changing ball valve to automatic

[johnboyy7]

ive read where several of you have done this. i just got my boat and im tired of opening the engine comparment already. was wondering if anyone would have the time to tell me what valves they found worked the best. and how to wire them in.

[bowvan]

http://stores.ebay.com/valves4projects

This is the ebay store were I purchased the valves I've been using. I use the 1" 12v solenoid valves, but there are 3/4" valves too. I replaced all of my intake hose with 1" while I was down there.

I wired into the power supply for each pump with wire taps.

If your planning on plumbing additional sacs into your tanks, do yourself a favor and buy valves for the empty lines too. The valves keep water from leaking out of the empty lines when your pressurizing the tanks.

[johnboyy7]

did you notice that much difference in the fill up with the 1''?

so you are saying that the force from the sac filling on top of the ballast will cause water to leak out.?

did you just hook this valves to the empty up to the pump as well? thus will no both the valves open then?

[bowvan]

There was not much of a difference in fill time with the 1" hose. The main reason I changed was so that I could upgrade the fill pumps to 1100's in the future (when the 750's crap out) . It's also the reason why I went with all 1" valves.

The fill valves replace the manual cable valves located under your dash, not your brass valves atatched to your hull. Leave the brass valves alone. The automatic valves are normally in the closed position. When you run your pumps, the valves open allowing you to fill.

When you add a bag to your tank, your goal is to overfill your tank into the bag. This creates a positive pressure inside the tank. The excess pressure forces water out both the vent hose and the emtpy hose (through the pump). You need to plug the empty hose while your filling, to keep from losing water. You can do this with a plug or a valve.

The automatic valve placed on the empty hose is normally in the closed position. It is wired to the same power source as the empty pump. It stays closed during filling and opens during emptying.

[johnboyy7]

thanks for your info and clarifying which valves. very helpful.

is it pretty easy to tell which wires are for filling and emptying?

what kinda of ballast pumps do you have?

[bowvan]

You need to first locate each pump. Each tank has a pump for filling and one for emptying. The fill pumps for the rear tanks are under the motor. The empty pumps are under the tanks towards the rear. The front ballast pumps are in the center locker.

Once you locate the pumps, track down the two wires providing the power to them. These are the wires you will tap into. Polarity is not a big deal, but you can connect black to black and grey to brown.

I still have the stock pumps in my '04. Atwood 750's for the fill and Rule 1100's for the empty (all aerators).

[johnboyy7]

so do you have bags piggy backed? if so, how is your fill time.

i didnt realize there were 2 pumps. i only saw the one per tank.

so if i found the right valves you are talking about, it will cost about 200 to do all 3 tanks.
is this the valve......
http://cgi.ebay.com/3-4-Electric-Sol...item439a935b32

[bowvan]

Those are the valves. You will want to use the 1" 12v model if your going to install them in your empty lines (the empty hose is 1 1/8"). You can use the 3/4" 12v model for your fill lines, as the hose is 3/4". If you plan on upgrading your fill pumps in the future, I would install the 1" valves now.

I have custom bags in each locker that fill over my flat tanks. Each bag holds around 300 lbs. The tank plus the bag fills in about 7-8 min when the boat is not moving and 5-6 min when the boat is under way.

I also have a bag that fills from the center tank, into the nose (under the front seat cushion). Both the tank and bag fill in about 8-9 min. The through hull fitting feeding this pump is flat though, so you don't get the boost while the boat is moving.