1994 209 Escape Seacock live well/raw water

[pressure23]

Have a 1994 209 Escape. I am trying to understand the live well and raw water wash down seacock system. When I hit live well the raw water wash down goes on. I'm assuming I need to use seacock to change to live well. I see that under bolster seat in stern. But also see another valve just in front of the engine in an access panel. Anyone know what that valve does? I know seacocks can give me trouble. How does this one look layout wise.

 

[Halfhitch]

That's the normal layout for those years. You have a seacock valve with the newer looking hose. (That's good) and a diverted valve. By turning that from one position to the other you can chose water to your livewell or to your deck wash hose.

 

[HookUp]

The yellow handled one is the seacock. The other plastic valve is a diverter.
It diverts the water to either the livewell or washdown.

 

[dainlaroche]

I’ve got a 1993 209 with the exact setup (although my valve is under the console) and just replaced hose and y-valve. There is a single pump mounted in the stern on the port side that takes the water from the seacock and sends it to that y-valve. You turn the valve one way to fill and circulate the livewell and the other for the wash down hose fitting. My y-valve cracked last year and water shot all over. Hose was tired too so I replaced it all.

if they haven’t been done I’d recommend replacing all the plastic through hulls, scuppers and hoses. I just did mine and the plastic fittings were oxidized and brittle. There are some horror stories of them breaking off at sea.

 

[seasick]

I’ve got a 1993 209 with the exact setup (although my valve is under the console) and just replaced hose and y-valve. There is a single pump mounted in the stern on the port side that takes the water from the seacock and sends it to that y-valve. You turn the valve one way to fill and circulate the livewell and the other for the wash down hose fitting. My y-valve cracked last year and water shot eater all over. Hose was tired too so I replaced it all.

if they haven’t been done I’d recommend replacing all the plastic through hulls, scuppers and hoses. I just did mine and the plastic fittings were oxidized and brittle. There are some horror stories of them breaking off at sea.

The plastic thru hulls are meant for above the water line use. If they break it is a problem but you don't sink. Sea cocks should use bronze thru-hulls/scoops. Many raw water pickups will feed the plumbing while under way assuming a forward facing scoop. A broken fitting in the livewell could result is water flooding but again, if the hull is not in motion, the water will not flow as long as the leak is above the sea level

 

[dainlaroche]

On the 209 the livewell overflow and drain and scuppers are just above the water line. If these through hulls break you have a 2” hole directly into the bilge. I wasn’t comfortable with that scenario so I replaced the old plastic ones with new stainless steel.

 

[seasick]

Good point. I would be a bit more leery about plastic thru hulls. On my 208 all thrus and scuppers other than the motor well are stainless. The motor well drains are pretty far above the water line.
Actually, now thinking about that, I am wrong. My thru hulls are/were chrome plated bronze fittings. Most of the chrome has flaked off (19 years of service so far)

 

[pressure23]

Very helpful guys. I'm assuming you would recommend I shut the seacock when in slip and not in use? Still trying to figure out if the live well is worth the trouble. With all going on haven't been able to use it yet, but doe it have any kind of aeration. I see like a metal grate in there but that's about it. Again thanks for help on the seacock and the diverter.

 

[HookUp]

Very helpful guys. I'm assuming you would recommend I shut the seacock when in slip and not in use? Still trying to figure out if the live well is worth the trouble. With all going on haven't been able to use it yet, but doe it have any kind of aeration. I see like a metal grate in there but that's about it. Again thanks for help on the seacock and the diverter.

If fishing is your thing, and you can obtain live bait, then heck yeah its worth. I keep bunker alive when bass fishing for hours

 

[seasick]

Just about everybody will say you should shut all seacocks when docked. Many, many of those folks don't! Leaks in raw water plumbing in conjunction with bilge pump failures is the number one cause of sinking at the slip. That doesn't meant the pump was bad, some times it was but more often it was cycling frequently and drained the battery. Dead batter, no pump, bilge floods.....
As I mentioned, those seacocks in that hull are a pain to get to and operate especially if stiff.

 

[dainlaroche]

With all going on haven't been able to use it yet, but doe it have any kind of aeration. I see like a metal grate in there but that's about it. Again thanks for help on the seacock and the diverter.

There is no aeration on the livewell. That silver grate is an overflow and it’s my understanding that you just keep the livewell pump on bringing fresh seawater in constantly and the overflow goes out that drain. That’s what I did last summer and it keeps the bait fish very happy. If you shut the pump off they don’t last long.

 

[HookUp]

There is no aeration on the livewell. That silver grate is an overflow and it’s my understanding that you just keep the livewell pump on bringing fresh seawater in constantly and the overflow goes out that drain. That’s what I did last summer and it keeps the bait fish very happy. If you shut the pump off they don’t last long.

Yep