Waste water pump

[srah1953]

Hi all
What's the difference between a waste water pump and a plain bilge pump? I ask because I am interested in installing an electric bilge pump and I'm wondering would a waste water pump manage the crud that gets in the bilge without blocage?
Thanks

 

[VicS]

Hi all
What's the difference between a waste water pump and a plain bilge pump? I ask because I am interested in installing an electric bilge pump and I'm wondering would a waste water pump manage the crud that gets in the bilge without blocage?
Thanks

I think you will find that sink and shower drain pumps ( if that what you mean by waste water pumps) tend to be diaphragm pumps which will include little suction and discharge valves that make them unsuitable for pumping water containing any solid debris. They are therefore protected by a filter on the inlet side. They tend to be of relatively low capacity.

Bilge pumps are more likely to be flexible vane pumps which can handle some solid debris in the water and only require a coarse strainer on the inlet. Bilge pumps are likely to be of larger capacity than sink and shower drain pumps.

A bilge pump may well be the better compromise .

I suggest you have a look at the wide range of pumps featured on the Jabscoshop website and choose the type and capacity most suited to your needs. http://www.jabscoshop.com/

 

[prv]

I'd expect diaphragm pumps to be among the best at handling water with lumps in. After all, what does the famous Lavac head use for a pump? Electric diaphragm pumps are also used for galley sink waste on a few boats, especially in the US where a grey-water sump box pumped out via a single above-waterline through hull is sometimes used to minimise the number of holes in the boat.

Agree that capacity is likely to be lower than, say, a centrifugal pump.

Pete

 

[VicS]

I'd expect diaphragm pumps to be among the best at handling water with lumps in. After all, what does the famous Lavac head use for a pump? Electric diaphragm pumps are also used for galley sink waste on a few boats, especially in the US where a grey-water sump box pumped out via a single above-waterline through hull is sometimes used to minimise the number of holes in the boat.

Agree that capacity is likely to be lower than, say, a centrifugal pump.

Pete

I think you might find a bit of difference between the famous Lavac pump, or any similar manual bilge pump, and the valves in small electric diaphragm pumps.

 

[prv]

I think you might find a bit of difference between the famous Lavac pump, or any similar manual bilge pump, and the valves in small electric diaphragm pumps.

Not in the small electric diaphragm pump I used as a bilge pump on Kindred Spirit. That had the same kind of tricuspid valves as the big heads pumps. I'd expect it to pump more or less anything that would physically fit through, especially if squidgy like greasy bilge sludge.

Pete

 

[colind3782]

It's the same pump on my boat with a complex four-into-one arrangement where, through opening or closing valves, it will pump three different areas of bilge or the shower.