Livewell drain fitting

[mous]

Hi all, I changed the livewell pump on my 2004 228 but I am unable to reinstall the livewell hose back properly. The space is too tight to refit the hose to the drain at the bottom of the livewell and secure it with the double clamps. Should the hose be fitted to the bottom of the livewell first then secure it to the outlet? Can't do that at the moment as the both is wetberthed!
Do i have to put her back on the trailer? Do i need to use silicone in addition to the double clamp? The hose is old and less flexible, should I change it and use a longer one?

Appreciate your support on the steps to refit it.

 

[glacierbaze]

It is never a bad idea to replace an old hose, especially if it is stiff and/or cracked on the surface. If your livewell drain thru hull is like mine, it is well above the waterline, and I would have no problem disconnecting it in the slip. As I recall, I did as you suggested, and attached the drain to the bottom of the livewell, re-installed it, and then attached the hose to the thru hull.

 

[mous]

It is never a bad idea to replace an old hose, especially if it is stiff and/or cracked on the surface. If your livewell drain thru hull is like mine, it is well above the waterline, and I would have no problem disconnecting it in the slip. As I recall, I did as you suggested, and attached the drain to the bottom of the livewell, re-installed it, and then attached the hose to the thru hull.

Thank you for your reply .... maybe mine is at the waterline because of the weight of the 4 stroke kicker. Do I need to add silicone or any gasket... or just double clamp the hose?....

I must say that many boat brands e.g. Boston whaler are much better than Grady-White when it comes to accessing serviceable items ....

I added a TRI autopilot, Nmea network, livewell regulator etc. ... this was a mistake as I suffer now to service anything

 

[DennisG01]

Don't be afraid to cut an access hole to make things more convenient. Fill the hole with an inspection plate.

 

[Blaugrana]

I just did this in December and you need to put it back together in reverse order you took it apart....

So to remove, I disconnected the intake hose from the livewell and the drain hose from the scupper. Assume you did the same.

Then to put back together, I ended up attaching the intake hose to the pump, then the 1 way valve, then the hose to the valve and secured it somewhere so I can grab it once the livewell is in place.

For the drain hose, I connected it to the livewell with the clamps secured and then dropped the livewell into place.

With the livewell in place, you attach the drain hose to the scupper and the intake hose to the livewell.


You may need to do this a few times as you shorten hoses and use a heat gun to bend them as well.

I did this by myself but would be a great two person job to ease the frustration

Note: make sure all clamps are in a position that you can tighten without taking everything out, if need be.

 

[Blaugrana]

As another option, you can attach both hoses to the livewell if you place the valve similarly to how I did. Just don’t tighten until you are happy with everything

 

[mous]

I just did this in December and you need to put it back together in reverse order you took it apart....

So to remove, I disconnected the intake hose from the livewell and the drain hose from the scupper. Assume you did the same.

Then to put back together, I ended up attaching the intake hose to the pump, then the 1 way valve, then the hose to the valve and secured it somewhere so I can grab it once the livewell is in place.

For the drain hose, I connected it to the livewell with the clamps secured and then dropped the livewell into place.

With the livewell in place, you attach the drain hose to the scupper and the intake hose to the livewell.


You may need to do this a few times as you shorten hoses and use a heat gun to bend them as well.

I did this by myself but would be a great two person job to ease the frustration

Note: make sure all clamps are in a position that you can tighten without taking everything out, if need be.

Thank you for your reply... Unfortunately, the hose was disconnected from the livewell itself and not from the scupper ... this was a two-person operation. Now, being alone, I can't do it in the same reverse order ... The only way is to connect everything to the live well then secure it to the scupper but I need to put her back on the trailer.

What is the function of the one way valve? I was planning to skip it and use one long intake hose to reduce the possibility of failure in this covered area. What do you think?

 

[Blaugrana]

Thank you for your reply... Unfortunately, the hose was disconnected from the livewell itself and not from the scupper ... this was a two-person operation. Now, being alone, I can't do it in the same reverse order ... The only way is to connect everything to the live well then secure it to the scupper but I need to put her back on the trailer.

What is the function of the one way valve? I was planning to skip it and use one long intake hose to reduce the possibility of failure in this covered area. What do you think?

You can definitely do it as a one person job but more efficient with two so you don’t have to keep getting up

I asked KY Grady the same exact question about the valve and if it was truly needed. I ended up reinstalling it because GW put it there for a reason who am I to questio. It’s function is to prevent water from flowing out of the livewell as there is a stopper inside that contraption.

Did you end up removing the livewell? If so , just reattach before you put the livewell back. If you haven’t removed the livewell, then do from within. Get a heat gun and heat up the ends of the hoses for a bit. Do that until you can easily slide them onto pvc.

You can reach everything from the battery compartment on the starboard side....

PM me if you still can’t get it.

 

[glacierbaze]

The live well inlet is low in the tank. Without that check valve, the live well will gravity drain, unless the pump runs non-stop. The more expensive the bait is, the more likely someone will turn the pump off by accident.

 

[mous]

The live well inlet is low in the tank. Without that check valve, the live well will gravity drain, unless the pump runs non-stop. The more expensive the bait is, the more likely someone will turn the pump off by accident.

Maybe I have a different tank! the inlet is at the top. If no water is flowing from the inlet, the tank remains full unless I remove the drain. I installed a regulator for the pump to control the time of its operation based on the amount and type of bait.

 

[Seafarer_Bob]

My inlet is also at the bottom of the well, bad design.

 

[wrxhoon]

If you can jump in the water plug the outlet with something so you can take the hose off then connect it to the live well first then install the tank and connect it to the outlet . If very little water comes in plug it from the inside until you are ready to connect the hose then take the plug off and connect. Empty fuel tank will help as moving what you can to the front of the boat, extra person on the bow will help too.
Seafarer Bob.
It is a good design actually to have the inlet on the bottom and outlet on the top because the water circulates better and keeps the livies well ( personal opinion ). The check valve will stop it from draining when the pump is off . I have a timer on mine and depending on how many I have in the tank I cycle it accordingly. I have the pump off when traveling speed forces water in the tank.

 

[PNW_Drifter]

It sure is a pain to mess with the livewell! But I've never had so many problems until today. I installed a 1 1/2" valve on the drain incase of failure at the dock. Anyway after replacing the 22 year old broken inlet fitting, Then twisting it after sealing it leaks. More of a problem is the 22 year old drain fitting also leaks. Maybe it always did?

I'd like to replace the drain fitting with the 90 degree 1 - 1/2" elbow. Its special since it allows the Grady tube to screw in. I can't find it anywhere, including boat outfitters.

Does anyone know where to find it?