Yes. The tank is good because you can add to overall weight. With it being forward of the CG you have to be careful of bow steer or worse. Using the tank dampens the polar movement and gives you confidence, sometimes too much! If you do stuff the tank really aggrevates the situation.

The other nice effect I feel is you can run your CG a little aft to get the acceleration and top speed but if you need to settle things down a little water in the nose really helps.
Steve

I don't think a balast tank is a bandaid ,,,,, because water conditions change so u can change how the boat runs. AND yes i have a 35 gallon water ballast tank that i can fill or empty during the race.It helps alot.
Calm water leave it empty and as soon it gets ruf lets say 4+ footers you fill it untill it runs and fly's perfect ,,,mine fills with in 36 sec. and dry's out in 42 sec with a pump for out and electric valve and water pickup for fill.

Also it add weight even empty about 60 pounds with mounting brackets and that got my CG right on the money in calm water.

Also mine has built in baffels so where ,,if its not full all the way the water does not slap around in there.

Cool thing + i built it myself . :evilb:

Where do you get the water to fill your tank? Do you have a separate pickup? Do you come off of your water pump? It seems like a ballast tank or maybe a couple in different locations can be a good thing for a high performance boat.

Just a quick note to all you "ballancer" guys.

Remeber where your fuel tank is and how much fuel you have. A full tank boat may have a CG in a different place then when it's 1/4 full. Also the hull design is critical. A steped or double step boat may need to be balanced different then a "no step" hull. A 38' boat with a relatively "straight" bottom (keel) will need the CG in a different location (may not work with the 25% rule) then a "curved" hull. A "ballast" system will help you in different speeds, but the best thing is to experiment and see what is the boat and you are at the best CG comfort level.

Separate pickup ,,on the trimtab.

Try to get you a picture.

We use engine coolant water after the engine.
Steve

I believe where you set the CG should also take into account if you have a stepped boat. For example on my fountain I want additional weight in the back so my cg is set right at the first step from the transom. Moving it forward would have a significant effect on turning.

I agree totally...It would all center around the exact boat that you are talking about and the conditions that your would be running in. My boat has a pad but no steps so I need to get the bow up to free the hull. If you count on the prop to do all the work to get it up the boat does not take a set and get stable at speed. Look at those Cat Killer boats...they run like a bass boat back on the pad but set there just as stable as can be. I have had several people that have told me that Reggie Fountain is always talking about balance in his boats.

I'd love to hear more about how to impliment a balast tank: adding and removing water, do you need to put something in to control the water going in? What sort of pump did you use to remove the water? What do you build the talk out of? Anyone try a bladder of any sort instead of a solid tank?

Any details would be appreciated.

My boat runs bow down and I'm trying to fix the hull to get the bow out of the water when it's smooth, but I've noticed that in rough water, the ride is a LOT smoother when someone is passed out on the v-berth. It would really be nice to add a couple hundred pounds when max speed isn't an issue but a smooth ride is.

My Balasttank is an old Blastic Fueltank ,,, i had cut a hole in the top so i could stick a rule 3500 Submersable pump in it.
That is to pump the water out, the water in line is forced in by itself, have a pick up on the trimmtab with a 12V seliniod valve that holds up to 400 PSI ,60 bucks, also got a water level gauge and 2 switches (1 for pump,1 for valve) 2 more hoses are mounted in the front part of the tank to let air out while water rushes in. And thats it.(also have a 1/2 inch shut off valve in the inline ,just in case!!!)
Just make shure that the balasttank is not mounted all the way in the nose of the boat,,it should be next to a bulkhead so no stress is aplied to the bottom of the hull.
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