Livewell question

[bigone5500]

I have a 1988 bass tracker tournament tx-17. The livewell is located just ahead of the rear deck seat. This is the first bass boat I have owned and want to know some basics of using it (livewell). The livewell has a port at the bottom which is plumbed out to the side just behind the drivers seat. It has an aerator which pulls water in from the rear. During normal use of the boat (trolling and fishing), the livewell only has about 3 or 4 inches of water in it. Is there supposed to be some sort of plug or valve in the drain hole? Shouldn't the water be deeper for larger fish? Also, there is a hinged divider that is not centered in the livewell. What is that for? I will post photos in a while from my phone.

Thanks!

 

[gm280]

First of all, welcome aboard. Always great to have a new boater. :welcome:

Okay, without pictures I am only assuming here. Is there any outlet in the side of the live well for a drain? If so, then that is problem the only level it will stay at unless you plug it. If there are no side drain holes in the live well, then your bottom drain needs to be plugged to raise the water level. BUT, if that is how the water level is increased, it also mean that you can over fill it as well... Been there and done that more then once...

If that is the only way to control the water level, then maybe you need a stand pipe. A stand pipe is usually cut to the height you want to maintain the water level and open at the top to allow water to flow out if filled beyond that level. Then when you want to drain the live well, you simply remove the stand pipe and it drains out...

But without pictures that is all I have... I attached a picture of how a stand pipe works.

 

[briangcc]

IF, and its a mighty big IF, your livewell is setup like mine, you *might* have a low drain plug (which needs to be plugged to allow water to fill) and a larger opening up near the top of your livewell to drain off any excess water.

Without a pic, this is all guesswork.

Post a couple more times so that you can add a pic to your post.