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I bought a 1997 26X. The manual says to have a full ballast tank the water must be about three inches from the top of the vent hole. You should be able to stick your finger in and touch the water. Well, the water will only fill to about 6 inches below the vent hole. Water seeks its own level and it seems that is the level of the water outside the boat. Any suggestions as to how to get the proper amount of water in the tank or answer as to why it is not filling all the way.

Thanks,

Rick

My did not fill all the way until I filled it with gear, gas, water, etc.
Vic

Put more stuff on your boat.

Sometimes I need to burp the ballast. An air pocket can get trapped in the front of the older Xs. Two ways to displace this bubble are, get a couple of close friends to cuddle on the front berth or use your motor to go from a forward motion to reverse rather quickly. This will cause the ballast to surge forward and backward (like when you were young in a bathtub) and displace the air pocket. You may have to repeat this but twice should do it.

I have used both methods.

It sounds just fine, don't worry over a small amount. If the boat is nose heavy this may make the level be lower at the check point on a 97.

Newell
Fast Sunday 96X

Thanks for all replies. I thought it might be that I needed more weight to get the boat lower in the water. I appreciate all the advice and will take it from there.

Does your boat have the vent under the companion-way step, or under the V-berth? ('97 was the year that feature was changed). If you have the forward vent then it's much more sensitive to the angle the boat is sitting in the water - adding weight to the bow will make a big difference.

The vent under the step is less sensitive to angle, being nearer central, but the water will still rise higher with overall load (OK, technically the water stays the same, the boat just sinks a bit. )

like when you were young in a bathtub

I dunno, going by the puddle in the bathroom I think the water still sloshes pretty good for me, even at my advanced age.

- Andy

Even with the newer X boats, the ballast can take forever to fill when the boat is lightly loaded (ie, only me). Sometimes I'll even put it in reverse a bit to force fill it faster. But when I have the whole family (of 7) on board, watch out cause the ballast can fill fast and before you know it, you have a geyser at the vent hole.

Frank's passive vent hose mod will prevent geysers and swamping in any case, even if you are heavy loaded with people.