Is there any way?

[kayDee]

Hi all...

Is there ANY way at all of checking how much is in my water tank? There is no way to dip it like I can with the diesel tank so I was wondering if anyone had devised a way of roughly estimating it? Perhaps a series of little taps in a vertical direction from the top downwards and detect any acoustic changes in the noise? :-) I even thought of fitting a little spirit level on the wall at the front of the boat running from front to back and seeing where the bubble sat when the tank was full compared to where it might sit if the tank was empty - I need to get out more!

 

I know I look drunk on my photo... This is simply because... I WAS! :-)

 

Kay

x

Edited December 9, 2008 by kayDee

[Denis R]

You could try painting a sort of Plimsoll Line on the front of the boat, with markings for tank full, tank empty and then guestimate from that? You could refer to the thread on water usage in locks for more about the hydrodynamics.

There, how about that for a classic idea? ....and I'm not drunk, although I suggest you might (still) need to be to get through that thread in one piece.

[dor]

Fit a sight-glass tube but use clear plastic hose rather than glass.. Easy to do - just put a T-piece in the pipe at the bottom of the tank with the clear plastic hose going upwards. Or buy one of the several proprietary water level guages on the market. I've found the MSC ones to work well.

[Gibbo]

Hi all...

Is there ANY way at all of checking how much is in my water tank? There is no way to dip it like I can with the diesel tank so I was wondering if anyone had devised a way of roughly estimating it? Perhaps a series of little taps in a vertical direction from the top downwards and detect any acoustic changes in the noise? :-) I even thought of fitting a little spirit level on the wall at the front of the boat running from front to back and seeing where the bubble sat when the tank was full compared to where it might sit if the tank was empty - I need to get out more!

 

I know I look drunk on my photo... This is simply because... I WAS! :-)

 

Kay

x

 

A clear vertical pipe Teed into the outlet will settle at the same level.

 

Gibbo

[bottle]

If you follow Dor or Gibbo's advice ensure the tee is between the tank and the pump.

 

Also make sure that the top of the pipe is higher than the top of the tank, the end of the pipe will need to be open to the air.

 

A good way to run said pipe would be to take it higher than the tank, by some margin and bend it back down, to prevent the ingress of foreign bodies.

 

The ideal would be to connect the top of the pipe back to the top of the tank.

Edited December 9, 2008 by bottle

[kayDee]

Having thought about it, I think there is a piece of clear pipe stuffed in there somewhere that's currently tied back on itself and pushed down the side of the tank. I might have to pull it out and have a look exactly where it goes now. I'm just a bit worried about an open pipe, but I guess if its higher than the water level and not under pressure then it will be okay. Just have to make sure it never gets unclipped and dropped down to floor level again or things might get a tad moist!

Thanks for your help...

Kay

x

[Nickhlx]

Having thought about it, I think there is a piece of clear pipe stuffed in there somewhere that's currently tied back on itself and pushed down the side of the tank. I might have to pull it out and have a look exactly where it goes now. I'm just a bit worried about an open pipe, but I guess if its higher than the water level and not under pressure then it will be okay. Just have to make sure it never gets unclipped and dropped down to floor level again or things might get a tad moist!

Thanks for your help...

Kay

x

 

 

Tie wrap a piece of small bore plastic pipe to a bamboo or similar, push down to bottom of tank, put finger on open upper end, withdraw and see depth of water in tube. (The stick will be a bit moist though ! )

 

Nick

[Lady Muck]

I can usually guess when ours needs filling because the water pump goes for longer. The boat is a bit more 'tippy' when you move around. The bows are a few inches out of the water - theres a tidemark of weeds where she usually sits, its obvious to see when the tank is empty. When it gets really empty, it goes boom as the steel tanks bends back inwards, it bows out and booms also when its full.

[alan_fincher]

Fit a sight-glass tube but use clear plastic hose rather than glass.. Easy to do - just put a T-piece in the pipe at the bottom of the tank with the clear plastic hose going upwards.

 

A clear vertical pipe Teed into the outlet will settle at the same level.

But make sure you don't end up with a situation where the pump can "suck" water out of the pipe to the point where air gets drawn in.

 

If your connection to the tank is short and wide bore it shouln't happen, but those pumps don't half suck.

 

As others have said, it's usually possible to get a fair idea from how far the stem post is under. Alternatively when our front anodes are getting too close to the surface, it's time to fill up!

[3yc powered]

Hello there,

 

We have used an inline hose fitting from the garden centre that has a counter on it for litres of flow (think it was originally for monitoring flow through a pond filter) it has a reset, so fill the tank and push the button!

 

All you need to know is your tank capacity.

 

Just looked and they are on ebay for £25.00 with various hose fittings

 

Sorted.

[alan_fincher]

I like that.

 

Lateral thinking - don't measure what's in the tank - measure what you have taken out.

 

Nice!

 

start_tongue_in_cheek:

 

Won't ell you if your tanks leaking, though.

 

end_tongue_in_cheek:

[Athy]

What is unusual about the design of your water tank, that there is no way of dipping it?

The good ship Trojan is equipped with a garden cane. One end of this (the one which looks clean) we use for gauging the water level, the other, more stained end serves a similar purpose for the diesel tank. Cost: £0 (since we had the cane already!). Is your water filler in an inaccessible place?

[alan_fincher]

Even with an accessible filler, not all descend directly into the tank.

 

There may be a length of pipe or hose between filler and tank, with some bends in, so yoy can't get a stick in there.

 

(Just guessing!).

[WJM]

"What is unusual about the design of your water tank, that there is no way of dipping it?"

 

Mine has some weird choke device in the filler neck - like an anti-syphon device but obviously not. Stops me dipping the tank.

 

I look at the pointy bit of baseplate sticking out from the lowest part of the bow. If it is close to breaking the surface then the water tank is near empty (or I am well stocked on diesel, or both!)

[chris w]

I have a very short vertical pipe (1") after the tank with a pressure sensor on the top; the pressure is directly proportional to the level of water. The pressure is converted electronically to a percentage readout. No need to drill tanks to insert probes to measure level; fitted in about 20 minutes.

 

MSC make one as above - £100 approx. Well worth it.

 

Chris

[kayDee]

What is unusual about the design of your water tank, that there is no way of dipping it?

The good ship Trojan is equipped with a garden cane. One end of this (the one which looks clean) we use for gauging the water level, the other, more stained end serves a similar purpose for the diesel tank. Cost: £0 (since we had the cane already!). Is your water filler in an inaccessible place?

 

The tank isn't directly under the filler - it has an angled pipe between the filler neck and the tank like a little "S" shape. I wish it was like the diesel tank as that would be easy!

Kay

x

[smileypete]

Wonder how well water pump runtime matches water use. At 10 litres per min, 1 hour would be up to 600 litres.

 

Have thought of running a small battery analogue clock from the pump pressure switch.

 

Would need to drop the 12V down to 1.2V using a resistor/bulb and couple of diodes, plus another diode for reverse transient protection.

 

Could then take the hour hand off the clock and make a new scale for full/half/empty-ish.

 

cheers,

Pete.

[chris w]

Wonder how well water pump runtime matches water use. At 10 litres per min, 1 hour would be up to 600 litres.

 

Have thought of running a small battery analogue clock from the pump pressure switch.

 

Would need to drop the 12V down to 1.2V using a resistor/bulb and couple of diodes, plus another diode for reverse transient protection.

 

Could then take the hour hand off the clock and make a new scale for full/half/empty-ish.

 

cheers,

Pete.

The problem with that idea is that the pump doesn't run at a constant volume delivery for two reasons.

 

1. It is voltage sensitive. The difference between engine on and engine off voltage may be as much as 3.5 volts so the speed may vary by as much as 40%. (speed being proportional to power).

 

2. Volume also depends on back pressure. A water filter fitted on a cold tap will not allow as fast a delivery as one without a filter.

 

Chris

[Ads]

I not sure if ive missed something here? but Like Chris W said why dont you just but a proper water tank gauge that can been neatly fitted into a bulkhead?

 

the gauge fits in between the tank and the pump and all the connections are push fit could not be easier. and as for the 12v to power the gauge you can just spur of the 12v from the pump. and like chris said it only takes 20mins to fit.

 

Ads

[ChrisPy]

I can usually guess when ours needs filling because the water pump goes for longer. The boat is a bit more 'tippy' when you move around. The bows are a few inches out of the water - theres a tidemark of weeds where she usually sits, its obvious to see when the tank is empty. When it gets really empty, it goes boom as the steel tanks bends back inwards, it bows out and booms also when its full.

The frequency of the rolling motion will vary on the trim of the boat which in turn depends on the weight of water in the tank.

 

You could calibrate your tank levels against the frequency of the roll. You need a metronome which can be adjusted till it matches the boat, with a marking on the scale to provide a direct reading of the water level.

[Marc Harris]

We've got no water level indicator either, but if you stand and look at the very front of the bow where it sits in the water, there should be a fairly obvious section of muck on the boat where the air + water has got to the paintwork and not.

 

We've got a 4 inch section on ours, and it's really easy to see how much water is in the tank.

 

Hope that helps!

 

Marc