Starboard Ballast Help needed

[scottwilk]

Good Afternoon,
I have a 2003 226 Team Edition. The starboard ballast will pump a little bit of water in then stop. Center and port work fine. I can drain the small amount of water that fills in the Starboard as well. Any ideas of why it would fill a litttle then stop? i assume the pump is working, because it is pumping some water in and the drain pump works to get it back out? any thoughts/suggestions would be appreciated.

[obd666]

before i redid my ballast setup, the starboard side was always harder to prime. if your 226 is like the 210's, the starboard side has a longer run and a bigger loop to the tank making it a bit more sensitive to get primed. try putting it in gear for a slow idle then try to prime it. also, be sure that the mechanical valves that are controlled from the helm are opening properly if you still have them.

[scottwilk]

Obd...

Hey,
Thanks for the reply. sorry just got this boat. What do you mean by primed? i do still have the valves at the helm that you manually open/close ill double check those to make sure they are opening properly

before i redid my ballast setup, the starboard side was always harder to prime. if your 226 is like the 210's, the starboard side has a longer run and a bigger loop to the tank making it a bit more sensitive to get primed. try putting it in gear for a slow idle then try to prime it. also, be sure that the mechanical valves that are controlled from the helm are opening properly if you still have them.

[obd666]

What do you mean by primed?

primed as in, water getting all the way to the pump and all air expelled from the line. that is when its pulling and pushing water to its full capability. its possible that you have a pump thats getting weak, but i would bet its just not priming. you also could have a loose hose connection letting some air in, or the valves are not both opened (the ones under the helm and the engine compartment)

[scottwilk]

Gotcha! That makes sense... Last question. I know I opened the manual one at Helm. where is the one at engine compartment? ( I assume thats what the helm one is actually controlling ) Thanks again

[obd666]

I assume thats what the helm one is actually controlling

they are actually two seperate valves. you will have a brass valve for each thru-hull intake that is opened/closed right behind the back seat inside the engine compartment. then there is the valve we are talking about that is operated from the helm, that is actually between the thru-hull and the pump.