Occasionally though they’ve asked us for instructions, which for the better part of a year has consisted of a brief outline of the process that we forward in an email.  Due to a request on the Moomba boats forum we finally got around to taking some pictures of the process, and figured we would post them here along with a description of the process for everyone to see.

Once you remove your factory fittings head over to our wakeboard fittings category to pick up some replacements for use with a Tsunami pump, or any other application you have.

Lay the bag out on a hard, flat surface (a cement garage floor works well) with the fitting of interest sticking straight up into the air.

Using a hair dryer (and only a hair dryer, nothing more powerful) on it’s low setting, apply heat to the area where the black flange in the bag meets the grey fitting. Leave the hair dryer in place for AT LEAST five minutes.

With the hair dryer still pointed at the bag, stand with your feet on either side of the fitting so the soles of your shoes are on the black flange portion of the bag. The hair dryer should be between your heels pointing at the fitting in the direction you are facing.

With the hair dryer still pointed at the bag, push the end of the fitting straight away from you. Try to get the end of the fitting to touch the ground while your feet hold the flange of the bag flush with the ground.

You will be “popping” the fitting out of the bag, NOT unthreading it. If it doesn’t pop out the first time that’s fine, just start over with step two above. It usually takes a couple of tries to get the process down, but once you do it one time, the rest of the fittings will come out easily.

Once the fitting has been removed both it and the port on the bag are undamaged and ready for reuse.

This process will allow you to use any of the standard Fly High ballast fittings with the ballast bags that came in your boat with fittings cemented in from the factory.

CAUTION: It is very easy to damage the bags beyond repair while trying to remove fittings either by applying too much force or too much heat. Start slowly, and if the fitting does not come out easily repeat from step 2 above.

If you are concerned about damaging your bags, or unwilling to attempt this process you can send your bags to us and we will remove them for a small fee, contact us for more information or to setup that process.

What’s Wrong?
There are three main issues with the factory Gravity III system Supra and Moomba installed from 2002-2008 (the ballast system was essentially identical throughout this entire process, with the exception of bag sizes, which vary by model and the day of manufacture):

1) Slow Fill Times: This is a result of the fact that the factory system uses a single Rule aerator type pump to fill from one to three bags depending on how many switches you turn on at one. Additionally, the system uses solenoid valves designed for use in a below ground irrigation system to control the flow of water to each of the three bags. That means when you turn on the fill switch for a particular bag the system is engaging the fill pump AND opening the solenoid valve to that bag. The more bags you try to fill, the more the longer it’s going to take as the output of the single fill pump is routed to all three bags by the solenoid valves.

Additionally, the sprinkler valves are designed to maintain pressure (which is important for an irrigation system with retractable heads), but decreases volume significantly (which is what we’re interested in for a ballast system). Removing the sprinkler valves would increase the speed of the system by close to 50%, but would sacrifice the ability to control which bag is filling because any time the fill pump is on it would be sending water to all three bags.

2) Inconsistent Draining:  The factory system has an individual Rule drain pump for each bag.  Because aerator pumps are not self-priming it is crucial that the drain pump be mounted in close proximity to the bag it is draining (we prefer to have the pump mounted directly to the bag).  The Gravity III system has the pumps for the rear bags mounted approximately two feet away, which was down to preserve the appearance of the installation.  While it certainly is nice

3) No Vent Connection:  In the factory configuration there are only two connections to each ballast bag; one for filling and one for draining.  While the drain connection can act as an overflow to prevent damage to the bag or boat if the fill pump is left on too long (a common occurrence due to the slow speed of the system), because it is connected to the bottom of the bag it does not allow air in the system to be vented.  That means the bag can have a significant amount of air trapped inside of it, which will limit the capacity of the bag.  This is especially a problem for the center bag, but can occur with all three.

What’s The Fix?
Although the specifics can vary depending on goals, budget and time, there are basically two methods of upgrading the factory system to correct the issues outlined above:

Option 1: Upgrade to reversible flexible vane impeller pumps (Jabsco Ballast Puppy or Johnson Ultra Ballast) which is the route Moomba and Supra have chosen for 2009 and newer boats.  The advantage to this layout is a drastically simplified system with far fewer components, less hose, and a dedicated vent on the top of the factory bag.  Additionally, with one pump connected directly to each bag in the system, fill and drain times are reduced significantly.  The disadvantages to this layout are that it requires the installation of two new thru-hull connections for the additional pumps, and flexible vane impeller pumps are significantly more expensive, so the complete system ends up costing around $900.

Option 2: Install additional aerator type pumps (like Attwood’s Tsunami 800) along with additional hardware resulting in an individual fill pump for each of the bags in the system.  This setup also provides an individual fill and drain pump for all three bags, and does not require the sprinkler valve distribution manifold that is present in the factory system which further increases speed.

This configuration does not allow for a dedicated vent connection off the top of the bag, which is the only real disadvantage.  It’s also significantly cheaper to install this system than the flexible vane impeller based option above, but there is more install work to be done.  The parts for this upgrade total around $300 without the vent connections, or $400 with the hardware to connect a vent line to each bag (which requires bags with three ports on them).

You can view one of our customer’s installation summary on the Supra Boat owners website here.

Other Options
If you are content with the speed of the system and just want to enlarge the capacity of the bags for surfing or wakeboarding we do offer a factory upgrade kit for 2002-2008 Moomba and Supra wakeboard boats which includes everything necessary to replace the rear ballast bag with a larger capacity model (up to 1,450 pounds).

If you have any specific questions about upgrading the ballast system in your Supra or Moomba, feel free to contact us via email at sales@wakemakers.com or by phone at (888) 338-6085.

This seems to be a popular topic lately, both on the forums, and for our ballast experts on the phone, so we figured it would be beneficial to write a full guide on how to design a ballast system around a reversible impeller style ballast pump. As usual, there are multiple ways to accomplish the same goals, so this shouldn’t be taken as the definitive guide on ballast system installations, but rather a recommendation on how to install a fully functional system that operates correctly based on our years of experience. Feel free to deviate from these plans where you see fit, or contact us if you any questions.

With that out of the way, let’s move on to the good stuff!

The Basics
Impeller style pumps (like Jabsco’s Ballast Puppy) are unique because they can pump water in both directions, which means you can use one pump to both fill and drain the same ballast bag(s). Additionally, impeller type pumps act as a check valve when not running, preventing the flow of water into or out of the bag which simplifies the design of the system.

Design and Layout
In general, all ballast systems that make use of reversible pumps will have the following principles in common, although the specifics may vary from one installation to another depending on the applicable goals or constraints.

The system design we’ve outlined in this article does use one check valve fitting which allows the water being pumped out of the bag when draining to exit the boat above the water line. This is a popular option for many people because it results in a visual and audible indication of when the bag is draining, and when it’s empty. Alternatively, removing the check valve, wye fitting and attached thru-hull vent will result in a simpler and cheaper system that fills and drains through the thru-hull intake fitting.

Water Source
Regardless of the specifics of the system, you will need to find a source of raw water to use to fill. This can be a dedicated intake fitting installed specifically for the ballast system, or can make use of an existing drain plug fitting in the bilge using our available brass integration fittings. We DO NOT recommend using the engine’s raw water intake as the source of water for your ballast system. The risk of damage to the engine is not worth the small amount of convenience during the installation.

Pump
This system makes use of a reversible impeller type pump manufactured by Jabsco. Their Ballast Puppy pumps are incredibly popular in this industry, being used by Mastercraft, Nautique, Supra, Moomba, Centurion and others in their factory ballast system.

Plumbing
The specifics of your installation will depend on your particular boat, but the basics outlined here are generic regardless of the boat.

Immediately after the thru-hull intake fitting install a brass ball-valve as an emergency shut-off point to allow you to immediately stop the flow of water into the boat if something goes wrong.

If you choose to implement a system that drains above the water line, next install a check valve fitting to prevent water from draining back through the intake.

Next is Wye fitting to redirect the flow of water out the thru-hull vent fitting when draining.

Then comes the pump, and finally you can make your connection to the bag. Because reversible pumps fill and drain through the same bag connection, you only need two connections to the bag, one for filling and draining, and one for venting. We recommend using Fly High’s Flow-Rite Quick Release Connector system for all bag connections so that you can quickly and easily remove the ballast bags for cleaning, winterization or storage.

Both the drain and vent hoses are terminated with thru-hull vent fittings that match the factory style.

Here is a summary of the parts used in this single bag system, along with an approximate cost for a system of this type. Obviously the total cost will depend on which bag you choose, whether or not you implement the above water line drain, and a host of other factors. If the cost is of concern to you, contact us and we can help you locate ways to save some money.

Hopefully you found this article informative, and it helped to answer some of your questions regarding wakeboard ballast systems using reversible pumps. If you have any other questions, or would like help designing a system to meet our specific needs, please contact one of our ballast experts and we would be glad to assist.

To build the required adapter you will need to parts:

• Launch Pad LINK 3/4″ Thread Adapter
• Fly High Quick Twist Adapter

Together, those two adapters make it possible to connect Fly High’s Tsunami ballast pump to Launch Pad’s Link equipped ballast bags.

Whether you’re designing a new ballast system, or trying to upgrade your existing system to fill and drain faster, one common question is how best to design the system so it is as uncomplicated (and also inexpensive) as possible.  One of the tools that we use when helping people design a custom ballast system is a product called a vented loop.

As shown above, a vented loop is a “U” shaped plastic fitting that is installed in series with the fill pump when using aerator pumps.  During filling, the vented loop is invisible, functioning as a section of hose without any limitations.  The beauty of the vented loop only comes into play when the the fill pump is turned off, which means there are no drawbacks to implementing its use.  When water is not being forced through the fill hose, air (but not water) is allowed to pass through a vent at the top of the loop, which allows the column of water from the vented loop to the fill pump to drain down to the level of the pump.  

It is this column of air (typically at least two feet long) that prevents water from siphoning into, or out of the ballast bag when the pump is not running.  Many people are under the impression that water is forced past the fill pump due to the boat running at speed, but it’s not possible to develop that much pressure, and it actually just the siphoning process that allows the bag to fill or drain.  The vented loop solves that problem by creating a break in the column of water running from the pump to the bag, so siphoning is not possible.

To function correctly, the vented loop needs to be installed close to the ballast bag in question, and as high above the water line as possible.  For forward ballast bags, the typical installation location is under the driver’s dash up near the windshield.  In the back of the boat, up under the gunnel, whether in direct drive or v-drive boats, is typically the best location.

If you have any other questions about the vented loop in particular, or ballast systems in general, please feel free to contact us.

Jabsco Ballast Puppy Impeller Pump

At least a few times a week we have someone ask “what is the difference between more expensive ballast pumps like Jabsco’s Ballast Puppy and the cheaper bilge pump style options?”. Since choosing a pump is the main determinant for ballast system design, we thought it would be a good idea to put together a guide that helps make this process easier and less time consuming.

When it comes to installing a ballast system, the first decision to make is which type of ballast pump you plan on using.  This decision will impact the rest of the system design and layout, as well as the number of components required for proper functionality.  There are pros and cons to each type of pump, which we have summarized in the following table: