How to empty fresh water tank on 2003 270 FV?

MDboater

I'm in the process of winterizing my fresh water system.  I notice that the tank is tilted away from the water pickup such that several gallons of water are left in the tank that can't be removed using the boat's fresh water pump.  What is the best way to remove this excess water?  Failing to do so would significantly dilute the antifreeze and/or require numerous flush/repeat cycles. 

I have been a lurker on this site for about 2 years but this is my first post.  Thanks in advance for any tips.

Regards,
MDboater

rasbury

MD, don't lurk, keep jumping right in there! I would think, if you had to, you can take the hose off the top of the tank (or even run a hose through the water fill inlet) and work it around until you get to it and pump it out with something. I'm a Florida boater and I get if you leave it full it would expand and cause a problem. With a little left in the tank, is it really an issue? I understand it will freeze but would not think it would hurt anything...

TonyWalker

This may be a stupid idea but here goes.  Is there any way you could tip the boat sufficiently once you get it on shore?

Tony
Salt Shaker 342

MDboater

Thanks Tony but I don't have a way to tip the boat.  Also, I have tried emptying the water tank both in the water and while the boat is blocked on land.  In both cases the tank tips away from the water pickup.

Cableguy Greg

Can you unstrap the tank from the hold down and put a block under it to tilt it towards the pickup?

MDboater

Thanks rasbury!  I like that idea.  The bigger issue than leaving water in the tank is getting full concentration antifreeze through the fresh water system (via the tank). 

Thanks Greg!  I'll unstrap the tank as a last resort.

Handymans342

Hey MD, where in Maryland are you? I just left that state. 

Dream_Inn

I'd think your water pickup is in the aft part of the tank.  If that is the case, I'd also think the boat would be tipped a bit aft so water can stay out of the bilge.  If this is not the case, then you should be concerned.  I would not want water in the bilge sitting and freezing. 

As far as unstrapping the tank, I do that each year but lean it opposite of the connection.  Thus if the water that is left in the tank will not freeze the plastic fitting.  I do not put any pink in my tank, just disconnect the hose and pump it from there.

Michael T

My 2 cents, I'd unstrap the tank and shim it in the direction you need to empty it. I like my gear to work all the time. I use pink AF then flush the tank with a cup of bleach and two tanks of fresh water and I drink the water all season. I do use a charcoal filter and a water softener to fill the tank - best move I ever made water-wise on the boat. BTW If you do shim it permanently, may I recommend you slide shims of decreasing thickness under the tank bottom to support it when full. A friend who had the same problem poured some floor leveller (he's in construction) under his tank - end of problem.

jhofmann

There is concentrated RV/Marine (pink) that says to mix with water, Diamond Clear is the brand I found this year. If mixed 50/50, it protects to -10F. If used undilutted and added to the tank it should be fine, even if it gets colder, it most likely would not hard freeze, only turn to slush. 

06Rinker270

Dream_Inn said:

I'd think your water pickup is in the aft part of the tank.  If that is the case, I'd also think the boat would be tipped a bit aft so water can stay out of the bilge.  If this is not the case, then you should be concerned.  I would not want water in the bilge sitting and freezing. 

As far as unstrapping the tank, I do that each year but lean it opposite of the connection.  Thus if the water that is left in the tank will not freeze the plastic fitting.  I do not put any pink in my tank, just disconnect the hose and pump it from there.

@Dream_Inn you don't put any pink in the tank period?  Is that to keep the chemical out of the fresh water tank period?  

Dream_Inn

I do not put any pink in my fresh water tank.  Yes, it is to keep the chemicals out.  I drain it as much as I can, then prop it up away from the plastic fitting that draws the water (so it doesn't freeze and crack).  I use that hose to feed the pink into the rest of the lines.

Cableguy Greg

Good call on not putting pink in the tank. I am thinking about pulling a MT and putting a T and a couple of ball valves in so I can winterize the water system without putting pink in the tank. I just need to get to the boat to visualize how I am going to do it.

06Rinker270

Last winterization they put pink in my tank.  I think I have to do a few good flushes to help clear it out.

Michael T

I think there might be a couple of "pink" products out there, with widely different degrees of toxicity. A few years ago a marina used a pink antifreeze to winterize my Rinker that had  383-Bravo 1 combination. That pink was toxic and could not be used in fresh water areas on boats. That was an engine winterizing pink AF.

The marina who has been doing my cruisers uses a green antifreeze for generators, HVACs and engines older than 2013. For all water areas they use a non-toxic pink. I have used this pink in my fresh water tank for three years now. This year - as usual - we emptied my fresh water tank, poured two gallons of non-toxic pink into the fresh water tank and flushed it through everything from the toilet to the ice maker. In the spring we will drain out the pink, fill the fresh water tank with clean water run it through everything that uses fresh water - THOROUGHLY, then drain the tank. I will then fill the tank half-full with fresh water, add a cup of bleach and fill the tank full. I let it sit for a few hours, run that through all fresh water accessories - THOROUGHLY, then dump the tank. I then fill the tank for season's use. My niece is working on her PhD in molecular biology. She tests my water whenever I want. there were no traces of contaminants, particularly of AF related contaminants in any tested water.

From her advice I always spray some hydrogen peroxide on the water fittings at shore water, my hose ends and the entrance to my fresh water fill on the boat before each tank fill. As she said, a brief spray of HP will kill 99.0% of baterioligics with 0 harm to humans. It takes 5 minutes. As a cancer patient I trust the above procedures and have never gotten sick as a result, so I would deem them really safe for people with good immune systems.

Doing the above makes for a really fast and thorough (IMO) winterizing of all fresh water appliances on the boat and will not leave any harmful residue in the fresh water tank - and I am ocd about that kind of stuff.

Re the use of hydrogen peroxide to spray the water valves at marinas we visit. I saw one of the dock kids at a marina just finish pumping out the waste tank of a boat and while still wearing the vinyl disposable gloves pick-up the END of the marinas fresh water fill hose to move it !!!!! @#$%^  Small spray bottle with hydrogen peroxide to put a brief spray on hoses and inlets/outlets before you fill your fresh water tank, 5 minutes - a bad case of e.coli.........

MDboater

Cableguy Greg said:

Can you unstrap the tank from the hold down and put a block under it to tilt it towards the pickup?

I finally got back to the marina this weekend to winterize.  The water tank outlet is indeed on the forward end of the tank.  I ended up disconnecting the strap and raising the aft end on a couple of 2x4 pieces.  This did the trick nicely and most of the tank contents could be removed.  This will also simplify the rinsing process because less antifreeze is in the tank.  Thanks again to all who replied.

MDboater

BellevilleMXZ

I did same thing, it worked great!

06Rinker270

I just took the entire water tank out to clean it.  Incredible, I couldn't believe it just came right out after disconnected fill and outlet.  Going to give it a proper cleaning.

rasbury

now pull out that waste tank...