saltwater tap on water tube from PSS seal

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roaringgirl

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Half way around: Wellington, NZ.
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I'd like to fit a saltwater tap on the boat, but I don't want to make any more holes in the hull. Is there any reason why I shouldn't extend the tube from the PSS seal up to a hand-pumped tap? - the one I've got on the fresh-water is free-flowing when the tank fills, so the addition of a tap wouldn't stop the water coming up the stern tube to lubricate the shaft.
 
It's a very small diameter so you may not get much seawater out of it. Plus probably a complicated, hidden plumbing run without a seacock - it could rupture in some secret place and slowly fill the bilge.

I might prefer to take something off the engine cooling water intake downstream of the inlet tap.
 
Possibly not a good plan.

Unless you put a check-valve in the feed to the tap .. it may allow the engine to suck in air though the tap rather then pulling water up from the sea ... which might not be what you want. In theory, the one way valves in the hand-pump should prevent that, but if they fail, it would be a shame to have it kill the engine.
 
rszemeti said:
Possibly not a good plan.

Unless you put a check-valve in the feed to the tap .. it may allow the engine to suck in air though the tap rather then pulling water up from the sea ... which might not be what you want. In theory, the one way valves in the hand-pump should prevent that, but if they fail, it would be a shame to have it kill the engine.
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That's an argument against putting it in the raw-water engine intake, not against putting it in the PSS vent tube.
 
Just put a proper skin fitting in with a decent seacock and be done with it... holes in the hull aren’t going to cause you any problems if you’ve got decent fittings. Tie a softwood bung to it if you’re paranoid. It’ll be there still unused in twenty years time.
 
john_morris_uk said:
Just put a proper skin fitting in with a decent seacock and be done with it... holes in the hull aren’t going to cause you any problems if you’ve got decent fittings. Tie a softwood bung to it if you’re paranoid. It’ll be there still unused in twenty years time.
Click to expand...

Couldn't agree more. A properly-installed seacock is perfectly safe. Even the 60/40 brass ones on my Sadler lasted 30 years despite the threat of dezincification. I added a 3/4 inch seacock for my fridge supply close to john morris' 20 years ago and although I check it from time to time it has never been a moment's trouble. Just the same as the other 6 I already have.
 
As many have said above, don't panic.

I have a salt water tap that is plumbed in by a nifty three way valve. Position 1 - closed, Position 2 - salt, Position 3 fresh.
 
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