Ramfill gates stuck open?

[NWextreme 2]

So for the first time with my new FI23 when I pulled the boat out of the water I put it in tailor mode and opened the ramfill gates.  I drove home and then tried to close them.  The computer doesn’t seem to respond.  I still show a green bar under (gates open) is that always lit up or are my gates in fact stuck open.  Going on a week long camping trip real soon and don’t want to get there w my gates stuck open.  Not sure if that’s just what the computer is showing and they are closed or?!

[InfinitySurf 302]

9 hours ago, NWextreme said:

So for the first time with my new FI23 when I pulled the boat out of the water I put it in tailor mode and opened the ramfill gates.  I drove home and then tried to close them.  The computer doesn’t seem to respond.  I still show a green bar under (gates open) is that always lit up or are my gates in fact stuck open.  Going on a week long camping trip real soon and don’t want to get there w my gates stuck open.  Not sure if that’s just what the computer is showing and they are closed or?!

You can look in there to see if they are closed or open.

FYI....on my 2014 SV244, I also always open my gates using the trailer mode when I put boat on the trailer and then shut off all power. HOWEVER.....the moment you power up the boat next time, it will automatically cycle my Ramfill gates and close them as well as cycle my CATS system. The trailer mode screen will STILL show that my gates are open, when they are in fact closed cause system auto closed them when I powered up (guessing this is so you do not back boat down at ramp and leave the gates open by mistake, which I have done multiple times, lol). Anyway....even tho the trailer mode still shows them "open", what I do its hit "close gates"......then "open gates" (you will hear them cycle open).

I am not sure why it does that, but it does it on my boat. If trailer mode still shows them "open" cause it auto closed them when you powered up the boat, if you hit the "close gates"....it will not respond like you said cause they are already closed.

Guessing you are fine, use a flashlight to look up rear of boat gates (or crawl under boat to look at fill gates) to confirm if they are open or closed and just use the trailer mode to manually cycle them as needed (with the Valterra valves you can also look into engine compartment and if opened, you will see the plunger is extended, if closed the plunger will be fully retracted). Worst case if what I said above does not work....you could disconnect the batteries for like 10mins to reset the system (zip ties all your battery wires together so you do not misplace any or miss any). After 10mins, then reconnect everything (make SURE your battery switch is turned to "off" before you unhook/hook up battery cables). If you end up having to do this to reset the system, I would ask the dealer to re-flash your software before you take that trip, likely that is the only issue, if there is any issue at all.

Congrats, FI is sweet boat!

Edited June 26, 2018 by InfinitySurf

[DarksideR 1,679]

What Infinity said... Plus, I always just hit open and wait a second or two, then hit close. I am sure there is nothing wrong with your gates.

That being said... I have an issue with my gates, so I'm going to hijack this thread! A few weeks ago, my fill gates both jammed up when I took in out of trailer mode. Both of the metal T handles snapped off. I took the valves out to check them out and see if I could maybe lubricate them. They were both in decent condition, but the rubber gaskets between the valve and the piping were worn/torn. So I assumed this was causing some binding. After reassembly, they worked okay, but not great. But then the next time out, they were incredibly hard to open again. Then to top it all off, just two days ago, the starboard drain valve failed on me in a different way. The handle and rod pulled right out of the valve assembly! So I was stuck with full ramfill tanks going back to the dock and onto my boat trailer! Super fun.

If you want a laugh, go check out my instagram page @thatfnbastrd_steve to see me pumping the brakes on my truck and ejecting 5 gallons of water out the side vent holes at passing cars!

Anyone else have this issue?

Does anyone lubricate their vlaves? With what?

[InfinitySurf 302]

25 minutes ago, DarksideR said:

What Infinity said... Plus, I always just hit open and wait a second or two, then hit close. I am sure there is nothing wrong with your gates.

That being said... I have an issue with my gates, so I'm going to hijack this thread! A few weeks ago, my fill gates both jammed up when I took in out of trailer mode. Both of the metal T handles snapped off. I took the valves out to check them out and see if I could maybe lubricate them. They were both in decent condition, but the rubber gaskets between the valve and the piping were worn/torn. So I assumed this was causing some binding. After reassembly, they worked okay, but not great. But then the next time out, they were incredibly hard to open again. Then to top it all off, just two days ago, the starboard drain valve failed on me in a different way. The handle and rod pulled right out of the valve assembly! So I was stuck with full ramfill tanks going back to the dock and onto my boat trailer! Super fun.

If you want a laugh, go check out my instagram page @thatfnbastrd_steve to see me pumping the brakes on my truck and ejecting 5 gallons of water out the side vent holes at passing cars!

Anyone else have this issue?

Does anyone lubricate their vlaves? With what?

I lubricate my valves religiously....it must help cause I still have the original Ramfill valves on my 2014 and they work excellent. I do have replacement Valterra valves in case that changes, just figured why go thru that hassle when my Ramfill gates have been working perfect.

First, like stated above....when I am not in the water, I ALWAYS leave my gates open. Dont remember where I read it, but early on I had heard that leaving them open keeps the seals in better shape cause they are not as prone to drying out or deforming cause they are not exposed (dont know how much truth there is too that, but it has worked for me).

On the lube...Basically every 2-3 outing. First I will use the trailer mode to close my gates and then crawl under the boat and spray the gates well from underneath....then go to rear and do the same thing. Then I jump in boat and cycle the gates closed/open, 4-5 times and end with leaving them open which I have to assume helps keep them lubricated till I use the boat next.

I have used a couple things for lube....for a while I used a white lithium grease and something else that I cannot remember the name of, however I did not like that it was petrolum based and geared toward metal parts so I figured it was probably not great for something with plastic or rubber and in colder weather, the grease probably will not lubricate as well and besides keeping the valves working well, I want to make sure the motor works as little as possible. Was in Wal-Mart one day and found this stuff called: WD-40 "Specialist" Stay and Spray...Gel Lubricant. Not only is there zero drip, but it specifically states that its safe for plastic and rubber and so far, its by far my favorite. There has also been a few times where i will open the valves and spray some in there and then close them since I figure that also lubricates the inside. I know I could remove the valve and do it that way, but this method has been working well for me for 2 years now so I have stuck to it.

Hopefully this info helps your situation. but if the rubber gaskets are worn/torn, you will probably want to replace them over the winter. My guess is that you could just order the parts you need without replacing the entire assembly, I am not sure of that, just guessing you can buy them direct. Got my Valterra valves as warranty replacement, but like mentioned, I am gonna keep them in the boxes till I need them cause my Drainmasters give out or feel like taking on the project myself since I know there will be some retro-fitting to do, along with changing the wire connectors.

[DarksideR 1,679]

Thanks infinity!! I used to religiously spray my old valves on my fx22 with a graphite spray. But I’ve never had any issues with my new boat until now. And as far as the drain gate goes, it’s now too late. Lol. I will try to find that wd40 you mentioned. 

Thank you very much. 

‘I’ve been talking to Wizard Lake Marine about a new RI237 for a while and I mentioned my issue to them. They are trying to get my valves replaced ASAP, but even more incredible, they may loan me a used RI237 to be able to practice before worlds!  Talk about a great dealer! Why can’t more dealers put their customers needs first? 

[wheels 151]

2 hours ago, DarksideR said:

Thanks infinity!! I used to religiously spray my old valves on my fx22 with a graphite spray. But I’ve never had any issues with my new boat until now. And as far as the drain gate goes, it’s now too late. Lol. I will try to find that wd40 you mentioned. 

Thank you very much. 

‘I’ve been talking to Wizard Lake Marine about a new RI237 for a while and I mentioned my issue to them. They are trying to get my valves replaced ASAP, but even more incredible, they may loan me a used RI237 to be able to practice before worlds!  Talk about a great dealer! Why can’t more dealers put their customers needs first? 

The guys at wizard are great. Tony couldn’t talk you into a x24?

[DarksideR 1,679]

On 2018-08-24 at 1:51 PM, wheels said:

The guys at wizard are great. Tony couldn’t talk you into a x24?

You’d have to be some kind of “touched” individual to go from a Centurion to a Mastercraft ... lol

[carguy79ta 67]

 

21 hours ago, DarksideR said:

You’d have to be some kind of “touched” individual to go from a Centurion to a Mastercraft ... lol

As in "touched in the head"?

[carguy79ta 67]

Wonder if I need to lube my ramfill gates on my 17 257..(??)thinking prolly do..

[h20king 794]

Turn all power off at the battery switch then back on go to trailer mode and cycle the valves and you should be good. My wife put boat into trailer mode then killed power. Next time we launched ballast self filled because gates were open. You can override the boat and put it  in trailer mode while filling bags so it gravity fills like quick fill so to my knowledge they don't automatically cycle closed when you turn on the key. 

Edited September 21, 2018 by h20king

[DarksideR 1,679]

On 9/21/2018 at 6:46 AM, carguy79ta said:

 

As in "touched in the head"?

You got it.

 

[DarksideR 1,679]

On 9/21/2018 at 7:33 AM, h20king said:

Turn all power off at the battery switch then back on go to trailer mode and cycle the valves and you should be good. My wife put boat into trailer mode then killed power. Next time we launched ballast self filled because gates were open. You can override the boat and put it  in trailer mode while filling bags so it gravity fills like quick fill so to my knowledge they don't automatically cycle closed when you turn on the key. 

Close but no cigar... You are correct, what your wife did, I've done dozens of times. There should be a failsafe when you power up the boat that closes the Ramfill gates... I know I have to hit "open" even though they say open already before I can close them in that scenario. I do use that gravity fill trick as well! No need for overfilling the rams to make sure the tanks are full!

On to the current issue of the newly installed valves. H, I did try all of that and more and nothing worked. So I called Fineline to ask for assistance. The guy tells me that the valves must be wired backward from the factory. So he says, " just pull the wires out of the adaptor/plug and flip them "... So I ask, " they'll just push right back into the plug "? He says " yep "... well....... they didn't! So I try to take the plug apart to see if I can McGuyver it. No dice. Go to the auto parts store to get a new one. Plug, pins, and specialty crimping tool comes to well over $100... not doing that! LOL. Then it dons on me that I have 3 broken Valterra valves just sitting there with perfectly good plugs attached! A little snip, crimp, and heat gun later and I'm all good! LOL. All valves working properly now! No more shutting the boat off and running to the back and diving into the engine bay to close the drain valve! Burnt my arm 3 times over the last month! LOL. Worth it though!

[InfinitySurf 302]

Since I always open my valves using the trailer mode when I come off the water....I have dropped the boat back in multiple times.... with gates still open. No big deal if you realize it but the first couple times it took me a bit to figure out what happened since I wasn't going to surf immediately and was trying to figure out why the boat felt sluggish, lol. However, my SV244 WILL automatically close the gates when I turn on the ignition (so assuming the newer models would too). Sometimes I will power up the boat in the garage when I get home and after turning on the key, It will first start the CATS cycle and then almost immediately you will hear the 4 gates closing (does not happen unless you had them open already from using the trailer mode prior to that, so guessing that it must be a safety feature they built in)....my issue is that I drop the trailer/boat into the water, then turn on battery and fire it up so I am ready to release the safety strap and back off the trailer, so I don't power the ignition till the trailer is in the water and why I forget mine sometimes. People that turn on battery and then key so they can start the blower once they are done prepping boat and getting ready to back it down the ramp would be ok, I am just not one of those pe

Just like you, (even tho the system automatically cycles the gates when I turn on the ignition and closes them), the trailer mode screen will still say "gates open"....so if you hit "close", nothing happens cause they are already closed. To sync them, just click open....and then closed and its all good again. 

[MPCLKA 0]

Read this entire thread - not sure I see my exact scenario, so appreciate any insights. Either my right ramfill doesn't seem to drain fully, or fill stays open and picks up water on way home? Not sure which. Right side draining on lift.

Could factory setting be not giving enough time? Ballast display of course reads empty. I have hit override to try to make sure its drained. Issue continues.

Regardless, right side ramfill drains once on lift for at least 5+ minutes.  Seems like a lot of water...

- Likely Operator Error

[volzalum 280]

1 hour ago, MPCLKA said:

Read this entire thread - not sure I see my exact scenario, so appreciate any insights. Either my right ramfill doesn't seem to drain fully, or fill stays open and picks up water on way home? Not sure which. Right side draining on lift.

Could factory setting be not giving enough time? Ballast display of course reads empty. I have hit override to try to make sure its drained. Issue continues.

Regardless, right side ramfill drains once on lift for at least 5+ minutes.  Seems like a lot of water...

- Likely Operator Error

Probably a sticky drain valve, but could be either valves on the right side. Manually operate the valve a few times, and lube up the valves good. There are threads about how to lube them up if you search.