Best way to fill the water tanks?

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Joe	Best way to fill the water tanks?		Lead	[-]
Posts: 47 08/02/07 11:04:27	Tags : None Whats the fastest and most efficient way to fill all 4 water tanks? Last time I just used the bow filler and had all the valves open to make the bow tank trickle fill the other tanks. It overflowed onto the deck a few times and I waited 10 mins and tried again. I had to do this 3 times before all tanks filled up. First time I did each tank individually, which was a pain. How does everyone else do it? Thanks ... Joe #872 Last Edited By: Joe 09/13/07 19:12:19. Edited 1 time.
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pwinterfeld		#1	[url]	[-]
Posts: 107 08/02/07 16:18:32	Hi It depends how much time I have when I fill the tanks. The forward tank (with the valves open under the sink) is best filled slowly - so that all tanks are filled at the same time. I usually combine this with other chores ie. loading the boat with supplies while filling the tank at the same time. When short of time I fill the tanks seperately and in this case I open the dock faucet to full flow, at least then I am certain that the tanks are all full when the overflow occurs. Also this is subject to the lenght of the trip - are we daysailing with a swim stop - then we usually don't use enough water to for all the tanks to be full. Then I only make sure that one of the smaller tanks is full - enough to do dishes and a quick shower on the swim step. Peter C'est la Vie Hull #746
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royalserf		#2	[url]	[-]
Posts: 43 08/03/07 06:04:21	The only way I can be sure that all tanks are full is to fill each one individually. It takes time, but I've been caught heading out on a cruise too many times only to find that the side tanks are half or less full. Individually filling each tank eliminates this situation. Fred Drummond Royal Serf Hull #855 2 Cabin C/L
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thegreenmartini		#3	[url]	[-]
Posts: 48 08/18/07 13:43:17	We have 1 1989 3 cabin with four tanks. The best and fastest we find is to lift the seat cushions, open the inspection plate, and fill the tank at full blast. No deck plates, no tiny hoses, no vent lines, no fuss. Fill'm and go. Rick Troubadour, Pasadena, MD p.s. If you let the hose fly loose while filling, you will saturate the entire cabin, and yourself, spouse will laugh, it's a wonderful time.
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jiminpuyallup		#4	[url]	[-]
Posts: 20 08/22/07 18:31:37	I've tried both methods and prefer to close all tank valves and fill individually. If I'm planning on working on the boat for a few hours then I'll open all valves and drop a slow flowing hose into the forward tank. By the way, all my tank valves are located under the port side aft birth next to the freshwater intake. What a pain in the butt they are to reach. Is this the set up on all Catalina 42's or am I just lucky to get something custom?? Jim Lee s/v Pure Joy #508 - 3 Cabin Pullman Tacoma
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tinolanza		#5	[url]	[-]
Posts: 212 08/23/07 12:29:20	Ours is the same as we too have a 3 cabin layout. I suspect all Mark II 3 cabin have the same fresh water manifold and yes it is a pain as one needs to lay on the floor in order to reach all valves. Tino Lanza, Dancing Dolphin (#739/3 cabin pullman, Westlake Village, CA)
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rbetzing		#6	[url]	[-]
Posts: 60 08/23/07 18:22:49	Out water tank valves are under the galley sink on the port side. Not to bad to get to. I wasn't aware that all of the water tanks were connected. I think I will try the forward tank slow fill method next time and see if I can get them all full. I'm usually doing other things on the boat when I fill the water tanks - so not having to hassle with moving the hose to each tank opening would be nice. Ron Desperado 2000 C42/2 cabin #708 San Diego, CA
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Joe		#7	[url]	[-]
Posts: 47 08/24/07 14:46:30	As I recently found out, the problem with doing the slow trickle fill from the bow with all valves open is that the lowest tanks blow up like balloons before the bow tank gets 100% full. The Catalina water tanks are made of cheap thin plastic and the inspection cover on the top of the tank warps and starts to squirt water everywhere. My aft port water tank did this and leaked galons of water that got trapped near the raw water intake because the limber holes on my boat didnt exist! It got very smelly until I pumped out the water. I silicone sealed the inspection hatch cover as another C42 user suggested I do. They should do this at the factory. The tanks under the sole probably do the same thing but should leak into the bilge. Joe #872 3CL
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rbetzing		#8	[url]	[-]
Posts: 60 08/25/07 11:19:31	Joe, It seems like your lower tank air vent would prevent it from blowing up like a balloon. Was your vent clogged when that happened? Has anyone else experienced what Joe describes when filling all of the tanks at once from the bow tank filler? Ron Desperado 2000 C42/2 cabin #708 San Diego, CA
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yorkrose		#9	[url]	[-]
Posts: 261 08/25/07 11:58:23	The "balloon" problem is another reason to fill and to use the tanks separately. Only one manifold valve should be open at any time. I suppose one could consider these tanks to be "cheap thin plastic", but the alternative would be "expensive, reinforced, and heavy". Who wants to pay for that when all it takes is a little care in operation? The pressure forces are a bit more than some people might expect. On our boat the top of the forward tank is at least three feet higher than the tops of the sub-sole tanks. I would guess that the top surface area of a sub-sole tank is something around 6 square feet. (I am too lazy to go out and measure right now.) That means the total force on the top is close to 1000 pounds when all tanks are full and all manifold valves are open. The "cheap thin plastic" tanks are strong enough to remain intact, but they will bulge quite a bit. Simply stated, these tanks are typical construction for ordinary polyethylene tanks. They are not intended for any sort of pressurized service. Regards, Gene Fuller Yorkshire Rose, C42 #870
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pwinterfeld		#10	[url]	[-]
Posts: 107 09/05/07 14:54:59	Water Tanks It is interesting that this discussion was started so recently. This weekend, before leaving, we filled up the watertanks the normal slow manner, with forward tank draining into the the center tanks - or so I thought. As the tank was filling I was talking to my neighbor and noticed that the bilge pump came on frequently. I started to remove the matress from the forward compartment because that seemed to be were the water was running from into the bilge. The tank, as previously mentioned in this thread, was bulging and a heavy stream of water was squirting from the inspection plate. I could not tighten the plate enough to stop the leak. So I emptied the tank sufficiently and used silicone around the threads of the inspection plate to seal the leak. I also had very low volume of water from the faucet at the galley for some time (new pump was installed a year ago). The next morning I noticed that the faucet had the old great pressure and volume. No more leaking into the bilge after refilling the forward tank. So the lesson here is: inspect your forward tank after you have filled it to overflowing - you may be in for a surprise. Peter C'est la Vie Hull #746
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