Winterizing 06 X2 ballast tanks

[wakecumberland]

Does someone have instructions on how to winterize the ballast tanks on an 06 X2? Thanks!

[DryHop]

I have the same question. MC shop here in Oregon says to just run them dry with boat on an incline, as we don't get really cold winters. On my '06, there is a hose-bib t-ed off what appears to be one of the 2 discharge lines from the the manifold. Not sure how to put that to use (to poosibly run RV coolant through the system). Does anyone have a link to a '06 X2 ballast system block diagram?

[corey]

Drain as much water as possible then pour RV in through the vent line while running the pump on empty. We run them till pink RV comes out the bottom.

[DryHop]

Thanks corey. By vent line, I assume you mean the 2 side exit points near rub rail (1 each side) where water exits on draining the ballast (or on overflow when the tanks are full). Which direction do you run the pumps?

I know there are many threads on ballast winterization. It seems like the '06 X2 is special with the side discharge and timer-less controls. Can I assume the '06 X2 is the same as a '06 X1 or '05 X2?

This one seems like a good generic one (but I'd have to add a Tee near the intake):
http://www.mastercraft.com/teamtalk/showthread.php?t=989&highlight=ballast

and noticed this one specific for 07 and 08 X2 (which sounds similar to Corys suggestion):
http://www.mastercraft.com/teamtalk/showthread.php?t=26674&highlight=ballast

[wakeX2wake]

as long as you have the two way pumps on your boat (meaning that when you empty your ballast it doesn't empty out the side of the boat)... yes you'll just pour the RV in the overflow hole in the side of the boat and and flip the switch on empty... i'd let it spit the pink long enough to make you feel confident there's fluid on the pump (just a couple of second)

if you don't have the two way pumps there should be a "T" in the line between the raw water intake at your hull and the actual pump (if not you should be able to suck the fluid out of the jug by placing a fitting (best chance provided by your dealer but we rigged one using left over ballast line and a small rubber plunger like head) over the ballast intake and sucking the fluid out of the jug)... by this you'll want to fit a hose to the empty side of this "t" and draw about a gallon or two of fluid in and when finished then turn the pumps to empty until you (once again) see the pink... this will ensure that both pumps have the RV fluid in them and the water is out of dangerous areas

(please note that if anyone more knowledgeable come along and gives you better advice then you should probably take it as i've only helped on both of these scenarios and neither was my boat nor a MC... but pretty much all ballast systems are universal and all consist of a hole in the boat, a hose, a pump, more hose, a tank, (possibly insert another pump here), more hose, and another hole in the boat)

[MattsCraft]

Here is the MC Service Update on winterizing ballast.

[ttu]

Here is the MC Service Update on winterizing ballast.

i believe that is for 07-08 models. the 06 empties out the side and not like the bottom like the newer ones do.

ps, the chart shows the starboard kgb ballast overflow as being the 2nd one back. however on my 07 it's the first one under the 200 series.

[Loffgren]

Why does this even need to be done? To keep impellar from seezing up? (sp)

[rgardjr1]

Here's what I did on my 2006 Maristar 200 (basically an X2). I emptied the tanks of water using the ballast pumps. I hooked up the fake a lake to the ballast intake on the bottom of the boat. I sucked 1 gallon of RV antifreeze into each of the 3 tanks. I then ran the pumps on empty until antifreeze spit out the side empty ports. This is how we have been winterizing my cousins 2005 X2 and I was assuming that it would be the same for my 2006.

[wakecumberland]

I think the T-fitting on the intake or rgardjr1's technique will work. I will let you know what I come up with tomorrow.

[JohnE]

From what I understand, the T fitting is designed so you can attach a hose and pour the antifreeze in while filling the ballast.

I have an '08 X14. When I tried to winterize by filling through the ballast vent it didn't work. I poured in over 4 gallons of antifreeze and it never came out through the hull. I gave up and disconnected the hose from the through hull fitting and poured the antifreeze in while filling the tank. I reconnected and hit empty, and it then started pumping. I don't know if the pump loses it's prime or what was going on.....

[ttu]

john, i went thru the overflow's like you attempted. nothing came out as per the instructions. i then towed the boat around for about a mile and when i got back to the storage attempted it again and it worked.

[rgardjr1]

My boat is a 2006 Maristar 200 SS. I went out and looked at my ballast setup today after reading about the 2007 and 2008 ballasts filling and emptying using the same pump. I'm hoping someone can help me understand how the ballast pump empty/fill works on my boat. Are there two pumps for each tank? On my boat there is a pick up on the bottom of the boat. After it enters the boat there is a ball valve/shut off. About a foot after this there is a white filter-I didn't see anyway to hook up a hose to this for winterizing like I expected from reading in this thread. After the filter the line runs to the transom and into a manifold that has the one input and three out puts. After this it gets a little sketchy. I can see one of the output lines runs to a pump under the rear seat. I assume this is a fill pump. Since the ballast empty out of the side of the boat I'm guessing there must be another pump that empties the tank somewhere else. Is this correct?

[wakecumberland]

There is one pump for each tank. The pumps operate in both directions. I was able to connect a hose to the T fitting which is located on the transom of the boat near the "manifold" that rgardjr1 is referring to. I hooked the hose up and put the other end in the antifreeze bottle and hit the fill switch for each tank one at a time. Worked well for me but I think the threads on the T fitting are different than the threads on the hose. Never the less I made it work.