Should stainless fresh water tanks be bonded

[BeeJay]

Is there a need to connect stainless steel fresh water tanks to the bonding system ?. The tanks are well above coming into contact with salt bilge water how ever the contents would be in simultaneous contact with dissimilar metals through out the fresh water system. Any advise would be helpful.

 

[sdowney717]

My SS water tank is grounded by a bonding wire to the bonding system. This is not a corrosion issue, think shock hazard. Metal items are typically grounded in case a live wire touches them.

 

[Larry M]

Our 2-75 gallon ss fresh water tanks on our last boat were tied into the bonding system.

 

[BeeJay]

Thank you - I will look at the best way I can add them in.

 

[sdowney717]

Whoever built my tank put a SS tab welded onto the tank with a nut and bolt to which is connected a grounding-bonding wire. Not having that I suppose could be a safety hazard. Stuff like this I just don't think too much about, someone already did the thinking for me, lucky me. A prior owner replaced the water tank, I do know it is not the original water tank.

If you have a metal fill pipe on the tank itself, maybe you could attach the wire to that. I have a bronze pipe nipple screwed into the tank top, it would be easy to solder and or clamp on a wire to that metal nipple.

 

[BeeJay]

Whoever built my tank put a SS tab welded onto the tank with a nut and bolt to which is connected a grounding-bonding wire. Not having that I suppose could be a safety hazard. Stuff like this I just don't think too much about, someone already did the thinking for me, lucky me. A prior owner replaced the water tank, I do know it is not the original water tank.

If you have a metal fill pipe on the tank itself, maybe you could attach the wire to that. I have a bronze pipe nipple screwed into the tank top, it would be easy to solder and or clamp on a wire to that metal nipple.

Good idea, It will be way easier to bond to a fitting than try of weld something to the tank tucked away in the bottom of the boat. Ideally I think it would be best to go directly to the tank, but I think there is a blanking plug that I can swap out after welding a bonding post to it. So if, in a few years from now someone asks why the previous owner has put some sort of sensor in the water tank that has a wire going to earth - well know the answer.