Reality of economy, so my live well changed ! input needed

[ReelyNauti]

Ok I was supposed to get amazing "ULTIMATE" custom livewell but a reality check of this wonderful economy and a soon to be new arrival of my first son forced me to cancel and buy a lesser model,
I shopped till i dropped and found a KODIAK/PARKER 52 gallon with a rule 1100 gpm pump

Please help me with any info and picks from the guys who have kodiak live wells from Parker....

the following ?'s were asked by me to Eric Denton at Parker:


Ok i am looking at diagram,

I see that the pan starts 23.5" behind door and runs towards stern
Any hole size i should be drilling?
It came with a 1100 rule , I assume I am locating this in stern bilge where is supposed to be cut in ?
What about the \over flow?
I see i have a switch on my dash that says live well?? is the wire located in this area as well ? if so what color ?
I am hoping to through bolt it in at least 4 spots two in front and two in back, will i be able to reach from existing two hatches? If not where can i purchase exact hatches that are on my boat so it looks good?

 

[got_em_on]

We have a 30 gallon factory livewell we just pulled off to replumb and add a 4 rod rocket launcher to. It was originally installed by the dealer so I am assuming it is the same brand as yours.

A rectangle hole was cut in deck running fore/aft to allow the fill and drain hoses. Drain hose was 1.5". Not sure how yours is designed, but ours had a double wall to run the hoses up into so there are no hoses running on the outside. The Drain hose ran aft through the bilge and drained out the transom. Drain hole is in bilge approximately 3 to 4 inches off the bottom of the hull.

Pump is in stern bilge and uses a scoop pick up.

Our breaker is livewell/washdown breaker-so you can only have one or the other running depending on what way you toggle it-this is not very functional. Called parker and they said to just pull the livewell wire off the existing breaker and attach to an empty breaker on the panel. I think your wiring should be there already-just take a look at the color of the wire that is presently attached to the livewell side of that breaker then look in your aft bilge and you should see it running along the transom along with your bilge pump wires etc.

Make sure after you cut the hole in the deck to seal it with epoxy so water does not penetrate the deck over time. Ours only needs to be screwed into the deck so not sure about the through bolting.

I will try and get some pics up if have time to get down the boat tomorrow.

 

[ReelyNauti]

Thanks , it is a factory/Parker Kodiak.......

So im pretty sure u have the same
heres a picture with out shell

Questions are :

Where/how low/high to drill for outflow???

if i want to ann a switch where? i'm thinking a separate switch on the outer shell?? any comments......

They sent a thru hull but i am told by Eric at parker this setup /tournament pump goes in line .... Feedback!!!!!

Boat is not coming out of water for install

 

[ReelyNauti]

more

 

[Parker23]

Do yourself a favor and change that strainer to a " Great Southbay strainer" It cuts down on the eel grass getting in there, even though boat is in Mtk, you will not regret it. If you get the bigger one you can mount it right over the strainer shown. It will save you from having to clear the pump of weed and other thin/skinny debri.

 

[Sleigher]

Where/how low/high to drill for outflow???
Pick a spot on the transom that is a little higher than your waterline. You want it low so the outflow is continuous but not so low that when you are drifting or anchored that the water from the tank doesn't flow freely.
if i want to ann a switch where? i'm thinking a separate switch on the outer shell?? any comments......
I don't know which boat you have but I would not put the switch on the tank as it could inadvertently get bumped and turned off. If you have a spare switch in your panel simply run the power from there. I believe you have a negative buss and a fuse panel. Re-label when you are done.
They sent a thru hull but i am told by Eric at parker this setup /tournament pump goes in line .... Feedback!!!!!
In line with what? They sent you everything you need to do (kinda) for a thru-hull install. Do you have an existing thru-hull that you can tap into?
Boat is not coming out of water for install
If you are installing a thru-hull without pulling the boat out of the water you must be really quick. Might be easier to pull it out and do it. Better than sinking the boat(unless you have great insurance).
Here is a picture of the tank I just installed.
Good luck,

P

 

[ReelyNauti]

keep the picks coming looking for a picture of the tournament or kodiak install ....im told u close the seacock , un screw the existing wash down and put the tournament in first then it has the y that u put the salt wash down intake into y and its ready to go

 

[got_em_on]

I would send pic but I am laid up for a few days after surgery. To give you an idea Our drain exits the transom underneath the bracket. If you were looking at it from the bilge is ia about a foot off center to the port side and about 4 inches up off the hull.

 

[got_em_on]

The white dot below your bracket is about where mine comes out

 

[ReelyNauti]

I am getting mixed answers , so far i am told to have it leave just a hare above the waterline......

One to be sure it is flowing/ok...
two no back pressure/free flow

im thinking on the starboard side due to the fact that the port all ready has two on that side.....

I still am looking/hoping that a OEM install picture will show up

 

[got_em_on]

Mine was installed by a parker dealer when the boat was brand new so I am assuming that is as close to an OEM install as you can get. The white dot in the pic from the post above is about where mine comes out, but on the port side.

That being said I don't necessarily agree with they installed it. They handled the plumbing- It filled by actually spraying in from the top and drained by the stand pipe also from the top. That may work to keep goldfish alive in an aquarium, but not too good for keeping bunker alive. We replumbed it correctly to fill from the bottom and added a drain in the side at the top so we no longer have to use the pipe.

The safest way for it to drain would be to have it drain at or slightly above the waterline so you have one less thruhull to worry about. If I was installing I would consider doing it that way, but since I already have the hole in the hull it is staying where it is. Depending on your layout you may want to see if you can do it that way.

I don't think back pressure will ever be an issue if ithe drain is under the water line since the start of the drain is a couple feet higher the water will always flow down. If there is any blockage in the drain pipe your livewell with an 1100 GPH pump will begin to overflow quickly and that is your indicator that something is wrong.

 

[ReelyNauti]

can you or do yo u have any picks of plumbing modifications it sounds like my old set ups on my last boat...

 

[got_em_on]

I should be able to get pics by the weekend as soon as I can get around good enough~right now I am still pretty swollen after surgery.

 

[ReelyNauti]

U got it ill be away till monday so perfect.... thanks

 

[got_em_on]

Here is how our livewell was installed by dealer.

You need to cut a hole in the deck for your plumbing to go through-in our case it was a rectangle running fore and aft about 8" long and 6 inches wide to accomodate the drain and fill lines.

It runs right next to and slightly on top of a 2.5" PVC pipe conduit that runs the fuel lines. If you stick your head in the bilge you should see it in your boat when you trace the fuel lines. This is something that you will want to watch out for when you make your cut through the deck.

You may also have to pay attention to how deep your fitting from the bottom of the tank goes into the bilge. Ours was so close to the conduit that the screws from the hose clamp had to be turned away from the conduit otherwise the well did not sit correctly.

I would also use a bronze throughhull fitting instead of plastic for the drain.

 

[Sleigher]

No offense, but that does not look good.
You have a through hull fitting below the water line without a sea cock on it. A plastic one at that.
I hate those posts where people get all preachy about safety and proper installation procedures etc but you have a plastic thru-hull mounted below the waterline without a sea cock?
Maybe I'm missing something. If I am please forgive my post.

P

 

[got_em_on]

Thats part of the overall project and why I mentioned the bronze thruhull as well. Getting my own sack repaired slowed down the process.

Reeli was looking for some pics of layout so I posted to give him an idea.

 

[got_em_on]

We are doing alot of changes compared to the way it was originally installed by the dealer when boat was new.....

 

[ReelyNauti]

Thanks a million that really helped..... i have the blue print from Eric denton @ Parker Mfg,

In regard to the thru hull im thinking the same about the bronze vs. plastic........


I Really dont agree with manufacturer about the location of thru hull but it does make sense.....as you move foward it will drain with gravity to lowest point ...... and it is out of the "STRESS" areas of bracket mounting area....

so ill go with that..........i guess....

I have the Kodiak so i dont have to deal with the clamo issue ....lol mines worse... i have to be careful ... and i will be

i will approach this with caution .....

going to beach the stern of my boat on an incoming tide to drill then , expoxy then 5200, then install drain then put on valve then get it back to dock...and finish .....

I WILL POST LOL PICTURES....

 

[Sleigher]

One thing that you could do that makes for a nice installation is to use a deck hatch for your hole.
Instead of making a hole and running your hoses through it install an appropriately sized deck hatch and then take the cover off and run through that.
If you need to take the tank off you can stuff the hoses back under the deck and put the cover on.
I used an 8" hatch for mine. I straddled a stringer because I used two existing holes (where my fuel lines were running, I have six total, three tanks, diesel)in the aft bulkhead for my supply and return.
If I sell the boat to a diver or surfer who doesn't want the bait tank then all they have to do is screw the hatch into the hole.
The hatches cost about $10.00
Just a tip.

P