Water bladders tanks to replace my Marine trader leaking stainless tanks

[billfromport]

Has anyone replaced the 4 interconnected stainless water tanks on a 38' marine trader with water bladder tanks? If so what are the pros or cons on using these bladders. Any brand good or bad. The stainless tank welds are leaking on the bottom where the welds are and it a very tight fit through the hatch. I was think of cutting the old tank out and replacing them with the water bladder tanks. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Not a fun project!

 

[alormaria]

I'm in the process of replacing my twin water tanks in my 34' MT. They do just fit through the hatch but it's tight. The new ones measure the same but weigh quite a bit more cause they are of thicker (better) metal. Not cheap but good.
It's not really that bad a project. You may need to remove the rudder and steering gear to get some room but that is not really a bad project either.

 

[Comodave]

Personally I don’t care for bladders but they may work. I would look at Roncl tanks and see if they have some that might fit. They have hundreds if standard tanks. They will put the necessary fittings in where you need them. They make quality tanks.

 

[mvweebles]

Chafe and resale value are the two enemies of bladders. Even if you need to daisy chain multiple smaller tanks, you'd be ahead. @Comodave suggested Ronco plastic tanks which would be a good source.

Manufacturer Of Plastic Tanks, RV Tanks, Storage Tanks – Ronco Plastics

Ronco Plastics in California is a leading manufacturer of Plastic Tanks, RV Tanks, Storage Tanks, Auto Detail Tanks, Waste Holding Tanks, Fitting & Accessories.

ronco-plastics.com

Good luck. Sorry to hear of your challenges.

Peter

 

[Lepke]

Bladder tanks, whatever they hold, have a much shorter life than metal tanks. I used them for fuel tuna fishing and they lasted about 3 years before leaking problems. I used them in the fish hold and when they were dry, rolled them up and stored them. Probably too much handling.

 

[my3star]

Has anyone replaced the 4 interconnected stainless water tanks on a 38' marine trader with water bladder tanks? If so what are the pros or cons on using these bladders. Any brand good or bad. The stainless tank welds are leaking on the bottom where the welds are and it a very tight fit through the hatch. I was think of cutting the old tank out and replacing them with the water bladder tanks. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Not a fun project!

Bill,

I had the same issue. I found my 275 gallon, Port SS Potable Water Tank to be leaking. I opened the 13" inspection hatch and discovered corroded welds and rust marks in the corners of the tank. I cleaned the tank with a Bristle Blaster tool, which is basically a very aggressive rotating stainless steel wire brush, and removed as much of the corrosion as I could. Then I coated the bottom and up the sides of the tank, approximately 10 inches, with a product called Blue Seal Epoxy. There is a primer and a two part epoxy. Here is the link:

Blue Seal Inc | Industrial Coating Solutions | United States

Blue Seal's industrial marine coating is the industry leader in corrosion, cavitation, and electrolysis solutions. It’s been providing creative solutions to unique customer problems for over 20 years. Blue Seal is in use worldwide in the most demanding applications where other coatings failed.

www.bluesealinc.com

I performed this repair 11 months ago, and I haven't had any evidence of a leak since. I also, performed the same work on my Starboard water tank, as a pre-emptive repair, even though it wasn't leaking. It had similar corrosion on the welds and in the corners. I have a 1994, 48' Kadey Krogen Trawler.