Undecided as to closing off the bilge

[Fire99]

This is very interesting. I'm no hull design engineer but everything I read tells me partitioned watertight compartments is the way forward. Even with sailing boats I recently watched a video on rudder stock failure and one boat with open bilges sank. The other with the rudder stock in a watertight area was able to make temporary steering and made it back to port.
I'd be interested in any meritorious reasons for open bilges..

 

[Bodach na mara]

I can think of only one reason. Any water in the bilges cannot make its way to the bilge pump intake. I had this problem last year when pipes in the heads compartment froze and pushed off the end fittings. It took me a while to find out where the leak was by which time the part of the bilges under the heads was filled with water. It also took a longer time to empty it than if the water could have run to the pump intake.

However in normal use the bilges are dry and a duster is of more use than the pump.

 

[Refueler]

As I said the bilge depth is shallow and what the bilge pump cannot drain - that is enough to shoot along fwd ..

The pump is sited under the front part of engine ahead of the main cross beam carrying front engine mounts. No point putting it further back as that beam is like a baffle and the hull there has a slight uplift - so when boat is idle alongside - pump is actually in deepest bilge.