Galley Sink draining into Bilge?

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fluffc

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Hi All,

I am wanting to add a pump to my galley sink drain, primarily because the sink is only just above the waterline and drains quite slowly. Also, want to take the opportunity to add a bilge pump to the middle bilge.

Has anyone any opinions on draining the galley sink into the bilge, and then pumping it out - either with an automatic bilge pump or a hand pump. I assume that I'll need to use a diaphram pump to cope with 'solids'.

The boat is ferro-cement, so not too worried about galley water coming into contact with the hull.

Would I need to somehow seal the bilge to prevent smells, or do people find it stays fairly sweet?

Any thoughts appreciated :-)
 
That is not a good idea, it will smell and get gungey very quickly, and it will be a constant battle to keep it clean and sweet. IMO better to stick with a slow drain, and install bilge pump anyway.
 
Hi,
I wouldn't contemplate draining the sink into the bilge. Either get used to the slow drainage, and I know this can be very irritating, or have the sink drain into an enclosed sump from which you can pump overboard. Attwood and Rule do such systems.
 
Thanks for the comments. Sounds like I need to think through it a bit more.

Are the holding tanks like you get for showers any good in this situation?
 
Maybe a grey water tank? Switchable to bilge pump?
Or bigger bore plumbing/less corners?
Or the waste water pump, with an easy to clean strainer.
 
I have a similar problem in that you can't drain the sink or even leave the seacock open when the boat is heeling to starboard. I believe this is quite common? Are there common solutions to this?
 
We had the same problem. We fitted a Y valve and a biggish hand pump near the sink. Set one way the pump empties the sink. set the other way it is a bilge pump.
 
You'r pulling the leg! It would be 'foul'.
I had a 'whale urchin' under the sink on my Rival to drain the galley sink, it worked fine. Bill.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I have a similar problem in that you can't drain the sink or even leave the seacock open when the boat is heeling to starboard. I believe this is quite common? Are there common solutions to this?

[/ QUOTE ]

Buy a catamaran? /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
I think I'll look to add a pump this season. Will the sink still drain without pumping when to boat is not heeled over? Are there "one way flow" pumps so that the seacock could be left open when boat is heeling and the pump is not running?
 
Are you contemplating an electric pump? Wouldn'd use a leccy pump, the 'whale urchin' works well, no clogging non return incorporated..
 
If you get a simple in line centrifugal pump then the water will flow through it when stopped and you just need to switch it on when you need a boost.

Might have to be carefull what goes down the plug hole!!!!
 
Ok. Some questions here:

What is a one way valve (i'm sorry...)?
Would a manual pump like the Whale Urchin keep water out or do I need a "one way valve" still. Would water flow through it when stopped?

I will most likely go for an electric pump as it's much easier to fit a small switch with pump underneath rather than a manual pump that needs to be operated with a handle.

Looking into centrifugal pumps now...
 
A diaphragm pump doesn't need a check valve (one way valve), it has one already, i.e. the discharge valve. Water will not come back into the pump from the discharge side. However, it is very bad practice to rely on a check valve to keep water out of the boat. Mount a diaphragm type pump above the water line regardless of which tack you are on and discharge it overboard via a seacock that you can close.

Using a centrifugal pump is not a good idea in this application. Its impeller will block with waste rice, potato peelings, etc. etc. It will also need a check valve, that will also block in a similar way.

A grey water holding tank would be a complication almost completely unnecessary on a small boat, and almost unique.
 
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