bilge pump Died - I need comments

[tphinney]

So I was doing some maintenance on the boat today and tried to run the bilge pump to get some water out and it turns out to be DOA.

it's a Rule 1100 GPH.

So here's my questions.

1. Since it failed should i upgrade to a higher capacity pump? not that the existing one didn't work, I just remember somewhere in the threads that this might be a good Ideal.

2. the current placement of the pump is right under the front f the motor. not the greatest placement do to the fact that their is a dip forward of the engine which always holds rain water. I was thinking of placing the new unit in the dip which would put it at the lowest point in the bilge. If i did this what would I need to place it there. (charting untest waters for me here).

inputs, comments, directions appreacheated.

 

[Four Suns]

Why do you think it is DOA? Did you just use the float to turn it on and it didn't run?

 

[SeaRide]

The reason the bilge pump is mounted on a pedestal is because most boat owners do not vacuum, clean and wax the bilge like some CSR members . So, the pump is mounted on the pedestal in order to prevent the bilge pump from picking up debris. Assuming you don't have a blown fuse, some other electrical problem or gunked up float, I would simply mount the new pump in the stock position.

 

[tphinney]

I manaully ran the bilge pump, the light comes on at the dash and i hear the click that I normally hear right befor the bilge pump kicks in and starts puming, but no pumping.

I traced the wires back from the pump to the butt connectors in the bilge which connected it to the float switch. I disconnected it, toke it to the garage and touched the leads to my 12v dingy battery...Nothing. pretty sure it's DOA.

Not sure why it died cause it ran fine about 2 weeks ago.

 

[boatmailster]

you can upgrade do bigger model, but remember about hose size and fuse. You don't want to put a new pump what uses more than 10A

 

[fwebster]

The pedestal as you call it doesn't have anything to do with debris in the bilge. The Rule pumps all have a grate to prevent the ingestion of stuff large enough to bind the impeller of the pump.

The pedestal........if we are talking about the same thing......is really a piece of treated wood or marine plywood that is glassed to the hull before the bilge area is gelcoated. It is put there to mount the bilge pumps and float switches since they require some method of attachment to the hull. Screws cannot be installed in the hull, but they can be screwed into the plywoood placed there for that purpose.

If it were me, I go get an exact replacement since it saves replacing the mounting. Why did it fail........who knows? I have seen new ones fail and others last 20 years.

 

[tphinney]

Thanks guys;

I gues I'll go with original replacement in the factory location and possibly add a bilge absorber to soak up the extra muck that ends up in the very bottom of the bilge.

thanks guys.

 

[SeaRide]

Yep we are talking about the same thing. However, a side benefit, at least for my neighbor's Cobalt is that the pedestal also keeps the pump above the debris/gunk field. As he has now accumulated almost enough grime to be flush with the forward section of the pedestal. FYI, I replaced mine a couple of years ago with the same unit in the same postion as the outlet cracked at the base of the pump.

 

[fwebster]

Muck that accumulates in the bilge and a bilge absorber?...........the solution to that problem is soap, water and a scrub brush followed by diligent use of a shop-vac.

Here's a crude analogy: You don't wear a diaper and carry around a slop bucket when you get a virus do you. No, you go to the doctor and get treatment for the cause. It would be my suggestion to address the problem; don't treat the symptom....... find the source of the gunk, fix the leak, clean out the bilge, stop the rain water, etc.

 

[Four Suns]

Hmm... maybe we need an anti-virus product for boats... yeah... let's put Peter Norton's picture on it!!! I LIKE IT!

 

[SeaRide]

Frank,

My comments regarding the gunk accumulation, pedestal and the Cobalt were meant to be taken tongue in cheek. I like your analogy though. This boat is slightly newer than mine and could use a months spa treatment from Dr. Jeremy. This boat was last cleaned when it left Neodesha, KS. The boat sits in the water uncovered for the most part and I have yet to see the owner ever apply an ounce of TLC to her. Also, I'm the one who broke bilge pump from the scrub brush hitting base of the outlet one time too many. So maybe my neighbor has the right idea????...........Based on the amount of rain we received over the last couple of days, I would have to guess that his bilge pump is working.

 

[fwebster]

I have to agree with you on the condition of some boats. Their owners think they write the check and the work is over. Some $1.0mil Sea Rays in our marina are so bad that the mechanics will not work on them until they get the yard guys to wash out the bilge.

Go figure.............?

 

[tphinney]

On some boats even when you tend to them they still get water in the bilge. on the pre-2006 240DA's the bilge vents have a realy bad design (especially for Florida Summer's). the rain pour down so hard that even with a complete cockpit cover the water flows in through the bilge vents.

Might have to come up with a mode for these some day to keep the bilge clean and dry.