So many tubes...

TunaHead

TunaHead

Senior Member
Ok, I need some help understanding whats going on here. My V is a 1987 which means it should have a self bailing hull. To me that term means that the deck drains to the sea rather than to the bilge to pumped out later. Perhaps I am mistaken. This boat has a live well over the fuel tank hatch and I wonder if that caused the plumbing to be rerouted. I need to start flooding some areas with water to see what drains where but in the meanwhile, here is what I am seeing...

1) Bilge area:
Yellow- drains to bilge from starboard deck drain.
White- pumps from through hull fitting #1 (to live well?)
Green- Bilge pump (works!)
Blue- connects to through hull fitting #2 and pumps to ?
Red- from splitter on through hull #2 to raw water washdown (pump works!)
Bilgearea.jpg



2) Starboard hatch view:
Blue arrows- lotsa cut and dangling wires.
Red- loose tube that drains from starboard side of motor well. This is closed at the motor well with a brass/rubber stopper.
Green- connects to bilge pump.
Magenta- from live well standpipe? (or maybe fish box)
Yellow- from starboard deck, drains into bilge.
White- connects to white pump in #1.
Starboardhatch.jpg



3) Port hatch view
Green- What the...?
Blue- same as blue arrow in #1.
Yellow- Drains from port deck drain into bilge.
Red- This is the twin of the red arrow in #2. Drains from motor well but isn't connected to anything in the hull and is plugged at the motor well.
porthatchcopy.jpg
 
First thing you oughta buy is a soldering gun, heat shrink tubing, and battery cables. Wire nuts are the worst possible connection. They will corrode just being near water. Once corroded they start to draw more amps to run the pump, more heat and soon your replacing pumps or if your lucky, some fuses. Thats if it stays running! When I did my rewire I made a list of all the wires, printed it out on the computer and laminated it. Then I used a hole punch and slipped the label over the wire.
 
Not sure what to tell ya on this one, though I am not as surprised as some. Tuna when I was shopping for a V I went and looked at 16 of them. Yea I know, and believe me I heard it from the wife too.
Every one of them was set up different, even the same model and same year ::)
Diff equipment, some dealer installed options, some crack head installed options, some options installed after wellcraft employee liquid lunches, who the h@ll knows.
First of all, you definetly have a year that was a self bailing hull. But the way your set up it is self bailing into the bildge, which the Italians here in NJ call No F2ckin Buono.
They should be directly hooked up to an thru hull located just above the waterline on the sides of the hull towards the rear for best performance. If they are going to drain into the bildge then they are going to rely on a pump to empty the cockpit and then drain the hull below the floor thru the bildge. It should be using the weight of the water and any forward motion of the boat to empty that cockpit as fast as possible and not relying on a pump in a round about way.
The bildge should have its own thru hull located just above one of the floor drain thru hulls on one side of the boat and the other side of the boat should also have a thru hull above the cockpit floor drain on that side to drain any fish box type pump outs if you have them.
The fish box drains generally from what I have seen drain into the bildge, and the same when you pull the plug from the live well to drain it.
Depending on how equiped and the phase of the moon ::) you may have one or two high speed pick up bronze thru hulls on the bottom of the hull about a foot forward of the transom. If yours have not been used check them under controlled conditions before opening them at sea.
Those should be for your wash down and if installed your live bait well.
Some I saw used the same thru hull with a valve for both purposes utilizing the same pump.
The wiring is standard chop suey, a good guy to talk with is the Grand Puhbah (aka Franco) among his many talents he is good with dc wiring and might be able to look at these photos and steer you straight. For me electric is a spend all day and pray operation.
I do know that you need to change, or I would recommend you change the floor drains to direct to thru hull operation for the safest operation of your boat and to make it truly self bailing.
 
Tuna, I yanked all my wiring out. Think my V was rewired three times over and they left the old wiring in.
From what I see, it looks like everything drains into the bilge area, then its pumped out. This seems to make the bilge pump work alot more. Do you have thru-hull scuppers and a rear floor drain ????, This is how it should look with the floor drain to the thru-hull scupper.

DSC01987.jpg


water from the deck then drains out from the lower thru hull fitting.
DSC01986.jpg



drain hose from deck drain to scupper/thruhull fitting.
DSC01988.jpg
 
Thats the ticket Tuna, Hammer installed some high faluting one way valves on his because he could ;D but most just have a slight loop down in the hose and direct to the thru hull. Maybe Kevin can show you Old Schools set up.
 
Hmm, looking at your pics. it looks that your deck drains into the bilge area. and is then pumped out. Does your V have thru-hull fittings at the water line ??, seen some patch work on the inside, maybe they patched over the thruhull fitting.
 
Willy and Hammer, I noticed the patch work too when I was reviewing the pics. There are NO THRU-Hull fittings like there are on your boat Hammer. I suspect you are right and these were rerouted but why in the heck would a guy want to do that? One of big advantages of these later models is the self-bailing feature (IMHO).

On the other hand, I own a drill and I am not afraid to use it.

Hammer, I am assuming that your side scuppers are original, yes? Would you please measure to the center of that scupper from both the stern and the bottom of the deadrise. That'll let me precisely replace the fitting.

One last question, what is up with the tubes in my V that travel into the hull from either side of the motor well but connect to nothing? I wonder if these were once connected to the deck drains (the height doesn't look quite right though). Perhaps they didn't work well without a one way valve... perhaps I've had too much wine to think these things through clearly...

You guys rock.

TH
 
Tuna, I think those are did connect to the old thru hull fittings before. But you know something, its kinda good that the thru hull fittings are patched over. Dont reinstall them where they use to be. Shoot straight out the back through the transom and use the scuppers that have that rubber flap that lets water out but not in.

For extra safety, do what I did, install that internal scupper like I did. "cant think of the name of it.
If you shoot straight out the back, I would go at least 2.5 inches to center above the water line for the hole. With gear and weight in the boat, she will sit abit low.

Dont get yourself down, you have alot more stuff on your boat then I do, I had the air rator thing, the wash dash pump, ect. I yanked it all out. "since it didnt work".

1. clean up your battery cables.
2. replace and bad wiring that has wire caps.
3. make sure all hose fittings are tight.
4.Bilge pump is working.

Then take on out. You can still enjoy your V without the through hull fittings, only down fall is that your pump will be working overtime. Some guys dont even have a bilge pump. and they are still out having fun.

I thought I seen a posting where teh seller said he was an electriacian and rewired it himself. Hmm, if thats true, I'm a bit pissed with him.

If you dont decide to shoot straight out the back, I'll measure of the thru hull scupper for ya.
 
Replacing the thru hull fittings and patching over that stupid air rator thing.

DSC01724.jpg


You might wanna add these. Makes things alot easier.

DSC01722.jpg
 
Wow I am amazed at that mess!! I would just get a wire cutter rip everything out and start over!!

My boat is not self bailing :'( But I offten thought about trying?

But it looks like you are in good hands here!! you will get it done.

Good Luck!
 
Tuna, I would leave major wiring to motor and steering cable, then yank all the rest out and start new...looks like your previous owner was tryin' to reinvent somethin', but didn't know what ??? ...anyway, best you get rid of all and start fresh...I did and never regretted ...and probably wanna start w/new battery cable-connectors ;) ... CLEAN HOUSE...pumps, hoses, wires and ALL...you'll be glad ya did!!... ;) ... Franco and Hammer got ya goin' in right direction on wiring and plumbing ;D ...
 
Also Tuna if you are going to install the thru hulls on the sides two things.

1. Make sure the thru hull is below the level of the floor, and from what I have read concerning the hose going to it, it should have a slight loop, another words it should drop down and then come up to the thru hull.

2. If you have a choice (and you do) get a quality stainless or bronze thru hull and get rid of the plastic, they have sunk more ships than you would believe.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top