Official 215 Express Thread

i had an aluminum tank in my first boat....it was a 1986 Chris craft 18' bow rider....it was a very nice boat and well kept through the years....i stored the boat during winter on its trailer at home behind my workshop....when i was going to get it ready for the boating season one year i smelled gas.....after investigating i found the gas dripping from the garboard drain.....i found that the leaking gas was coming from the fuel tank...when i removed the tank (interesting experinece in that boat) i found the bottom of the aluminum tank very corroded and had several pin holes.....instead of having a completely new tank made i found a fabricator shop that simply replaced the bottom half of the tank....everything except the bottom of the tank was still in good shape....i think what happened is the drain through the bulkhead walls got clogged and did not allow water to drain out from under the tank very well...as a result the bottom of the tank was exposed directly to water for extended periods of time.....that is one good thing about aluminum tanks....they can be repaired...plastic tanks made from PEX cannot be repaired, or at least that is what i was told by Moller.....

cliff
 
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Yeah, I've been told pretty consistently that if water gets in contact with the bottom of an aluminum fuel tank for an extended time, it will definitely corrode. My first boat (1971 SRV 190) had a steel tank. I replaced it with an aluminum tank both to increase the capacity (from 18 to 36 gallons, not bad for the 165 hp Mercruiser in-line six) as well as corrosion resistance. I don't remember any plastic tanks being available at the time. The tank was under the bow deck, on a dry surface above the bilge, so water never collected under it. Had the boat about another 8 years after that with no problems. If I do this on my current boat, I may reconfigure the head (and necessarily move the FW tank and pump) at the same time. Actually, the head is probably a more immediate priority for me than increasing fuel capacity (would like a small Vacu Flush). I may do the head first, and leave open the option to do the fuel tank later. I think I can make better use of the space where that stuff is now (don't mind losing the storage tray above the fuel tank to make room for a taller one, never use the tray any way) and sacrifice only a small amount of space under the sink. I will eventually sell the boat, so not sure how a switch to a non-factory tank would affect that.
 
Cliff,

Thank you for all your advice and sharing the modifications that you have done. Your advice on the batteries you gave me was perfect. I found that on the switch numbered 1 was the starting battery and number 2 of coarse was the deep cycle.

Thanks again

Richard

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk 2
 
Blurry Lines said:
Cliff,

Thank you for all your advice and sharing the modifications that you have done. Your advice on the batteries you gave me was perfect. I found that on the switch numbered 1 was the starting battery and number 2 of coarse was the deep cycle.

Thanks again

Richard

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk 2
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glad you got it sorted out.....i use a 2" tall self adhesive letter 'H' to represent the house battery on the selector switch position and the letter 'S' to represent the starter battery......since both of my batteries are identical it really doesn't matter which i use for starting the engine and which one is the house, but in a set-up like yours where the batteries are different the letters can help you remember which battery selector position is for which battery.....i got the letters at an office supply store....

cliff
 
lawndoctor said:
If I do this on my current boat, I may reconfigure the head (and necessarily move the FW tank and pump) at the same time. Actually, the head is probably a more immediate priority for me than increasing fuel capacity (would like a small Vacu Flush). I may do the head first, and leave open the option to do the fuel tank later. I think I can make better use of the space where that stuff is now (don't mind losing the storage tray above the fuel tank to make room for a taller one, never use the tray any way) and sacrifice only a small amount of space under the sink. I will eventually sell the boat, so not sure how a switch to a non-factory tank would affect that.
Click to expand...

you may can use the space in front of the fuel tank for a holding tank for the Vacu Flush toilet.....i think that would increase the resale value of your boat much more than a larger fuel tank.....i think losing the in-floor storage space may hurt the resale value....as we all know there is never enough storage space on a boat, especially relatively small boats like ours.....

cliff
 
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Thanks, that's a good point. That storage may mean more to others than it does to me. I was thinking that a non-factory fuel tank modification could cause safety concerns to someone if not installed by a professional, even if the tank itself is from a well known high quality fabricator.
 
Good Evening Everyone, can anyone explain to me where I have water intrusion in the lower cabin after getting underway and taking some sea spray? The water ends up settling aft along the shelf and then soaks into the cushion. There are not many places for water to come in...its driving me crazy, possibly coming in from the base of the stanchions? Thanks, any advice would be greatly appreciated!! Scott.
 
Well, we have been bitten by the 'want-a-larger-boat' bug....we have really enjoyed our 215EC over the past 4 years but the summer heat and humidity here in the SE is getting harder for us to tolerate as we get a little older....we want to get a sport cruiser in the 28' - 30' range which has a genny and AC/heat so we can enjoy the boat all year....we also have 5 grandkids now so when they are on the boat with us we want to have a cool place where they can take a nap or just get out of the sun when needed.....that size cruiser can still be trailered with a 2500 or 3500 series truck but we would likely trailer it only a handfull of times each year.....

we have just started looking seriously at different boats in that size....i thought i would post this to say our 215EC will be going up for sale if anyone is interested or knows of anyone looking for a very nice boat of this size....as we have discussed on this forum i have done MANY upgrades and mods to the boat and it has new hull graphics and a fresh cleaning and waxing....it is in EXCELLENT condition with around 500 hours....

send me a PM if you are interested or just want more details about the boat....

cliff
 
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Can anyone tell me what model year the 215 went from 3800# dry weight to 4770# and what changed on the boat? I see the 2000 215 is 3800# and the 2004 is 4770#.
 
natorade said:
Can anyone tell me what model year the 215 went from 3800# dry weight to 4770# and what changed on the boat? I see the 2000 215 is 3800# and the 2004 is 4770#.
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I found composite replaces wood and assume that's part of the weight.
 
natorade said:
I found composite replaces wood and assume that's part of the weight.
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that is interesting because i was wondering the same thing when we were looking at buying our 215.....i noticed the 215WE's we looked at were heavier than the 215EC we bought by around 1,000 lbs although they are pretty much identical....i wonder if the 215WE and 215EC from the same year are the same weight?....this was very important to us due to our tow vehicle limitations.....an aluminum trailer is about 1/2 the weight of a steel trailer so that also may be a consideration if you are approaching the limit of your tow vehicle....

cliff
 
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I recall a forum somewhere that someone had contacted Sea Ray and they said all ECs had wood core and every 215/225 Weekender (2002 and up) I've looked at has composite core. not sure what the difference is in weight from what they use for composite over wood but it sure seems like the only thing different I can find between the two.

I'd be interested to hear what the top speed difference is on like engines/out drives/props is between the EC and the Weekender.
 
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I have a new to me 225 weekender and I'd like to see how other people have their trailer bunks set up. My old boat was a 1979 Searay 200cc and it used keel rollers and four bunks. The weekender only has two bunks and no keel rollers. As it sits now, I only have about an inch of forgiveness either direction before the hull is contacting the fender. I installed some guide poles that help, but loading is still very touchy. I also think that it seems like a lot of boat to be riding on two 2x6 bunks. My trailer is a shorelander.

We absolutely love this boat by the way! Any pictures of your trailer setup would be appreciated. Thanks.
 
harv72 said:
I have a new to me 225 weekender and I'd like to see how other people have their trailer bunks set up. My old boat was a 1979 Searay 200cc and it used keel rollers and four bunks. The weekender only has two bunks and no keel rollers. As it sits now, I only have about an inch of forgiveness either direction before the hull is contacting the fender. I installed some guide poles that help, but loading is still very touchy. I also think that it seems like a lot of boat to be riding on two 2x6 bunks. My trailer is a shorelander.

We absolutely love this boat by the way! Any pictures of your trailer setup would be appreciated. Thanks.
Click to expand...

not the best pic but maybe gives you the idea of my set up....

View attachment 32061
 
It looks like the horizontal bunks are in the same area as mine, but I don't have the boards that look to be vertical in your picture. Anybody else have a trailer setup to show for the 215/225's? Thanks!
 
I have some pictures of my trailer without the boat on it that I could send you. This was a major problem for me and after my first season with the boat I made it my winter project. Now my 225 goes on perfectly with out guide posts. I still do not know how to attach photos but will get my son involved and will try to do it this week. My set up now is so good!!!
 
harv72 said:
I have a new to me 225 weekender and I'd like to see how other people have their trailer bunks set up. My old boat was a 1979 Searay 200cc and it used keel rollers and four bunks. The weekender only has two bunks and no keel rollers. As it sits now, I only have about an inch of forgiveness either direction before the hull is contacting the fender. I installed some guide poles that help, but loading is still very touchy. I also think that it seems like a lot of boat to be riding on two 2x6 bunks. My trailer is a shorelander.

We absolutely love this boat by the way! Any pictures of your trailer setup would be appreciated. Thanks.
Click to expand...

I don't have a picture, but I know exactly what you mean regarding your concern about the fenders. But first, two bunks are perfectly and 100% fine for that boat. While it would never hurt to add more bunks, it absolutely isn't necessary and would only be a waste of your time and money to add them.

Concerning the fenders, that is normal (assuming it's the trailer that Sea Ray originally spec'd for it). While it looks a bit daunting, it won't hit the fenders. If the boat lists/rolls one way or the other on the trailer, it will rotate such that the chine moves above the fender as it rotates.
 
Hey Folks -
I got a battery placement question on my 215 EC. currently both of my batteries are on the port side if my engine compartment and in order to get to the lowest drain plug on that side I have to remove the rear battery. This is a huge pain! I am thinking about moving one of my batteries to the starboard side of the engine compartment. Any thing I need to consider other than potentially extending some of the cables?
thanks in advance for the help!
john
 
JMBailey said:
Hey Folks -
I got a battery placement question on my 215 EC. currently both of my batteries are on the port side if my engine compartment and in order to get to the lowest drain plug on that side I have to remove the rear battery. This is a huge pain! I am thinking about moving one of my batteries to the starboard side of the engine compartment. Any thing I need to consider other than potentially extending some of the cables?
thanks in advance for the help!
john
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that is the set up for dual batteries that came from the factory on my boat....one battery port and one battery starboard.....i know what drain you are talking about...it is the one in the water line from the transom to the t'stat housing....it is difficult to get to.....if your water lines are like mine here is a suggestion......i just turned the piece of hard pipe the drain is in around so that the drain is on the end near the front side of the engine...now i can easily reach that drain from the front of the engine....

cliff
 
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