my tsunami pump cigarette lighter adapter broke

[Scottintexas]

I was about to enjoy a few hours of surfing with my daughter and couldn't figure out why the pump wouldn't work to fill the ballast bags. After checking all the fuses and even taking the adapter apart (thinking there was a fuse inside, there wasn't) I put it back together and noticed the top was missing. I looked around in the boat and in the garage when I returned home but I don't think I'm going to find it.

Will it be easier just to go to radio shack and by new one and splice it in or should I see about trying to find a replacement?

 

[Julian]

I'd just hit Radio Shack!

 

[RiverRat]

Agree with @Julian, good luck finding one that's still open!

 

[tdonoughue]

Yes, time for a new one. The new one is probably held together with a screw. You undo that, cut the wire, split the two parts of the wire, and figure where they fit in the new one. Not really a splice--you attach the wires right to the new one. If you are lucky, there are screws there to screw your wires to and you don't even need to break out your soldering iron.

(and, before a host of people jump on me about how it would be better soldered--yes, it would be. but sometimes good enough is good enough, and on an air pump, I think the ease outweighs it getting lose and needing to tighten it. IMHO.)

 

[Murf'n'surf]

I would get alligator clips put on in order to clip it directly onto the battery.

 

[tdonoughue]

Another perfectly good option.

I bought a new pump with the alligator clips (too many amps for a cig outlet), clipped those off and hardwired it to the battery (actually to the fuse block after the battery--but you get the idea). Then I got rid of the cig outlet in favor of a dual USB. Worked out very well for me.

 

[jetboater4life]

Mine is starting to rust after three seasons. I might need to soak it in some Naval Jelly rust remover. I burnt my finger on it once as it gets red hot.

 

[tdonoughue]

I would replace it. Conductivity of the restored metal is suspect, plus I have never found it to be strong enough. Stuff always crumbled quickly on me.

Don't mess with it. Replace it with the $3 part.

 

[Gym]

@Scottintexas you may want to take a peak inside the last place you plugged this in to see if the adapter end is inside. I've had that happen with an electric bike pump.

 

[jcyamaharider]

My route for replacing that end is going to be a little more expensive this year. We have 2 bags that I have to fill with my tsunami pump and it gets old fast. I am putting in 2 more Jacobs pumps and upgrading all of my line to 1" line. I am also going to have a quick fill fitting where my light pole used to go and have a hose that will attach right there for my other 1 bag. The other bag I am getting a custom bag for the port side that will fill the entire compartment so I do not have to have a bag on the seat there. All controlled by my Bluetooth ballast system on my phone!! Should be a fun project.

 

[Scottintexas]

Thanks for the answers. Wakemakers said it drew less than 5amps so I bought a new one at radio shack today and it was an easy switch out.

 

[SamCF]

You know the supercharged engines have an extra cooling line going to the intercooler. You have a 3 way splitter where the flush hose plugs in, they have a 4 way splitter. You could swap out to the 4 way splitter on both engines and have 2 hoses to run to your ballast.

Or tap the strainer plate with a 1/2" npt and run 3/4" hose to your bags. At idle, it puts out more water than my 500 gph bilge pump. This is for my intercooler, but if I ever add balast, this is what will be used to fill it.

I can't believe Yamaha didn't think of that...

 

[Scottintexas]

That's a great idea to fill a bag but if it was under the seat/permanent install how would you drain it? you'd still have to add a exit valve and drain hole wouldn't you?

that intercooler mod was great thinking, thanks for posting about it,

 

[SamCF]

I guess so. I've never used balast bags, so I really don't know how they work. I think it would be pretty cool to be able to fill bags while driving. I'm sure it would require some kind of pressure regulator and valve system. I bet if someone designed something it would be a big seller.

 

[Julian]

Our boats have 2 huge water pumps on the back....why not have a valve to tap into a high flow from the pumps? Put in a 6" diverter pipe and hard tanks with big overflows and fill the ballast in 3 seconds?

 

[tdonoughue]

...and then you could use the same jets with a venturi to suck the water out from the bottom of those tanks.

 

[Scottintexas]

@jetboater4life

The new plug works great, easy job to switch and the new one doesn't get hot at all, I burnt my finger on the original one also,

 

[jetboater4life]

Good to know. I might have to switch out mine next spring.

 

[jetboater4life]

Our boats have 2 huge water pumps on the back....why not have a valve to tap into a high flow from the pumps? Put in a 6" diverter pipe and hard tanks with big overflows and fill the ballast in 3 seconds?

Didn't @trace do this?

 

[Julian]

Didn't @trace do this?

Yup...and I did too...but it was something you had to insert and remove....imagine if it was a servo controlled diverter. Also we narrowed it down to a 1" hose.....imagine leaving a 3-4" pipe to hard tanks! Now that would be an unbeatable ballast fill pump!!!