Main Bilge Pump General Forum Forums

Hi White Falcon and Scott,

Good to see another Ketch owner on the site.

Here is a link to a previous post: http://downeasteryachts.com/fo.....lge-access

I removed my original bilge pump a few years back and it was nearly impossible to reach. 

I was able to get access via the cupboard under the galley sinks. It is really tight but I was able to fit half my torsoe down there ( my wife held my legs) and with the help of a knife tapped to a stick get under the  plastic board that the pump was attached to. The old plastic/perspex pulled out of the rusted screws that attached it to the hull then I just pulled on the pipe work and wires, cut some of it to enable me to remove the pump out under the sinks and the rest from the engine room. Beware of low oxygen levels due to poor air circulation and possible fuel/oil etc in the bilge area. Treat it the same as any other confined space job.

It looked to me like it was an original installation before the cabin floor went on. I replaced it with the method Scott mentioned (pump on a stick) and also put another on a float switch on the higher part of our bilges which would only kick in if the main bilge was overflowing.

I've also got the original Whale Gusher 10 if the power shuts down.

Good luck, I still get shivers down my spine when I think of how uncomfortable and hard to get that bloody pump was.

Dave

Hey Scott and fellow DE38 owners

My bilge pumping system is in need of maintenance and probably upgrading and I have found this thread to be very helpful.  Still, I have a number of fundamental questions such as the number of pumps, the pumping capacity of the pumps and the plumbing that goes with them.

I have found a few articles, most of which recommend (for a 40' boat) having two or even three pumps with capacities of up to 3700 gph!   Then there is the question of tube sizes and types, check valves and anti siphon loops!   I'd appreciate having some real-world experience feed back from DE38 owners on these points.

My setup is like Scott's with a Jabsco diaphragm pump (500 gph?) on the bulkhead aft of the engine and batteries with a Rule-type float switch on a board which goes down into the much discussed well next to the galley.  My float switch seems to be dodgy so I intend to replace it with the solid state Johnson switch.  With no moving parts this seems ideal, but is it reliable in the long run?   I will also add a coarse strainer on the inlet hose.   Should I have a check valve or loop in the discharge line? 

Those will be my first steps, but it seems highly recommended to have at least one back up pump.  My thought is to get a pump (probably 2000 gph) with automatic float switch built in and place it in the aforementioned well (hopefully mounted on the same board as the float switch). I would run the discharge line (how big? check valve?  anti siphon loop?) under the engine and tie into the existing discharge line from the Jabsco pump and out the existing through-hull in the transom. I might have to enlarge that hole but would rather do that than put a second hole in the transom.  

As you others have done, I should clean out the bilge itself and appreciate the comments already made, but am not too happy about discharging soapy, oily water into my marina's water.  I guess I could rig up a bucket under the discharge fitting to capture this gunk. Any thoughts on that side of the operation? 

Thanks in advance to any who can help with these basic issues.

Fair winds

Thanks, Scott.

Understood, but how would you keep the lowest pump in place?  On the stick?

I was thinking to use the Jabsco as the primary pump, for day to day drips, but maybe the filter box is too large for that.  Also it needs to be held in place.

In my plan the larger pump would be higher on the stick, where you would have the third pump. 

I am thinking that this upper pump should be about 2000 gph with a separate switch, probably the solid state variety.

Cheers

Regress Report 1..

One step forward and two steps backward!

I made the stick and platform for the new pump and worked out the wiring.  In the end I just left the Manual/Off/Auto panel alone and used the existing wires to the new pump and new float (solid state) switch.  Had a few issues with the length of the stick (not long enough) and the platform (too long) but that's easy to fix.

Got the pump in the bilge pit and wired up....It ran but nothing came out of the exit port.  I guess its an air lock in the long tube going from the bilge through the engine room and out the transom.  (by the way...I did test the pump in a bucket of water to confirm that the pump and float switch work properly)

Now planning to put a new hose run more carefully to go continuously up hill and hope that works.

Also wondering (and here is the question for you experts) why not run the exit hose to the drain from the sink in the galley?  Yes, that goes through a through-hull fitting with shut off valve, but I generally leave that open.  I'll try the new hose out to the transom first as I know that is preferred (as long as it works).

Thanks for listening.

Thanks, Scott.

Yeah, I concluded that connecting to any drain would be unwise.

I'll keep the existing port in the transom as long as that works.  (next to the engine exhaust).  

I got new hose which I;ll try to run upwards all the way to avoid air traps.

Want to get the Jabsco diaphragm pump serviced as well.  I could place the switch for that one higher in the bilge to act as backup.

Eventually I'll get there and then get back to other (planned) tasks.

Fair winds.

Bob

Thanks, Scott

Got it.  As I thought.  I'll tear it apart and see what is wrong.  Must have buggered the diaphragm when it ran dry.  Plus old age.   Stay tuned.