Flow meter to indicate water usage

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1

Posted by michel.capel (michel.capel@…>)

I want to have an indication of how much water I have left in my
tanks without installing floaters and wires and stickers and things
like that. On my previous boat I had a vertical transparent hose
plumbed in the water hoses. Worked fine for a rough indication. I
can’t construct this on the new boat because I have two tanks on
different heights, so I thought of something like the water flow
meters we have in our homes. Only, the domestic water meters cannot
be reset to zero, which I will need to do on board after filling the
tanks. an alternative woould be to jot down the numbers after each
tank fill.

A flow meter als can give you good information about your water
consumption habits.

Is there somebody enough at home in the flow meter business to
advise my where to look for a simple, mechanic flow meter that does
not indicate flow speed but flow quantity and which can be reset to
0 just like the odometer in the car?

Thanks!

Michel

2

Posted by katorpus (jrb@…>)

Michel

If you’re undertaking a passage (or extended stay at a remote
anchorage) on which water consumption will become a concern, consider
the “pure analog” approach.

  1. Get a couple of “drinking water” jugs (various sizes are available)

  2. Shut off the water supply to everything that’s supplied with fresh
    water on the boat

  3. Use the water from the jugs for cooking, drinking, rinsing the
    dishes (washed initially in salt water) and filling the solar shower
    bag (if your water budget allows this)

  4. Log the “fills” of the jugs from the main tanks. You will be
    filling the jug only when empty, and it will be an easy task to
    subtract a known quantity of water (into the jug) from the known
    quantity that you started with (in the full tank).

A positive shutoff device (valve) at the point in your system closest
to the tank will give you the added peace of mind that comes with
knowing that a failure in your plumbing system won’t drain your water
tank(s).

This has the added advantage of providing you with additional water
to the extent of the capacity of the jugs (which you will presumably
fill before embarking from a water source).

It also allows you to closely monitor your progress (through the day
or days) against your “water budget”.

— In FreedomOwnersGroup@yahoogroups.com, “michel.capel”
<michel.capel@…> wrote:

I want to have an indication of how much water I have left in my
tanks without installing floaters and wires and stickers and things
like that. On my previous boat I had a vertical transparent hose
plumbed in the water hoses. Worked fine for a rough indication. I
can’t construct this on the new boat because I have two tanks on
different heights, so I thought of something like the water flow
meters we have in our homes. Only, the domestic water meters cannot
be reset to zero, which I will need to do on board after filling
the
tanks. an alternative woould be to jot down the numbers after each
tank fill.

A flow meter als can give you good information about your water
consumption habits.

Is there somebody enough at home in the flow meter business to
advise my where to look for a simple, mechanic flow meter that does
not indicate flow speed but flow quantity and which can be reset to
0 just like the odometer in the car?

Thanks!

Michel

3

Posted by michel.capel (michel.capel@…>)

Thanks Katorpus, for your simple and effective solution. However my
problems starts after filling the tanks: I don’t know how much is in
it. And it’s not so much that I want to restrict consumption, I want
to know when I have to get back in port to load water.

— In FreedomOwnersGroup@yahoogroups.com, “katorpus” <jrb@…>
wrote:

Michel

If you’re undertaking a passage (or extended stay at a remote
anchorage) on which water consumption will become a concern,
consider
the “pure analog” approach.

  1. Get a couple of “drinking water” jugs (various sizes are
    available)

  2. Shut off the water supply to everything that’s supplied with
    fresh
    water on the boat

  3. Use the water from the jugs for cooking, drinking, rinsing the
    dishes (washed initially in salt water) and filling the solar
    shower
    bag (if your water budget allows this)

  4. Log the “fills” of the jugs from the main tanks. You will be
    filling the jug only when empty, and it will be an easy task to
    subtract a known quantity of water (into the jug) from the known
    quantity that you started with (in the full tank).

A positive shutoff device (valve) at the point in your system
closest
to the tank will give you the added peace of mind that comes with
knowing that a failure in your plumbing system won’t drain your
water
tank(s).

This has the added advantage of providing you with additional
water
to the extent of the capacity of the jugs (which you will
presumably
fill before embarking from a water source).

It also allows you to closely monitor your progress (through the
day
or days) against your “water budget”.

— In FreedomOwnersGroup@yahoogroups.com, “michel.capel”
<michel.capel@> wrote:

I want to have an indication of how much water I have left in my
tanks without installing floaters and wires and stickers and
things
like that. On my previous boat I had a vertical transparent hose
plumbed in the water hoses. Worked fine for a rough indication.
I
can’t construct this on the new boat because I have two tanks on
different heights, so I thought of something like the water flow
meters we have in our homes. Only, the domestic water meters
cannot
be reset to zero, which I will need to do on board after filling
the
tanks. an alternative woould be to jot down the numbers after
each
tank fill.

A flow meter als can give you good information about your water
consumption habits.

Is there somebody enough at home in the flow meter business to
advise my where to look for a simple, mechanic flow meter that
does
not indicate flow speed but flow quantity and which can be reset
to
0 just like the odometer in the car?

Thanks!

Michel