Ballast System Install

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I don't remember why the holes were here, but they worked.

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From the access compartment how did you get to the bow bag itself? Did you drill a hole in the floor near the bag?

Thanks for the reply


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I do not remember but I think there were holes in the floor under the bow seats I used.

[Married2Maristar]

I was able to feed the 1" hose from the engine compartment (where I mounted the pump for the bow bag) under the floor and feed it up to the access panel in the floor where the drain plug is located. It was in the access compartment where I added the "Y" fitting splitting the hose to both sides of the bag.

From the access compartment how did you get to the bow bag itself? Did you drill a hole in the floor near the bag?

Thanks for the reply


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2 thru hull fittings on one side, one on the other (bad pic but all I have)

The second pic shows how the vents connect to the bag and route to the side of the hull.

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I was able to feed the 1" hose from the engine compartment (where I mounted the pump for the bow bag) under the floor and feed it up to the access panel in the floor where the drain plug is located. It was in the access compartment where I added the "Y" fitting splitting the hose to both sides of the bag.

[Married2Maristar]

Great project. I’m trying to figure out how to do this on my maristar 210 vrs 00.
Can you elaborate more on how you routed the hose from the pumps to both ends of your bow bag, what paths/landmarks/openings did you follow?
I see two thru hulls from your write up in the engine bay where did you end up putting the third?
Can you describe how you routed or the path you followed for the vent hoses from the bags to the boat exterior?

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Check valves helped a little bit but not necessary.

The Y on the bow bag is a must, especially for draining.

[Married2Maristar]

Fast forward a few years: The ballast system has been flawless for the last few years, I just replaced the impellers for the first time. The only thing that's kind of a pain is lifting the front of the bags to get every gallon of water out.


I just ordered check valves for the vent lines to help with flattening the bags and getting a "full drain".


Anyone else try this????

About to start this with wakemakers kit with timers. Did your check valves prove useful or needful? How about your bow bag dual side fill setup?

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I would, but the boat is in storage 4 hours away. I do have 1 custom made bag that I have the measurements from, I just cant find them right now! I usually use 750's in each side; however if I were to but new ones (not custom) I would get the 1,100's at 50X24X24.

[jpage]

Can you give me exzact dimensions of the rear lockers without the bags. I have a x2 with hard tanks and want to remove them and have bags made to fix the compartment completely

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I plumbed mine using the checkvalves and configured the plumbing to discharge the water through the vent fittings when draining. Makes it very easy to know when the bag is fully empty and prevents running the pump dry. It also completely collapses the bag when empty. I’m curious (on your install) as to how the gauges in the panel determine the level of water in the bags though?

Nice job on your install btw. I did exactly the same; found the factory ballast wiring harness on ebay that came with everything (switches, breakers, etc). 3 each 1” through hull fittings to feed the pumps. Was sweating the hole drilling part until i read about the magnet trick which makes it foolproof!

Gauges don't determine anything, just came in the factory panel. When the bags are full they shoot out the vents.

[Rossterman]

I plumbed mine using the checkvalves and configured the plumbing to discharge the water through the vent fittings when draining. Makes it very easy to know when the bag is fully empty and prevents running the pump dry. It also completely collapses the bag when empty. I’m curious (on your install) as to how the gauges in the panel determine the level of water in the bags though?

Nice job on your install btw. I did exactly the same; found the factory ballast wiring harness on ebay that came with everything (switches, breakers, etc). 3 each 1” through hull fittings to feed the pumps. Was sweating the hole drilling part until i read about the magnet trick which makes it foolproof!

[Footin]

Fast forward a few years: The ballast system has been flawless for the last few years, I just replaced the impellers for the first time. The only thing that's kind of a pain is lifting the front of the bags to get every gallon of water out.


I just ordered check valves for the vent lines to help with flattening the bags and getting a "full drain".


Anyone else try this????

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Check valves would help them not empty while underway

Never had an issue with that.

[MC25]

Check valves would help them not empty while underway