fresh water capacity

Hi everyone, first post so bare with me. My wife and i own a 1979 Mainship T . We only have a 50 gallon fresh water tank. I would like to add 60 to 80 more gallons of capacity. Plan on living on boat for 6 to 8 weeks this summer, mostly on the hook.Any idea,s? Also, want to thank Brooksie for your help and time.

With just a little conservation you may find the water capacity is sufficient but the holding tank capacity is what will limit you.

We have 200 gallons of fresh water and 100 black water. That's plenty for our use.

I think a minimum 100 gallon storage would be nice. But for 6 to 8 weeks on the hook you must be prepared to transport Water.

You mentioned living on it 6 to 8 weeks this summer. Will you be in an area where there are marinas? Replenishing your water regularly is always an option if so.

A second option is to carry a bladder of water. A 50 gallon bladder is available in the $150 range.

Now, then I ask the question about future cruising. If you intend to spend a lot of time regularly away from marinas then a watermaker is worth considering. Obviously that is a more expensive option.

I have 80 gallons and it lasts about two weeks if I am on board alone, four days with two women on board with me. Dishes, showers every third day. I never pass on a chance to put more water on board... My toilet is salt water so it doesn't figure into water consumption.

My wife and I use about 30 gallons per day when water is plentiful and readily available. But we could easily cut that in half to conserve. This gives is a reason to find a marina. We usually anchor as much as we can. With a 250 gallon water tank, we can stay out awhile. You may find a bigger tank to your advantage as well.

swboater said:

Hi everyone, first post so bare with me. My wife and i own a 1979 Mainship T . We only have a 50 gallon fresh water tank. I would like to add 60 to 80 more gallons of capacity. Plan on living on boat for 6 to 8 weeks this summer, mostly on the hook.Any idea,s? Also, want to thank Brooksie for your help and time.

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Have you thought about where you can put another 500 pounds, dead weight, in a 34 foot boat?

Are you also planning to have 6 to 8 weeks food aboard as well?

Are you trying to justify a bigger boat?

Apparently most of you are not in a NDZ.

Bob Cofer said:

Apparently most of you are not in a NDZ.

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No, just he didn't ask about holding tank capacity nor did he give us a size. His question was just about water capacity.

Easiest is to work a deal with a marina.

You will need a spot to park your car , dump the trash , get mail and obtain water, do the laundry and dump the poop so renting a slip for your dink, in usually cheap shallow water will work.

Marinas get unfriendly when the think you are sneaking in at midnight .

FF said:

Easiest is to work a deal with a marina.

You will need a spot to park your car , dump the trash , get mail and obtain water, do the laundry and dump the poop so renting a slip for your dink, in usually cheap shallow water will work.

Marinas get unfriendly when the think you are sneaking in at midnight .

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Agree...

We don't anchor for extended periods...but when we do it seems we run out of space for garbage before water & holding tank capacity.
Are we the only ones?
How do others handle it?
Or is it just easier to dump ashore w dink vs carrying water back?

On out 33ft 90/90 we have a Grumman aluminum dink in davits.

It holds a lot of garbage bags!

Stop for the usual, 20G of fuel, 200G of fresh water and get rid of all the bags , before going out on the hook.

I would start with 10 potable water containers of 5 gallons each. Finding the space below deck on your boat to install additional tanks would be tough. Then there is the issue of how the additional weight would effect your trim. Having 5 gallon portable containers allows you to carry a few on dinghy rides that may bring you near a water source. As you empty them, they become easy to stow out of the way below deck.

Ted

In that Mainship you can easily add a 20 or 25 gallon tank on each side on the lazarette outboard of the stringers next to the current tank. Connect them all at the bottom and you have added 40 or 50 gallons.
Each additional tank will
Have to be vented of course.

In that Mainship you can easily add a 20 or 25 gallon tank on each side on the lazarette outboard of the stringers next to the current tank. Connect them all at the bottom and you have added 40 or 50 gallons.
Each additional tank will
Have to be vented of course.

Six to eight weeks away from a dock? Time for a water maker

When we had the our 34 Mainship we always carried 2-6 gallon water jugs. When ever we went to shore to dump trash, go shopping or just for a walk we filled them up. If we got behind, we'd make a couple of runs to fill the boat's water tank.

You could also carry 1/2 dozen clean empty white 5 gallon buckets with lids. They stack so they store easy when empty. Make a water run and add 30 gallons to the on-board tank.

50 gallons of on board capacity could last you 5 days with some conservation.

We have a 36' Mainship DC (Aft Cabin) with 100 Gal of fresh water.
We are full time live-aboards and cruisers.
Between the both of us including fresh water flush of the heads, at the dock, we use up the 100 gals in about 4 days.
When on the hook, it will last about a week. That is partly due to eating off paper plates to help conserve wash water. Generally when traveling, we never need to go the full week because we will hit a marina at least every 3 days or so. At marinas, we mostly shower in their showers. While travelling, its a combination of whores baths and I use a 2 gal bug sprayer. One gal hot water and soap up and one gal. to rinse. That's the best way I know of to meter your bath water usage.
Hope this info helps. Again, we have 100 gal capacity. From there, you can do the math for what you have or plan on getting.

O C Diver said:

I would start with 10 potable water containers of 5 gallons each. Finding the space below deck on your boat to install additional tanks would be tough. Then there is the issue of how the additional weight would effect your trim. Having 5 gallon portable containers allows you to carry a few on dinghy rides that may bring you near a water source. As you empty them, they become easy to stow out of the way below deck.

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Larry M said:

When we had the our 34 Mainship we always carried 2-6 gallon water jugs.

You could also carry 1/2 dozen clean empty white 5 gallon buckets with lids. They stack so they store easy when empty.

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Seems like an easy try-it-and-see approach, before attempting a real refit.

OTOH, if it were on our boat, with the fill on a side deck... we'd have a heck of a time transferring water from those to the on-board tanks for subsequent distribution throughout the boat. Maybe have to rig up a "pour hose" fitting or some such in one of the lids...

I like the stackable idea. We keep a few Rubbermaid water cans at the house, full, in case of long-term power outage... and while they're purpose built and offer a pour spout... they take up some space, no matter whether full or empty.

-Chris

Hawgwash said:

Have you thought about where you can put another 500 pounds, dead weight, in a 34 foot boat?

Are you also planning to have 6 to 8 weeks food aboard as well?

Are you trying to justify a bigger boat?

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We are not trying to justify a bigger boat, this one is fine for the 2 of us. Just want to add water capacity.

How about a rain catchment tank reserved just for washing and cleaning and one potable water tank just for drinking. Depending on where you are that could give you a bunch of options and long duration.

In the summer I could keep rain water tanks filled darn near forever and it would be an easy job for an water-maker or even a high end filter system to turn rainwater in to drinking water. I understand water-makers don't like dirty inland and ICW water as their input.

Spoil islands make a good place to use a Duralog in a pit to turn your trash into a small pile of ashes while having a nice sunset evening.

Just an outside of the box thought.

Thanks everyone, My post was not as clear as it should have been.We will not be on the hook all of the time. One or two nights a week at marina,s. Just want to add freshwater cap. when on hook(keep wife happy) All ports will be on lake Mi.[Grand Haven to Strait,s]

What Larry suggested is a good idea. I picked up a number of buckets out of the recycling bin from a cup cake bakery that had been used to store icing. Once cleaned out we use then to store all sorts of stuff. Some have lots of holes drilled in them to store potatoes and carrots. Others are used for dogfood, prawn bait and all manner of things. Last summer we started to use them to collect run off water from the boat deck, that we used for washing dishes and even a cold water wash. Mind you we can make our 350 gallons last 3 or more weeks if we are careful.


Jim
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swboater said:

Hi everyone, first post so bare with me. My wife and i own a 1979 Mainship T . We only have a 50 gallon fresh water tank. I would like to add 60 to 80 more gallons of capacity. Plan on living on boat for 6 to 8 weeks this summer, mostly on the hook.Any idea,s? Also, want to thank Brooksie for your help and time.

Click to expand...

You don't say if you'll be moving or staying in one place for six to eight weeks. If you're moving, you will be buying fuel so you'll have the opportunity to take on water, have your holding tank pumped, and dump your trash and garbage. You might not actually need more water capacity.

You've been given suggestions for portable water storage. If you really want to add tanks, you'll just have to look around the boat to see where you can add permanent tanks.

I'm assuming you are already practicing water conservation. You can really cut down on your water use if you try.

sunchaser said:

Six to eight weeks away from a dock? Time for a water maker

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That was my thought as well