f32 factory water tank

g36 · Post by **g36** » Wed Apr 30, 2008 7:51 am

for you fellow f32 owners i am using the original installed water tank on my 1978. mine is located under the cockpit floor between the gas tanks. on top there looks like about 3/4 plywood over the whole area and has the crusair mounted on top. my question. i figure its a fiberglass tank but i wasnt sure if the wood is the actual top to it or there is something else. i wanted to add a guage to the tank and wasnt sure the easiest way to do this. also its leaking somewhere near the top when its pretty full cannot find that so save my life. the fill hose and vent hose dont seem to be the problem but its pretty tight down there as you may know. any insight on how the tank is constructed are other thoughts would be great .thanks

Stripermann2 · Post by **Stripermann2** » Wed Apr 30, 2008 8:09 am

Check the fill hose and vent on top of the tank under the plywood. I did have a leak at the oulet fitting (bottom of tank)-cracked and would lose water over some time. I epoxied it and it seems to be fine for the past year. You probably have a hose leaking though...You can take some baby powder and after you dry the top of the tank, sprinkle all over. You will then see a trail where the water is coming trickling from...hopefully.

Also, you can buy a Snake River tank gauge. They work on the outside of the tank. You have a sensor which adheres to the tank and then it's calibrated first to full or empty and is connected to a digital display that's located anywhere convenient for you. I have the mini which I need to install on the holding tank but haven't gotten around to it yet.

http://www.snake-river.org/Products.asp

They only work on non-metallic tanks. Check them out.

captainmaniac · Post by **captainmaniac** » Fri May 02, 2008 12:01 am

I think the plywood doubles as the top of the tank. I had to replace a bad level sending unit about 5-6 years ago. When I had the old unit out I stuck my fingers through the hole and felt around - it didn't feel like there was a fibreglass liner around the perimeter of the hole - only raw wood. I have a 1979 F32, but don't know if construction techniques may have differed between the different model years.

The sender I replaced my old one with was from WEMA (http://www.wemausa.com), for compatibility with an exising gauge. It has worked great for me, and WEMA was great to me. I tried to order the sender through a dealer in the area, and after 6 months of listening to the dealer saying "we are having problems getting parts from that manufacturer" I decided to call WEMA directly to find out where the real problem was (dealer, distributor or manufacturer). When I called WEMA the put me through to the owner, and 3 days later my sender showed up at the door.

I was replacing an existing sender, so the tank already had the hole in the top of it. You would have to get an appropriate size sender (ie right length), wiring, and gauge; use a hole saw to cut the hole in the top of the tank; use the supplied gasket and/or some reasonable sealant to properly seal the sender when you screw it down; run the wires somewhere, and mount the gauge. You would may want to empty and try to dry out the water tank before you do the job so you can vacuum the sawdust and any dropped wood chips away - as opposed to sucking them through your fresh water system.

In my installation (done before I bought the boat), the wiring from the sender follows the fresh water pump harness to the forward firewall, then pokes through the wall. The gauge is mounted on the aft galley bulkhead (above the countertop, and below the cupboards - right beside the genny switch if yours is mounted where mine is). Power for the sender is scabbed from the fresh water pump circuit, so when the fresh water pump switch is on, the water level gauge is live. When the water pressure is turned off, the gauge goes off as well.

Good luck!

g36 · Post by **g36** » Fri May 02, 2008 6:44 am

thanks stripermann and captainmanic for the replies, probably has the plywood top, i do want to add a guage but i kinda like the snake-river guage idea since i wouldnt actually have to drill into the tank., but i will have to investigate my leak furthur.

Mac32 · Post by **Mac32** » Fri May 02, 2008 7:43 am

Now my curiosity is up about the top, I will check this weekend.....

I really dont want to believe the top is just 32 year old plywood thats covering my families drinking water supply. Not that I am Germ Phobic but after what I have seen while ripping the interior out of the boat and replacing dry rot this has me a little concerned.

Stripermann2 · Post by **Stripermann2** » Fri May 02, 2008 8:12 am

I think...that plywood on top is a there to keep the tank from damage (being crushed) from atop and as a shelf so-to-speak, for any accessory components as an A/C unit or gen set. Let us know what you discover!