New boat owner here, I have a bunch of random ballast related questions...

[killerbren]

Hi guys,

This spring I bought a 2006 22ve. I contacted mike and bought the custom ballast sacs for both port and starboard corners, and a bow sac as well.

1)how much weight is too much weight in the corners? when I fill the custom port bag up full the water level is about 4-6" from the rub rail when not moving and pretty much touching or maybe a tiny bit above the rub rail when moving at surf speeds. Is that too much weight? can I go more (with people ballast)? Is there anything I need to know about having too much weight on one side? I realize when the surfer falls you can't stop abruptly or the wave will swamp you from the back, and no power turns.

2)Ive seen some people comment about using velcro to attach the corner of the sacs to the boat on the corners to hold the sac in place? Is this needed, because I don't have this at all. The bag just sits flat on the bottom of the floor when empty, and when full It pops up, but sometimes its kind of a hassle filling if the bag is twisted sideways. I notice it has some brackets on the bag you could tie a rope to to hold in in place? Is that what they are for?

3) The arms on the bow sac are a little long for under the seats. Ive heard of some guys cutting out the fibreglass partition under the bow seats for more room, is this possible to do without losing structural integrity?

probably more questions to come as I think of them,

Thanks,

[Captainkurk72]

Sorry i can't answer your questions as I will leave that to many others here that are far more experienced and knowledgeable. I am at about the same place you are with ballast. Something else to consider when going heavy on the Port side is the fuel filler vent. I try not run so much water that I risk getting water into the vent. I have read threads where guys have damaged their motors or been stranded. I am about 6" below rub rail when not moving and close to rub rail when moving. This winter I will be relocating the vent up by the window and above rub rail. Then I will add a second bilge pump for the area by the v-drive and use the old vent for discharge. Good luck and post your progress. add pics. we all love pics.

[killerbren]

Yeah good advice about the fuel vent, although right now I'm thinking mine is plugged because it is such a pain to put fuel in because it will burp fuel back up if I go too fast. Not sure if that is because of the vent or because of the routing of the fill hose, but I have to fill super slow. Moving that vent may be a good winter project.

[killerbren]

Can anybody comment about cutting out the partition beneath the bow cushions so that bag fits in there better? or is the bow sac bunching up just a normal thing?

also, it would be nice to know if people velcro their bags in or just leave them as is

[chpthril]

I have contemplated make a square cutout in those bulkheads, but never done it to this point. Those bulkheads are a structural supports for the deck cap and bow seating, so i would be hesitant to cut too much out. This leaves you only making a small, relative to the size of the sac, opening. I think this would create a restriction in each leg, causing filling issues. I feel any gain in letting the sac stretch out, would be washed due to the bottle neck.

Ive never velcro'd a sac in place. I think you would have trouble getting it to stay attached to the sac due to constant moisture.

[killerbren]

Alright, looks like I will be leaving everything as is, thanks Mike.