Freshwater Problem!!

F

FB340DA

New Member
May 20, 2019
12
Upper Chesapeake Bay
Boat Info
2005 340DA
Engines
Twin 5.7l Merc V-drives
Good evening, all.

Long time browser but new member here.

So, I have an interesting problem with my boats freshwater system.

After splashing my 2005 340DA, one of the first things I did was sanitize the freshwater system. I grabbed my hose out of the dock box where it sat all winter and went straight to filling up the freshwater tank (I know I shouldn't have stored it in there and probably cleaned the potable hose first). After filling the tank, I then added the appropriate amount of bleach to the tank and let it sit. I then went to empty the tank by running water through all of the faucets. All was good for quite a while but eventually the pressure disappeared after emptying half the tank. I am assuming that the pump is fine because it would run and stop anytime I opened or closed a faucet. I then decided to fill the tank back to full in order to dilute the bleach mixture currently in there and hooked up to the dock water. Everything was fine while running on the dock water but eventually the same thing happened and all pressure was lost. After that I switched back to the freshwater tank and I had perfect pressure for quite a while before losing it again.

So, Ive been switching back and forth between the water tank and the dock water to play off the initial water pressure until it fades.

It is very puzzling to me how I have perfect pressure from the tank and then lose it and then have perfect pressure on the dock water and then lose it. It is even more puzzling to me as to how it comes and goes on each.

Considering that I foolishly filled the tank with the old potable hose, I decided to check the filter attached to the inlet side of water pump. I found it clogged with a black gel like substance. I cleaned it and put it back and it hasn't returned but it hasn't solved anything regarding the pressure issues when running on the tank. I figured maybe I might have clogged something on the dock water side as well since the tanks pump filter was clogged but I get perfect pressure on demand when I use the freshwater spigot in the transom locker so it seems as if this issue is related to something in the lines ahead of the manifold but still puzzled how if its air or an algae like substance in the lines that I still have perfect pressure and lose it and get it back before losing it again.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
Lazy Daze said:
Remove the aerators at your faucets and check them out. Run the water without the aerators, too.

There is no aerator on your transom washdown spigot.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply. That crossed my mind but I figured if the pressure stays for a while and then disappears for a while before coming back for a while then maybe its something more complicated but I guess I should have tried try that and I will! Thanks.
 
Yeah, start with the easy thing. You're right to think that the issue is from the manifold and downstream since it happens on both supply systems. And it is sort of an odd thing. BUT, since your transom washdown is unaffected by this, and works properly on city water OR onboard water (correct?)... and it doesn't have an aerator, that points further downstream than the manifold. Either way, checking aerators is easy and free.
 
I don't know what your problem is but here's some things I do. I do give it a bleach treatment to start the season but I also put a different water treatment in my water tank every other time I fill to prevent stuff from growing in there during the season and layup.
 
My shower faucet has terrible pressure all the time whether on the dock water or tank water. Same boat as you. Mine doesn’t seem to change pressure like yours though. Very interesting. Gotta be a valve leaking or something
 
I was on the boat today. No problem with the aerators. When I first got there I turned the water pump on to run off the tank. Pressure was good but very quickly went to nothing. I immediately switched to the dock water and pressure was great and stayed that way for quite a while. I decided to switch back to the tank and I immediately lost all pressure off that. So I am thinking now that there must be an issue with the pump since I started with the pump had no pressure then went right to dock water and everything was great and the second I went back to the tank then I lost all pressure immediately. What might be wrong with the pump? When I turn the breaker on you can hear the pump cycle and when you open and close a faucet the pump turns on and off as it should.
 
You initially said you have the same problem regardless of city water or tank water - issues don't normally fix themselves. Unless maybe you were confused about which water source you were on? But this is an important piece of information to get correct as it either can point to a pump problem or negate the pump as the problem.

When you say 'very quickly went to nothing'... how quickly are we talking about? And the water flow COMPLETELY goes to zero?

Did you leave the aerators (at least one, anyways) off while running the water as a test?

The transom washdown is affected by this - or not? Any difference if on city water or tank water? There's reasoning behind why I asked this... when on city water, the water goes directly to the transom washdown - it doesn't go through the manifold.

When you lose pressure again, disconnect one of the lines at the water manifold (one for a particular faucet that you just had an issue at)... same low pressure/flow coming out there? If good, leave it off for at least as long as it takes, previously, to lose flow.
 
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