Water Pumps

[Tugw]

Went down the boat today to install a new fresh water pump.Removed the old burnt out pump and started to sort out the wiring so it would reach the new one.I found a seperate pair of wires taped back out of the way.i traced this pair back to a pull-switch in the shower that is marked as Bilge/Shower i tested the circuit and sure enough it is energised when the switch is 'made'. Now.my question is this.There is a bilge pump and a fresh water pump.At the moment there is no calorifier fitted(another job for later) could there have been a second bilge pump for the shower or are these wires supposed to connect to the 'normal'bilge pump as well as the 'normal'supply(i cant see how this would work,but im thick)i can confirm that they are a separate pair of both positive and negative so i dont think its a two-switch circuit with a 'hot'wire .Anybody got any ideas?

 

[Cliveshep]

When I re-built my previous boat I made a grp shower tray with a sump and a slatted floor. In the sump I mounted an automatic bilge pump from A.S.A.P. This was the only way to get shower water out of the boat and overside as the shower tray is lower than the waterline by quite a bit. On my current boat the same principle was employed by the builders 40 years ago, except that the pump is controlled manually from the shower. From what I have seen on other posts here some boats have the shower discharging into the bilge and the bilge pump is then used to pump it over side, others pump it into a holding tank. There seem to be as many systems as opinions on which is best!

For what its worth, pumping water collected in a sump overside automatically seems by far the most sensible option, I suspect that allowing it into the bilge first will make the bilge smelly after a bit.

 

[Tugw]

So it could be that there was at one time a third pump to empty the shower.I know that the shower now drians to the main bilge.Ill have to see if i can get some info from the builders.