# Dockside water



## golfpcb (Mar 9, 2011)

When you are cruising and in a marina with access to dockside water do you usually or always hook up? With dockside water your onboard pumps don't operate and make a lot of noise -mine do make lots of noise.


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## mitchbrown (Jan 21, 2009)

Many marinas dont allow you to hook up pressure water to the boat because of the risk of you sinking it if anything starts leaking. My opinion is, Its a bad idea.

Mitch


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## TQA (Apr 4, 2009)

mitchbrown said:


> many marinas dont allow you to hook up pressure water to the boat because of the risk of you sinking it if anything starts leaking. My opinion is, its a bad idea.
> 
> Mitch


+1


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## neverknow (Feb 2, 2011)

If your water pump is very noisy check and make sure it's mounted on a vibration dampener of some kind. Also you can cover it with sound proofing material.


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## Faster (Sep 13, 2005)

"Plugging into" pressure water from shore (like an RV) is a very scary thought. I think in 30 years of boating around here I've only seen one boat so equipped.

Don't do it... fill your tank as needed, plug in electrically to charge batteries if necessary.


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## dhays (Jul 9, 2010)

Faster said:


> "Plugging into" pressure water from shore (like an RV) is a very scary thought. I think in 30 years of boating around here I've only seen one boat so equipped.
> 
> Don't do it... fill your tank as needed, plug in electrically to charge batteries if necessary.


Agreed. One of the things to keep in mind is that your plumbing can handle the pressure from your water pump, but that is likely pretty low. What is the pressure from the dockside system?

Around here Marinas are often much lower than the surrounding area, a combination of steep shorelines and large tidal swings. Does the Marina have a pressure regulator? If so, what is the pressure at your slips hose bib? Let's say you are connected to shore power in a Marina surrounded by hills at low tide. You are running your sink water full open for some reason and then suddenly shut the water off. Imagine the hydraulic hammer force that is being applied to _*all*_ of your boats plumbing as that moving water column suddenly comes to a stop (water doesn't compress well). You could easily blow a hose anywhere in your pluming system, something that would make your day far more exciting that you might wish.

Many folks around here have small pressure regulators they put on their slips hose bibs just to keep their dock hoses from failing or they use expensive hoses designed for high pressure (or just buy cheap hoses and replace them every couple years).


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## PorFin (Sep 10, 2007)

Most boat connectors that enable direct hook-up to dock hose bibs are pressure regulated to preclude the damage dhays rightfully warns against.

That said, I would hate to bet my boat on that connector being foolproof. Let's face it -- if one on an R/V fails, you've got some wet carpet; if the one on your boat fails, you're now a submarine owner.

Is it a convenience? Maybe so. Just be very prudent as to how you use this convenience. I'd recomend against it, but if you do decide to go that route, consider using it like you do with propane -- only pressurize the system when you actually use it.


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## dhays (Jul 9, 2010)

PorFin said:


> Most boat connectors that enable direct hook-up to dock hose bibs are pressure regulated to preclude the damage dhays rightfully warns against.


I wasn't aware that the boat connectors had built in pressure regulators. Sure makes sense.

I think I would want to provide a bit of insurance by using a regulator on the dockside hose bib as well. With double protection like that, I could see using it _*when you are on the boat*_. Anytime leaving the boat I would turn the water off at the dock. Many pressure regulators attached to hose bibs will release water to get rid of the pressure in the hose when the water is shut off. This would leave the boats system depressurized until returning to the boat and turning on the water at the dock again.


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## arknoah (Oct 31, 2010)

Could you purchase a pressure regulator after market, like I used to do on my travel trailer?


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## BluemanSailor (Apr 28, 2009)

When I live aboard my previous boat for 6 years I used a Water pressure regulator like this one -

JABSCO FLUSH MOUNT CHROME WATER PRESSURE REGULATOR 45PSI - 44411-2045

with an off value right on the dockside water faucet. NEVER had a problem. When I would go to work in the morning just turn the value off. If I went out of town turned the dockside water off.


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## PorFin (Sep 10, 2007)

arknoah said:


> Could you purchase a pressure regulator after market, like I used to do on my travel trailer?


Yes -- here's a hose end Jabsco model that cuts the pressure down to about 35 psi.










For a more permanent solution, they also make this in a unit that flush mounts to your choice of location -- model 44410-1000 (white) or 44410-2000 (chrome).

I'm not affiliated with Jabsco.


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## welshwind (Feb 27, 2005)

golfpcb said:


> When you are cruising and in a marina with access to dockside water do you usually or always hook up? With dockside water your onboard pumps don't operate and make a lot of noise -mine do make lots of noise.


When I first bought my boat, the water pump sounded like a machine gun. Middle of the night, a kid gets up to hit the head and then turns on the water and rat-a-tat-tat. Then, I realized I didn't have to live with that. Bought a ShurFlo model that was purported to be quiet (for around $80 if I'm not mistaken), replaced the old one and I've slept well ever since. Incredibly quiet and it is now seven years old.

The other issue about hooking up to pressure is when you do need to run water from your tanks, it can be quite stale and not very palatable.


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## sfchallenger (May 17, 2011)

I hook up my boat to the marina's water, I don't use a pressure regulator but many do. I'd prefer to save pump hours for when I'm actually sailing or anchored, and replacing my pump helped with the noise like others have noted above. I've actually had the experience of coming back to the boat with a hose connection broken and the boat filling up, luckily I wasn't away that long. Now I turn the water off when I leave. Every. Single. Time. I also found every water connection on the boat, tightened the hose clamps, added a clamp for those that weren't already doubled up, and inpect them more regularly now. 

I haven't had the stale water issue that others have reported above, but I cycle through my tanks fairly often too. 

Cheers, hope that helps.


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## JimMcGee (Jun 23, 2005)

golfpcb said:


> When you are cruising and in a marina with access to dockside water do you usually or always hook up? With dockside water your onboard pumps don't operate and make a lot of noise -mine do make lots of noise.


I'd replace the pump. Figure $70-$80 for a new pump. You can usually pick up the same water pumps for a bit less at an RV dealer.


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## JimMcGee (Jun 23, 2005)

*Dockside Water Done Right*

One of the first projects I did on our boat was to add dockside water and cable TV hookups as you'd find on a new boat. For us the boat is also a second home so it's nice to have the comforts of home. The links included here are for Defender and Home Depot, but you can buy these parts at any marine and most RV stores and home centers. Prices are usually a bit less at RV dealers.

I've used this setup in several marinas now without problems. I've found water pressure that varies from low to scary high.* If you're going to set your boat up for dockside water you MUST install a good pressure regulator*.

From what I've read 35 PSI is the safe number for boat systems. 45 PSI can supposedly cause problems for some boats, so I went with the safer 35 PSI fitting and have had no issues. It's also important that the inlet have a backflow preventer to protect the marina's water system from any contaminants that may be present in your boat's water system.

I used this Jabsco water pressure regulator (link below); drilling a 1½ inch access hole through my transom for the installation with a hole saw. Make sure you seal any exposed plywood edges in the transom. If you're also planning to do a cable TV jack as I did make sure you locate the cable inlet above the water inlet as the quick-disconnect will drip.

From the inlet run ½" reinforced hose rated for drinking water to your onboard water pump. Splice into the water line on the outlet side of the pump with a T-fitting. Install a check valve between the pressurized water inlet and the pump to prevent pressurized water from damaging the pump. Use barbed fittings, properly clamped and use only dish soap as a lubricant for installing hoses on fittings. Never use petroleum based lubricants for drinking water connections.

From the dock to the boat I use an in-line charcoal water filter screwed into the hose bib on the dock into a 2-way splitter. One side goes to my wash down hose (prevents hard water spots on glass after wash downs); the other side goes to a white RV/Marine hose rated for use with drinking water. At the boat side is an in-line shutoff and a quick disconnect that makes it easy to hook & unhook when leaving the dock. It only takes a few minutes to set this up at a new marina if cruising. Make sure to use a hose rated for drinking water. Garden hoses manufactured in China can contain some nasty chemicals.

*Using the System*This setup will give you clean, good tasting water at the dock. It will also eliminate hard water issues, sulfur smells and bacteria.

When we get to the boat I turn on the water at the hose bib. If we're leaving for dinner or running errands I'll just kill the water pressure at the y-valve. When we're leaving on Sunday night I'll shut the water off, then go back aboard and bleed off the line pressure by running water in the galley sink for a minute.

Leaving the dockside water on while you're away could sink your boat if a hose breaks. The odds of this happening are low but shutting off the water while you're away is a reasonable precaution.

Your onboard system while away from the dock functions as normal. Because we don't go through the water in our tanks as fast I add a bit of chlorine when we top off our tanks and make a point of draining them occasionally and refilling with fresh water.

Regulator $30.99

Quick Dis-Connect $3.94

Y-Valve $8.97

In-Line Shutoff $5.97

Marine/RV Water Hose 2 @ $13.97

Shurflo In-Line Water Filter $35


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