Water ballast !

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littleredmonkey

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Hello, I have a Eurobanker 28 flybridge sedan 1978 made in Denmark , there is a holding / ballast tank at the forward half of the boat under the sole floor running from the engine room bulkhead amidships to the bow locker under the forward bunks ,a previous owner had installed a bowthruster and the bottom of the bow locker has been cut out to accommodate it so water was slopping about ,does anybody know if this is a water ballast tank as when emptied out from the inspection /filler hole just forward of the engine room bulkhead under the steps going down to the forward accommodation the boat was a bit lively , The tank does not have any pipes connected to it and the shower sump is separate , the only holding tank is a rubber black waste tank at the stern port quarter in the lazarette below the stern deck . Below the helm amid ship is the Ford Lehman 80 hp engine and on each side of that are fresh water tanks 2 X 120 ltr ( 26.3963 gal ) to port and 2 X 120 ltr stbd , aft of the gearbox a fuel tank of 681.913 ltr ( 150 gal ) is fitted . I am trying to find out more about this vessel type Eurobanker 28 fly bridge sedan made in Denmark , the boat weights about 6 tons imp. If you can help I would be very grateful . Dave.:confused:
 
littleredmonkey said:
I take it nobody in Britain knows anything about water ballast in boats !
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Water ballast is often used in small yachts for trailing purposes as it reduces the trailing weight. Very common in Polish "lake sailors" and hybrid boats such as the Mcgregor. Was popular for a time in some fast cruising yachts as it can be pumped from side to side to improve upwind performance r pumped out to reduce weight and increase speed downwind. Not common in motorboats as few have any real need for ballast and if necessary there is usually space for conventional ballast.

Downsides to water ballast are that it is less dense than metal, takes up room in the hull, the CG is high, it needs watertight compartments to contain it and often pumping system to control it. For those reasons it has only limited applications mainly in trailer sailors in the 20-24' range where weight reduction for towing is more important than the loss in performance of the boat when sailing.
 
littleredmonkey said:
Hello, After pumping out, the water has not returned .
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Have you been out and got the windows wet or let the boat sit in a rain storm for 6 months ?Had water over the bow and sides yet in a big sea ?

How did you pump it out ? I mean is there a dedicated pump and accociated plumbing for this ?
Beggs the Q how do you fill it ,assuming it is a ballast tank ,which is very unusual .

Jury's still out until we know a bit more about its plumbing .

In the absence of any plumbing /level (weight ) regulatory mechanism (s) ,then you have a leak somewhere .
Rain or river ,tap ,toilet etc
Boat looks a bit odd shaped IMHO top heavey for a 28 ft Grand Banks style .,but there's other ways ballast can be added after sea trails of hull # 1 etc ,

Not saying it is not a ballast tank ,but sounds odd from the info given thus far .eg sounds like no baffles or lid -so water will slosh around !

Ballast tank in a small MoBo -?:):rolleyes::):):):rolleyes::confused:- sounds like some sort "broker speak " for a leak
 
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Thank you for your prompt reply Tranona , is it possible that you could explain why my vessel would have a sealed ballast tank below the cabin sole. The vessel is a Eurobanker 28 sedan with flybridge and when the tank is empty the vessel becomes very lively . I have tried to explain about it in my post 12/6/17 . If you can help I would be very grateful as the history on these vessels is very scarce .
 

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littleredmonkey said:
Thank you for your prompt reply Tranona , is it possible that you could explain why my vessel would have a sealed ballast tank below the cabin sole. The vessel is a Eurobanker 28 sedan with flybridge and when the tank is empty the vessel becomes very lively . I have tried to explain about it in my post 12/6/17 . If you can help I would be very grateful as the history on these vessels is very scarce .
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You have answered your own question. The boat has a huge amount of top hamper and would guess is rather unstable. If it is indeed a ballast tank then guess it was put there to increase stability. However would expect some pumps and valves to fill and empty it.

Certainly not common, but guess such a boat would not be made and sold now as it would be unlikely to meet stability requirements for the RCD.

Suggest for use in flat calm conditions only and don't have too many people on top when moving!
 
The tank is a sealed unit but has a 6"round screw cap in the cabin sole for the tank , and that is the only way to pump water in/out . No pipes no pumps and must be filled to the top .
 
I've only heard of water ballast in small mobo's for wake-boarding. Something for neutral buoyancy when the boat gets swamped, but ballast to keep the bow down. Again it's pump-able.
 
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