used 3 Johnsons and was able to mount them on the existing aluminum cross bar by the ski pylon (pumps on the bow side). This was really tight, and I got lucky it worked, because I did not factor in the seat base. Factor in everything.
On the subject of hoses, I prefer the more flexible premium hose from wakemakers. It can bend far easier (without collapsing) than the other options. It’s also nice to be able to see the waterflow when you are testing the polarity of the swiches.
9. Have a heat gun handy for getting any 1” quick connect/hose barbs into 1” hose. 3/4 inch are possible without the heat gun, but the 1” are way more difficult. Consider wearing gloves when putting the hose barb of a quick connect in a hose. Your hands will thank me. Also, do not use a heat gun inside your boat if at all possible. It can very easily melt things you do not want it to (e.g., carpet).
10. Use quick connects on your bags. The little extra money you spend is more than worth the convenience of being able to take the bags out (e.g., to let the compartment air out).
11. Crisscross your vent lines. By this, I mean your port rear bag should vent out the starboard side, and vice versa. This prevents you losing water out the vent thru-hulls when surfing.
12. Use check valves on your vent lines. I fyou have a SAN, you arleady have them for at least the rear bags. Make sure they have not gotten stuck/corroded in the closed position, or you can burst a bag. If you use the swing check valves (like the stock ones), you have to orient them properly for them to work. Zip tie them in the proper orientation (with the bump in the middle up).
13. Tighten all hose clamps with a socket driver.
Electrical:
1. Plan your wiring layout carefully, measure your wiring needs carefully, be sure to buy the proper gauge of wire for the runs you are running (you must measure the full round trip distance), and then buy more wire than you think you need. Note, I use 10 gauge, which is the thickest wire I could find female blade terminals for. Use tinned wire.
2. Use a fuse panel. It is very easy to accidentally (or for little kids, dogs, etc.) to bump the switches. I like to pull the fuses as the last item in my clean-up ritual and then put them back in when I am back in the water. Once I hook up my battery switch and isolator/combiner, I will not need to pull the fuses. Also, locate the fuse panel where it is relatively easy to access. Think about the fact that you may have an in-boat sac full of water in your way if you do not plan ahead. You may not need to do this if your fuse panel is on your main battery and cuts off with your battery switch, but see item 4 below.
3. Use the correct size fuses for your pumps. I believe that the Johnsons use 25 amp and the Jabscos use 20 amp, but check.
4. If you can, run the pumps off an auxiliary battery (or use the pumps when your engine is running). Impeller pumps have a significant power draw. Getting stuck with a battery with slightly less juice to start the engine really sucks.
5. When locating the switches, measure carefully, plan for expansion (unless you are doing 4 right off the bat), and mask the area, including where you are going to cut. Draw your lines on the tape. If you are using a Dremel instead of a Rotozip (Rotozip is probably better for this task), be careful of the chuck. It can hit an area of good material and damage it.
If you locate your switches where I located mine (underneath the throttle in the carbon fiber panel), there is a bolt through the carbon fiber that you will need to remove. You will also need to cut some fiberglass behind the carbon fiber, as it is precut for round gauges, not square switches. Also, because it is pre-cut, I recommend using a switch plate (see my pic once I post it). It makes things a lot easier than going without the plate, which can be done, but it requires a lot more precision (we want without the plate on my buddies 2000 X-star, and the cuts took a long time).
6. You can probably use 2:1 wire taps when wiring the switches (specifically the blades that require multiple connections), but I prefer using 1:2 female:male blade connectors. I will post the Westmarine part number later.
7. Get the DPDT switch wiring diagram wakemakers (if it does not come with your switches) and follow it. Do not spend time trying to figure out whether you can save wire by combining grounds. You cannot. These switches do not use true grounds. They simply reverse the polarity of the circuit.
You may need to reverse lines (or flip the switch 180 degrees and change the cover… I find switching the wiring to be easier) for one or more of your pumps, especially if you have the pumps oriented in different directions like I do (or where your intake on 1 is on the left, but on the right for another, etc.). This is where having clear hose helps. You can easily see what your pump is doing when you are test wiring the switches. Don’t run your pumps without water when testing (or ever really).
I have probably forgotten some things and will supplement as I remember them. I will also soon document my ballast expansion project, whereby I will be adding on for an in-boat sac for surfing and a bow sac.
Plumbing:
1. Use strong magnets to locate your thru-hulls. By this I mean, use a set of magnets (1 on outside, 1 on inside) to locate where you will drill you holes. This allows you to confirm that you have enough space/clearance.
2. Make sure you have enough room for not only the thru-hull, but also a 90 degree elbow (if you are using one… including the turn radius of when you screw it on). I got lucky on this one, as I did not confirm this. This also means that if you are drilling multiple holes for multiple thru-hulls, make sure they are far enough apart from each other for you to screw on the 90 degree elbows (if you are using them).
3. Use the correct sized hole saw with drill bit guide for your thru-hulls. Do not cheap out and use a Harbor Freight or similar cheap set (like I did). Get one that is ever so slightly larger in diameter than the hole you want and make sure it is deep enough to go completely through. The Harbor Freight set I used worked, but I had to essentially burn my way through the last mm or so.
4. Mask the gelcoat around where you are going to drill thru-hulls (including where the hole saw will cut). Drill pilot hole (confirm location). Start cutting with hole saw in reverse until you are through the gelcoat. Then you can switch to forward.
5. Unless you have some very special tools, you need a second person when screwing in the thru-hulls. I recommend that after you apply your 3m sealant to the mushroom (4000 or 4200 depending on your confidence level), you get your helper in place (under the boat) to hold the mushroom (use some sort of pliers or other tool that they can catch the bumps in the inside of the thru-hull on to hold it in place). Then you go inside the boat, apply the 3m sealant to the hull floor around the thru-hull where the nut will go. (Note, you may want to reinforce with some cutting board material… the bigger the thru-hull, the more I would recommend this.) Screw on the nut. Then put on the 90 degree elbow right away (if you are using them). Use Teflon tape or plumbers goup on the threads (having used both, I prefer Teflon tape). Some will tell you to let the thru-hull set before putting on the elbows, but I would rather get all of these assemblies in the direction I want them in before the 3m fully sets up. Otherwise, you may find yourself with an elbow that you cannot get to be pointing where you want it without it being too loose (or risk over tightening and breaking your thru-hull free). When screwing on a 90, you will be torqing the thru-hull quite a bit. If it slips while the 3m is still setting up, no big deal. If it breaks free after it has set up, then you have more work to do.
6. Do not use scupper thru-hulls. Use mushroom type. I prefer locating them on the bottom of the boat, rather than the transom, so I can fill and empty while underway or at rest.
7. Use bronze ball valves on your intake thru-hulls. My setup has thru-hull, 90 degree street elbow, bronze ball valve, threaded hose barb, hose, pump, etc.
8. Carefully plan where your pumps are going to be, making sure you have clearance for the hoses and for changing the impellers. I used 3 Johnsons and was able to mount them on the existing aluminum cross bar by the ski pylon (pumps on the bow side). This was really tight, and I got lucky it worked, because I did not factor in the seat base. Factor in everything.
On the subject of hoses, I prefer the more flexible premium hose from wakemakers. It can bend far easier (without collapsing) than the other options. It’s also nice to be able to see the waterflow when you are testing the polarity of the swiches.
9. Have a heat gun handy for getting any 1” quick connect/hose barbs into 1” hose. 3/4 inch are possible without the heat gun, but the 1” are way more difficult. Consider wearing gloves when putting the hose barb of a quick connect in a hose. Your hands will thank me. Also, do not use a heat gun inside your boat if at all possible. It can very easily melt things you do not want it to (e.g., carpet).
10. Use quick connects on your bags. The little extra money you spend is more than worth the convenience of being able to take the bags out (e.g., to let the compartment air out).
11. Crisscross your vent lines. By this, I mean your port rear bag should vent out the starboard side, and vice versa. This prevents you losing water out the vent thru-hulls when surfing.
12. Use check valves on your vent lines. I fyou have a SAN, you arleady have them for at least the rear bags. Make sure they have not gotten stuck/corroded in the closed position, or you can burst a bag. If you use the swing check valves (like the stock ones), you have to orient them properly for them to work. Zip tie them in the proper orientation (with the bump in the middle up).
13. Tighten all hose clamps with a socket driver.
Electrical:
1. Plan your wiring layout carefully, measure your wiring needs carefully, be sure to buy the proper gauge of wire for the runs you are running (you must measure the full round trip distance), and then buy more wire than you think you need. Note, I use 10 gauge, which is the thickest wire I could find female blade terminals for. Use tinned wire.
2. Use a fuse panel. It is very easy to accidentally (or for little kids, dogs, etc.) to bump the switches. I like to pull the fuses as the last item in my clean-up ritual and then put them back in when I am back in the water. Once I hook up my battery switch and isolator/combiner, I will not need to pull the fuses. Also, locate the fuse panel where it is relatively easy to access. Think about the fact that you may have an in-boat sac full of water in your way if you do not plan ahead. You may not need to do this if your fuse panel is on your main battery and cuts off with your battery switch, but see item 4 below.
3. Use the correct size fuses for your pumps. I believe that the Johnsons use 25 amp and the Jabscos use 20 amp, but check.
4. If you can, run the pumps off an auxiliary battery (or use the pumps when your engine is running). Impeller pumps have a significant power draw. Getting stuck with a battery with slightly less juice to start the engine really sucks.
5. When locating the switches, measure carefully, plan for expansion (unless you are doing 4 right off the bat), and mask the area, including where you are going to cut. Draw your lines on the tape. If you are using a Dremel instead of a Rotozip (Rotozip is probably better for this task), be careful of the chuck. It can hit an area of good material and damage it.
If you locate your switches where I located mine (underneath the throttle in the carbon fiber panel), there is a bolt through the carbon fiber that you will need to remove. You will also need to cut some fiberglass behind the carbon fiber, as it is precut for round gauges, not square switches. Also, because it is pre-cut, I recommend using a switch plate (see my pic once I post it). It makes things a lot easier than going without the plate, which can be done, but it requires a lot more precision (we want without the plate on my buddies 2000 X-star, and the cuts took a long time).
6. You can probably use 2:1 wire taps when wiring the switches (specifically the blades that require multiple connections), but I prefer using 1:2 female:male blade connectors. I will post the Westmarine part number later.
7. Get the DPDT switch wiring diagram wakemakers (if it does not come with your switches) and follow it. Do not spend time trying to figure out whether you can save wire by combining grounds. You cannot. These switches do not use true grounds. They simply reverse the polarity of the circuit.
You may need to reverse lines (or flip the switch 180 degrees and change the cover… I find switching the wiring to be easier) for one or more of your pumps, especially if you have the pumps oriented in different directions like I do (or where your intake on 1 is on the left, but on the right for another, etc.). This is where having clear hose helps. You can easily see what your pump is doing when you are test wiring the switches. Don’t run your pumps without water when testing (or ever really).
I have probably forgotten some things and will supplement as I remember them. I will also soon document my ballast expansion project, whereby I will be adding on for an in-boat sac for surfing and a bow sac.
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