MacGregorSailors.com

Hello
How you come through cold winter when your Mac stays in the water?
The through hull has no valve.

OK, you could install a valve from Truedesign. It can remain full of water in frozen condition.
But: what is with the motor well?

Who has a solution?

Could you plug the thru-hull with a cork or something to prevent water from entering? Then maybe run some anti-freeze down the drain to keep any water from freezing.

Same with the motor well. Plug the hole and then maybe dump some salt into the motor well to keep any water from freezing and let any water run over the transom.

If you keep the ballast empty I believe the thru-hull fitting would be above the waterline.

Do you not have a trailer to pull the boat out? Keeping it on land would be the safest.

That anti-freeze idea could work, but what would you do in the Spring to prevent anti-freeze leakage into the waterway when you remove the cork.

Yes, good Ideas. So you could work it out.

But it looks not as a very perfect solution.

In my the through hull is every time under the water line, even more with empty ballast tank.

In fact you should have a direct hose from the motor well with a separate through hull? So the motor well could empty all times? Maybe a very short one that would not destroy by freezing?

Then you could have a normal valve for the sink through hull, maybe give some pressured air to empty the hose?

If you use the boat some times in the winter all these other tricks get somewhat ... unperfect I say...

It does not look quite well engineered this part of the boat, but I have no good solution yet.

So far I have a hose heating cable mounted. So I guess all will stay safe. And a GSM-alert gives me power lost.

Still waiting for perfect solution...

NiceAft wrote: ↑Sun Dec 10, 2023 10:10 am That anti-freeze idea could work, but what would you do in the Spring to prevent anti-freeze leakage into the waterway when you remove the cork.

Could use the RV (pink) antifreeze that is non-toxic. I run that through my fresh water line to the sink and some goes down the drain to help keep that from freezing.

kurz wrote: ↑Sun Dec 10, 2023 10:53 am
So far I have a hose heating cable mounted. So I guess all will stay safe. And a GSM-alert gives me power lost.

Still waiting for perfect solution...

I really wish Roger installed a proper seacock valve on these boats.

Heat would probably work well unless you get extremely cold temperatures. Years ago some owners would use a 100w incandescent bulb to provide enough heat to keep things from freezing.

Russ wrote: ↑Sun Dec 10, 2023 11:20 am

NiceAft wrote: ↑Sun Dec 10, 2023 10:10 am That anti-freeze idea could work, but what would you do in the Spring to prevent anti-freeze leakage into the waterway when you remove the cork.

Could use the RV (pink) antifreeze that is non-toxic. I run that through my fresh water line to the sink and some goes down the drain to help keep that from freezing.

One learns something new everyday. Non toxic antifreeze.

Just for fun on a

Fresh water has a density of 1 g/mL
Salt Water has a density of 1.027g/mL
Propylene Glycol aka safe antifreeze has a density of 1.036 g/mL

Mac 26x is listed as 1400lbs water ballast (not clear if freshwater or salt but assuming fresh would translate to a ballasttank size of 1400lb / 8.33 gal-lb = 168 gallons.

(1.03600 (g / ml)) x 168 US gallons = 658.8 kilograms

658.8kg =1452 lb.so the pure antifreeze would result in 52lbs more ballast weight - assuming its straight antifreeze and not mixed with water. If the original calculators were based on salt water it would be even less of a difference.

The change in ballast mediums seems not that significant. I wonder if anyone has tried any other nonwater liquid ballast.

pitchpolehobie wrote: ↑Sun Dec 10, 2023 7:43 pm Just for fun on a

Fresh water has a density of 1 g/mL
Salt Water has a density of 1.027g/mL
Propylene Glycol aka safe antifreeze has a density of 1.036 g/mL

Filling the ballast tank with antifreeze would cost a fortune. At $5/gal = $840

Ballast would be best to simply empty. Any remaining bits wouldn't be an issue.

On the 26M there is that one thru-hull that is below the waterline that is the concern. I run some of the pink stuff through my fresh water line and down the drain. My boat isn't left in the water, but I assume this keeps the line from freezing and bursting. I cover the boat so little fresh water makes it to the motor well drain.

Keeping a boat in the water has challenges. Many years ago we kept our Hunter in the water (salt). A bubbler system kept water from freezing around the hull. It was a simple leaky hose pipe submerged under the boat connected to an air compressor on a thermal switch that turned it on when temps were cold enough for freezing.