The New Guy

[A&J Outdoors]

Hey folks, we are the proud owners of a new to us 2003 Sailfish 282. We have some work to do to get her where we want her, so you can expect a lot of questions, like my first one; how do you tell how much water you have in the fresh water tank?

Thanks.

 

[Hookup1]

Hey folks, how do you tell how much water you have in the fresh water tank?

At least on my boat you can't. Just fill it up!

 

[A&J Outdoors]

At least on my boat you can't. Just fill it up!

Ok, do you ever put some kind of cleaner in it?

 

[glacierbaze]

Welcome. You could flush with a bleach solution. I wouldn't recommend trying to drink from the tap, regardless of what you do to clean it.

 

[Hookup1]

Agreed. Wash and brush teeth with it but cook and drink bottled water.

 

[A&J Outdoors]

Welcome. You could flush with a bleach solution. I wouldn't recommend trying to drink from the tap, regardless of what you do to clean it.

Oh yeah, no plans to drink it, just don't want old nasty water in it. Thank you.

 

[seasick]

Stick a garden hose into the fill port and fill till it overflows. Let it run that way for several minutes. That will help loosen up gunk and make it float out the filler ( The water hose should be loose and not sealing the opening).
You may have in line filter in your plumbing, somewhere between the tank and the fresh water pump. These filters are often just a fine mesh screen in a clear housing. If you find one it should be cleaned as part of regular maintenance'

There is no easy way to drain the tank except by running a faucet until the tank is drained. That can take a while. All water tanks will grow gunk over time and faster in warm climates.
You can add 1/2 cup of bleach to every 10 gallons of water. Again, don't drink the water and be aware it may bleach your clothes. I don't add bleach, I just every now and then fill the tank to overflow to flush out the gunk.
Note that gunk in the water supply may clog the strainer in your sink faucet and/or other water fixtures like deck fresh water spray.
Finally, if you live in an area where temps go below freezing, you need to winterize the system. That is another topic.

 

[A&J Outdoors]

Stick a garden hose into the fill port and fill till it overflows. Let it run that way for several minutes. That will help loosen up gunk and make it float out the filler ( The water hose should be loose and not sealing the opening).
You may have in line filter in your plumbing, somewhere between the tank and the fresh water pump. These filters are often just a fine mesh screen in a clear housing. If you find one it should be cleaned as part of regular maintenance'

There is no easy way to drain the tank except by running a faucet until the tank is drained. That can take a while. All water tanks will grow gunk over time and faster in warm climates.
You can add 1/2 cup of bleach to every 10 gallons of water. Again, don't drink the water and be aware it may bleach your clothes. I don't add bleach, I just every now and then fill the tank to overflow to flush out the gunk.
Note that gunk in the water supply may clog the strainer in your sink faucet and/or other water fixtures like deck fresh water spray.
Finally, if you live in an area where temps go below freezing, you need to winterize the system. That is another topic.

Great info, thank you! Not sure we'll need to winterize, we're in South Texas. While we do get freezes once in a while, I have never winterized a boat here. Most we do is make sure the outboards are trimmed all the way down.

 

[TortugaBob]

In south TX, CC myself. 2005 Marlin and the water gauge is about the only thing that did not work, as they said, just fill her up each trip. I use some of that Fresh Water stuff from West Marine to help.

 

[glacierbaze]

Since you are not familar with winterizing, if the need arises, make sure you use RV antifreeze, and not automotive. My GW has a filter mounted on the intake side of the pump. Taking it apart, and cleaning the screen greatly improved flow.

 

[Doc Stressor]

I once had the filter bowl crack during a rare freeze in Florida a few years ago. So I remove the bowl and filter when the temps are forecast to drop below freezing. It never stays cold long enough to need to drain the water tank or use antifreeze.

 

[Hookup1]

I drain tank and use air compressor to blow out the lines. Then use a gallon of antifreeze to tank. I pump the antifreeze out to and then use air to blow out the lines again. No water heater in my boat. If you have one you need a bypass hose.

Clogged filter if you have one is a common problem. Collects all the tank growth/crud.

 

[A&J Outdoors]

In south TX, CC myself. 2005 Marlin and the water gauge is about the only thing that did not work, as they said, just fill her up each trip. I use some of that Fresh Water stuff from West Marine to help.

Yeah I've seen some of the water treatment stuff, I'll try that at least with the first fill up. Thanks for the info.

 

[A&J Outdoors]

Hey folks, thanks for all the great input, I really appreciate it!

 

[Fishtales]

There should be a water gage in the head that shows the water level. I agree with a capful or two of bleach to clean. Then use a water treatment on the final water in the tank. Never drink - clean or wash down only.
Remember to fully drain water and empty head prior to layup.

 

[A&J Outdoors]

There should be a water gage in the head that shows the water level. I agree with a capful or two of bleach to clean. Then use a water treatment on the final water in the tank. Never drink - clean or wash down only.
Remember to fully drain water and empty head prior to layup.

No there is no gauge that I can find.

 

[Fishtales]

Interesting. It is usually head high on the back wall. I had a 2002 and it was there. Maybe shoot GW cust service an email?

 

[seasick]

We may be confusing fresh water tank and holding tank. The holding tank level would be in the head.
The fresh water probably doesn't have a gauge as standard equipment.

 

[A&J Outdoors]

We may be confusing fresh water tank and holding tank. The holding tank level would be in the head.
The fresh water probably doesn't have a gauge as standard equipment.

Correct, there is a holding tank indicator, but there is not a fresh water tank indicator which is what we were talking about. On that note, how do you make the holding tank indicator work? I push the button to show level and nothing happens...

 

[seasick]

I do not know what model control panel you have on the system. A picture would help since I am sure the model was used on multiple hulls and model years and someone will be familiar with its operation and trouble shooting
You can describe it too. That will probably help identify the part