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I'm in a predicament with my ballasts. Here is the situation:
I just skied Lake Powell (a lake known for Quagga mussel problems). Legally, I cannot put my boat in another of water for 30 days unless I decontaminate it.
In order to decontaminate, I need to go to a site where they use a fake-a-lake's to provide water (with decontaminating fluid mixed in) to my cooling and ballast systems. I supposed to then run the engine, and also fill the ballast tanks. Engine worked fine, the ballast tanks, did not.
The ballast pumps work (as far as I can tell), I can hear a faint humming when it's on. However, I cannot actually fill my ballast tanks. The water never enters my boat, it just squirts out the side of the fake-a-lake.
I have the seacock in the engine bay open, I have the other switches (under the radio, behind the drivers seat) open. But nothing seems to get in.
Honestly, I have had limited success getting the ballasts to fill on the lake with the pump, it seems they always do do better when I'm moving, to fill the tanks.
I've read posts where people say, "I have to run my boat on plane for a couple minutes to prime the pumps", but that is not a possibility, because I cannot legally enter another body of water yet.
I have also read that this ballast system can be subject to airlocks, which I suspect might be the reason I'm unable to pump the fluid with the limited pressure a fake-a-lake provides. I'm wondering if there is a known way to fix an airlock while the boat is trailered.
I'm stumped. Has anyone dealt with this that could provide some assistance? I don't want to wait until July to get back out.
Thank you!!
I just skied Lake Powell (a lake known for Quagga mussel problems). Legally, I cannot put my boat in another of water for 30 days unless I decontaminate it.
In order to decontaminate, I need to go to a site where they use a fake-a-lake's to provide water (with decontaminating fluid mixed in) to my cooling and ballast systems. I supposed to then run the engine, and also fill the ballast tanks. Engine worked fine, the ballast tanks, did not.
The ballast pumps work (as far as I can tell), I can hear a faint humming when it's on. However, I cannot actually fill my ballast tanks. The water never enters my boat, it just squirts out the side of the fake-a-lake.
I have the seacock in the engine bay open, I have the other switches (under the radio, behind the drivers seat) open. But nothing seems to get in.
Honestly, I have had limited success getting the ballasts to fill on the lake with the pump, it seems they always do do better when I'm moving, to fill the tanks.
I've read posts where people say, "I have to run my boat on plane for a couple minutes to prime the pumps", but that is not a possibility, because I cannot legally enter another body of water yet.
I have also read that this ballast system can be subject to airlocks, which I suspect might be the reason I'm unable to pump the fluid with the limited pressure a fake-a-lake provides. I'm wondering if there is a known way to fix an airlock while the boat is trailered.
I'm stumped. Has anyone dealt with this that could provide some assistance? I don't want to wait until July to get back out.
Thank you!!
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