VTX BALLAST UPGRADE HELP PLEASE.

[lukeyJ]

Hey all.

I've just got myself a 2007 VTX with the 4 tank stock ballast system and am looking to upgrade the ballast for wakeboarding.

At the moment I'm pretty set on two 250L (550lbs) bags in the rear lockers and a 250L in the bow.

So my question is - to keep everything simple i wanted to plumb in the new bags in the rear lockers from the overflow lines on each of the stock left and right rear tanks.

I need help on how to do this i.e plumbing routes, what i need and any advice that anyone can come up with.

Also does anyone know the flow rate of a stock ballast pump?? i dont mind waiting 10 or so minutes while they fill up the extra bags.

Any info and advice would be greatly appreciated

cheers

[Malibuzer]

Hey all.

I've just got myself a 2007 VTX with the 4 tank stock ballast system and am looking to upgrade the ballast for wakeboarding.

At the moment I'm pretty set on two 250L (550lbs) bags in the rear lockers and a 250L in the bow.

So my question is - to keep everything simple i wanted to plumb in the new bags in the rear lockers from the overflow lines on each of the stock left and right rear tanks.

I need help on how to do this i.e plumbing routes, what i need and any advice that anyone can come up with.

Also does anyone know the flow rate of a stock ballast pump?? i dont mind waiting 10 or so minutes while they fill up the extra bags.

Any info and advice would be greatly appreciated

Lukeyj, I will send you the instructions that I have. I hooked them up with fly high quick connects so I could remove them and dry them out. PM me your email and I will send the instructions to you. It worked fairly well. The only downfall is that the bag drains by gravity and it can take some extra time to drain..

Trent

cheers

[Bobby Light]

What you describe is the wakemakers piggback system. 550's are a good size for wakeboarding but to small for wakesurfing. The stock pumps are 800 gallons per hour.

[Malibuzer]

If I was you I would go to the 1000 lb bags in the corners. The 750's fit ok, but that extra weight can make a big difference

[lukeyJ]

What you describe is the wakemakers piggback system. 550's are a good size for wakeboarding but to small for wakesurfing. The stock pumps are 800 gallons per hour.

I was looking at the wakemakers piggyback sytem with 750's. 50x20x20 bags.

Has any one got any thoughts on running 3 of these systems, one in each rear locker and one in the bow? good or bad?

[Wayne]

A guy on my lake ran 3 piggy back bags as you described with the stock pumps on a 2009 VTX. He had 750s in the rear with a triangle bag on top of the seats in the bow. Since we are on a private lake he would just fill all his ballast while lowering his boat off the lift and as they let the engine come up to temperature.

[skibreeze]

I started with a piggy back 750 for surfing and then put a 400 on top of that and it made a big difference, so I knew that I wanted the 1100 bags. I also got tired of waiting for them to fill and drain, especially when switching surf sides, it simply took too long.

I knew it was time for more pumps. I put T's in the rear tank thru hulls for the 1100's. I added a thru hull close to the port rear thru hull for my 570 under the port seat. I then put a T at the front thru hull for my 400 that sits under the helm.

[old skool malibu]

If I was you I would go to the 1000 lb bags in the corners. The 750's fit ok, but that extra weight can make a big difference

Trent the 1100's fit in the rear lockers of a VTX? Gord tried a set on Marc's and said they were way too big.

[Stuey11]

You can do it yourself pretty easy.

Say if you were sitting in the left side rear locker, facing the bow of the boat. in the upper right hand corner, near the engine and divider wall, you will see a little 6" x 6" carpet piece that comes off with 3 screws. Take that off and you will see ballast hose that tucks up behind the back seat... that's your vent (overflow) hose. Take it off at both ends (the tank and the hullthru) and leave it there, makes it easy if you ever want to convert back thru to stock. Run a new ballast hose from the tank to the bottom fitting where your ballast bag will be. Then run another new ballast hose from the top fitting of your ballast bag out to the hullthru, that is now your new vent line. Easy as that...Now your stock tanks will fill, then the overflow will fill up the bags. When you drain, as the water pumps out of the hard tanks, the bag will drain back into the hard tank and keep coming out. The bag won't empty completely but gets close enough that you can lift the bag out of the locker and drain by hand. I put them on quick release fittings so I can take the bags out whenever to drain, clean, dry out, etc.

One thing I ended up doing later was adding a shutoff valve to the factory drain pump, right by the hullthru. When I first did it, the bags wouldn't get completely full. Water would start coming out of the drain hullthru... almost as if the factory system couldnt handle the pressure of water in the tank ? So now I simply close the shutoff valve on the factory drain that way the bag gets full right to the top.

Let me know if you have any questions..

[lukeyJ]

You can do it yourself pretty easy.

Say if you were sitting in the left side rear locker, facing the bow of the boat. in the upper right hand corner, near the engine and divider wall, you will see a little 6" x 6" carpet piece that comes off with 3 screws. Take that off and you will see ballast hose that tucks up behind the back seat... that's your vent (overflow) hose. Take it off at both ends (the tank and the hullthru) and leave it there, makes it easy if you ever want to convert back thru to stock. Run a new ballast hose from the tank to the bottom fitting where your ballast bag will be. Then run another new ballast hose from the top fitting of your ballast bag out to the hullthru, that is now your new vent line. Easy as that...Now your stock tanks will fill, then the overflow will fill up the bags. When you drain, as the water pumps out of the hard tanks, the bag will drain back into the hard tank and keep coming out. The bag won't empty completely but gets close enough that you can lift the bag out of the locker and drain by hand. I put them on quick release fittings so I can take the bags out whenever to drain, clean, dry out, etc.

One thing I ended up doing later was adding a shutoff valve to the factory drain pump, right by the hullthru. When I first did it, the bags wouldn't get completely full. Water would start coming out of the drain hullthru... almost as if the factory system couldnt handle the pressure of water in the tank ? So now I simply close the shutoff valve on the factory drain that way the bag gets full right to the top.

Let me know if you have any questions..

Thanks heaps for the info, i'll check it out some time on the weekend and let you know how i go.