Some advice on this sump pump please.

[ejbpesca]

Is this sump pump repairable or must the whole unit be replaced? I tried to get the top off it and it seems glued to the box.

Also is this pump's only purpose to pump out the floor drain of the head? I am still looking and can't find a thing that would drain the cabin of my 250 Sundancer Sport Cruiser. I see water down around this sump and no way for it to get to the pump since the box containing it is sealed. Is there at least a drainage somewhere under the cabin that allows water to drain back to the engine bilge for pump out?

In the midst of refurbishing I have a fresh battery connected with most 12v systems working, but the sump, full of water, is not coming on automatically at it should. Should I replace the whole unit or is it possible to force the box open to service components like float switch or the pump?

Thank you,
jb

 

[NorCal Boater]

If it were me i'd just replace the whole unit. thy're only about $130 at West Marine and probably cheaper on line. With a 20 year-old boat i think you're best to start new.

 

[fwebster]

I would fix it............I'd be in a soup line somewhere if I replaced every component on my 20 year old boat that hiccupped !

The top is just a piece of polycarbonate sheet cut to fit over the box. It should be held in place by 6 screws into the wall of t he sump box. It looks like a previous owner has glued the top down with silicone which is a mistake because it prevents you from getting into the sump to clean or service it. You might break the lid trying to remove it, but that would be a good thing since I think the sheet the factory uses is too thin. Mine was 1/4" from the factory; it is now 1/2" thick. The correct seal around the edge is some thin closed cell foam with pressure sensitive adhesive on one side.

The sump box needs to be cleaned out occasionally and with a screwed on lid, that is a quick and easy shore. The pump and float switch inside the box should be just a regular marine bilge pump and float switch. If yours doesn't work, the chances are the butt splices in the wiring supplying the sump box have corroded and are not making contact. Cutting out and replacing the splices is another simple job and might fix your problem for minimal expense......easy and cheap enough that it is certainly worth trying.

 

[bahamabreisus]

Agree, just get a new one, by the time you buy a float switch and pump, you will have spent the same money. It will easier to replace the whole assembly also.

 

[ejbpesca]

Thank you very much. I will go ahead and force it open to check it out. I am confused as to why it is in a box that keeps it from pumping out cabin water. Seems it would be better to have it mounted outside the box. ??? What am I missing here? I can see that the box is needed to activate the float switch (I think) but what about other water around the box? How does that get out of the boat?

 

[ejbpesca]

Thank you very much. I'll pry it open check it all out and replace it if needed. I'll ask in another thread about the water around it.

 

[chpsk8]

I believe that's a shower drain pump. Is there a drain in your bathroom floor?
I have something similar. they get plugged up and need to be cleaned. Mine is more than just dirty, it needs to be replaced but I can't get at the wires to cut them.

 

[ejbpesca]

I believe that's a shower drain pump. Is there a drain in your bathroom floor?
I have something similar. they get plugged up and need to be cleaned. Mine is more than just dirty, it needs to be replaced but I can't get at the wires to cut them.

Yes..the sump pump is sealed except for an opening connected to a tube that goes to the head floor..(sink/head/shower). Box is full of water, not coming on and by manual it is switchless..always one except for float switch. There is also water around the sealed box. I can get a new sump pump and install it but how does the water around it get out of the boat? Does it drain back to the engine bilge say when planing out?

 

[chpsk8]

Water in the cabin should flow around it and into the back of the boat to be pumped out with the bilge pump. I would take the boat out and drive it with the nose up so it flows back and see if that happens.
I would also take a sponge and clean that area out really good. you'd be surprised how cleaning that out makes the cabin smell better.

 

[northern]

We have a similar one for the shower. It gets gummed up with soap scum. I take a hose and wash it from the shower with hot hot water. This cleans the drain line out. Some time I take the plastic top off the sump and spray it with hot water. This cleans 100% of the soap scum off and the pump is good until the soap scum builds up again.

 

[RollerCoastr]

I don't agree with replacing an entire sump because one of the components isn't working, unless it's an Attwood. The switch was a complete POS from Day 1. So was the check valve, and the pump itself wasn't much better.

That switch has a design flaw: it builds a tolerance so a higher and higher level of water is necessary to trigger it, until the point that it requires a hand to lift it up and make it pump. Pretty cool really. Most float switches fail when they're dirty and must be cleaned so they don't stick. Attwood's was suicidal.

The check valve is a nickle-sized rubber disk flapper. It warped almost immediately after being installed.

The pump was the most robust part, but when the float decides to stick ON instead of off, the pump would overheat in short order, resulting in a warm steamy Sump Pump Soup.

Yank that thing, smash it in your yard "Office Space style" and replace it. From that point forward, you can maintain the new box with regular cleanings and replacing components within as-needed.

 

[bc225]

Most of the sump pump systems installed on today’s boats are prone to failure. The float switch if is the mechanical type either gets hang up with sludge, or just plain fails. I know I have replaced three of these in four years. The pump is submersed in water all the time and it gets stuck with debris. I have a 460 Sundancer and it has 8 inlets to a sump. The a/c is three of those inlets, 1 from the galley sink and 4 from the head sinks and head showers because this vessel has two heads. I decided to upgrade this sump system to a whale product. Defender carries it Whale part number GW810 and you attach a pump to the outside of the product and the switch is electronic, I special ordered the larger unit for my sump system Whale part number GW1610 and will install a gulper 320 pump. It will cost more than what was installed but my time is more valuable than constantly fixing and cleaning the failure prone sump system. The pump which is external to the tank will not be in water, imagine that what a brilliant idea from this manufacture. Research the Whale product.

 

[bahamabreisus]

Here is Whales smaller one http://www.defender.com/product3.jsp?path=-1|51|2234226|2234234&id=2363988

 

[ejbpesca]

Water in the cabin should flow around it and into the back of the boat to be pumped out with the bilge pump. I would take the boat out and drive it with the nose up so it flows back and see if that happens.
I would also take a sponge and clean that area out really good. you'd be surprised how cleaning that out makes the cabin smell better.

That's what I would have thought..flow to the back of boat, but others say no..cabin water must be removed by bailing or a wet vac. Other posts have told me there is no path the the back for water for the purpose of not letting fumes to come forward on that same path from the engine. I have looked and looked and cannot find a hole, drain, anything from cabin to the aft bilge. 10/4 on sponge..doing that before I posted...but are you sure a sport cruiser's cabin flows back to the engine compartment?

 

[DaveOB]

On my 2003 240 Sundancer the pump failed, interior compartment had about one inch of water. There is no way out for that excess water. I pumped out using manual pump, let rest of it air dry with the help of a little fan, and ultimately cleaned box and screen by hand and replace pump with switch. Cost about $30 at West Marine, works like a charm no more issues.