Bilge pumps

[New Boater]

Hi all,

Some good points here thanks.

The Matt sounds like a good idea. Guessing a rolled up yoga matt would work too. Nice and small when rolled up and heavy gauge rubber, easily cut to size too.

Jumping off this thread now before it turns into a “my hole is bigger than your hole” debate.

That sounds wrong on all levels!!!

 

[PaulRainbow]

Hi all,

Some good points here thanks.

The Matt sounds like a good idea. Guessing a rolled up yoga matt would work too. Nice and small when rolled up and heavy gauge rubber, easily cut to size too.

Jumping off this thread now before it turns into a “my hole is bigger than your hole” debate.

That sounds wrong on all levels!!!

A yoga mat is likely to have some buoyancy, which makes it awkward, plus it has a certain amount of rigidity, which isn't good. A suitably sized piece of tarpaulin would be ideal, you could have some eyelets fitted in the corners and ropes already tied to them.

That said, the chances of needing it for a modest sized mobo is virtually nil.

Regarding your bilge pump question, are there not limber holes that allow any water at the front of the boat to pass the aft ? A warning lamp and alarm buzzer are good ideas, you only need to take a wire from the positive wire to the pump and take that to the lamp/buzzer positive, with the negative going to the negative busbar.

 

[Refueler]

I created a water alarm - before eBay / AliExpress became full of them - by using a Smoke Aalrm.

Smoke alarms have a TEST button ... so all you need do is take a twin flex ... connect either side contacts of the button ... other end of flex - bare a bit of each wire and fix so the ends are in the bilge. If water touches the bare wire ends - it is just same as you pressing TEST button ..

But now - you can buy very good water level alarms which are smaller and generally better.

I would want the alarm to sound - not when pump starts - but when water is detected. That way if pump does not work - you still know about the water ..

 

[oldgit]

All a bit old now but still very relevant.
Boats & Yachts: All About Bilge Pumps
The entire website is well worth a peruse on everything boaty especially some of the somewhat critical nature of his surveys all conducted without the threat of losing any advertising revenue, which would certainly not of course be of any concern to any present day publication.
Recently helped to move a boat which had been subject to a survey. On arrival at our destination it was noted that the pump at the bow was not functioning, on investigation the wiring had shorted with no connection due to copper wires having completely melted.
Would have hoped this should have been detected in survey .

"Quote"
I will start here with a word about those little 4" square boxes that companies that make them call bilge pumps. Yep, I'm talking about the Rule 500 and 800 pumps. Only a fool would believe that one of those things could pump 500 gallons per hour; they can't and they don't, not even in a horizontal direction, yet alone vertically. I am absolutely adamant that those things should never be used as a primary bilge pump.

 

[Refueler]

Best pumps to really get the last drop out >>

1.Peristaltic Pumps

2.Another is the type that resemble the Wankel Rotary Engine ...

3.Then you have a true positive displacement type with piston in cylinder ...

4. The diaphragm type such as the Hendersons ..

All the above have better suction capability than the typical vane type Bilge Pump ... but their volume rates are often low.

For thos interested in getting that last bit out the bilge or locker ... or to suck out bottom of the fuel tank .. then for ease of use and if rate is not important - the #1 and #2 pumps really do a good job ... I recently started using the electric Oil Change pump ... which is of the #2 type ... previously I used type #1 ...

 

[aerobat]

Since titanic we learned that bilge pumps can only help with a minor or maximum moderate , controllable leak .

With a major hull rupture or similar your task as a skipper is to save your family , salute when she goes down and sort it out with insurance .