Hello and Bilge pumps

[Marco1]

Hi there!
Nice forum you have here. Hope to learn a thing or two.

Recently sold my Sea Ray 180 and bought a Steber 2200 Persuader. Kids don't come that often to visit and the ski and biscuit were collecting dust, plus I like the idea to be able to go out in all weather ... well relatively speaking.

The Steber is built in 2005 and has a Nanni 4.50, 50HP (2 L Kubota), a Twin Disc MG360 2:1 gearbox and a 3 blade 17" prop, not sure of pitch.

Bilge pump. The SeaRay had a very large pump wired auto and manual from factory. The Steber has a tiny pump that I would classify as a joke for a 9' tinnie and a manual pump positioned in an awkward place under a seat that would cause me cramps to use it for more than 30 seconds.

So ... I need to upgrade the pump, wiring and hose since the hose is like 1/2" or so and the wiring is most likely undersized. What has me scratching my head is the way it is fixed. The existing pump is screwed to a small wooden board that is (actually was) glued with silicone to the hull. Last time we went to Palm beach, I could hear water splashing under the floor, and when I checked the pump it was, pump and switch, floating happily above water enjoying a day off. The water came from a failed seal in the raw water Jabsco pump. All fixed now.

So how do you anchor a bilge pump? i don't see myself drilling the hull for that purpose. Would I build some sort of base in GRP to screw into?
Ideas welcomed.

I would also like to have some additional safeguard inbuilt, in the form of a second bilge pump I suppose next to the first one ... and then I am thinking in a gear pump to pump out the water that collects in the keel. Steber has a keel that is hollow and runs all the length of the boat and holds a fair bit of water but the bilge pump does not fit in the cavity that is about 40 or 50 mm wide. There is where the manual pump fishes for water, and I could use the hose from the manual pump, T it off to an electric gear pump with a ball valve so that I can switch back to the manual pump if really needed to. The manual pump has a nice 1" hose but is plastiky and feels bendy and soft, probably an ebay special for $9,99 that I could break just by pulling a bit harder than using two fingers.

So after all this long dissertation, if anyone can tell me a good brand for two bilge pump with inbuilt switch that allows for manual override, what size wiring and hose it will require, what sort of good metallic manual pump can I screw in place of the horrible one I have and last but not least, how hard will it be to enlarge the water outlet from puny to one inch and where do I buy the grommet for that purpose?

Your replies are appreciated

[Noelm]

There is a thread on this page about bilge pumps, have a read of that one, there is plenty of pumps that will suit what you want, are you intending installing it yourself.

[gazza2006au]

I have never seen a bilge pump with a 1/2inch outlet they start at 3/4" or 19mm

[blacklab]

Hi Marco, As Noel said , have a read of the bilge post I posted the other day.
Look, so far, I've found all I need on the big sale site, you can buy the whole caboose if you want, from pump, float switch, switch for at the helm, all the wiring, oulet pipe and skin fitting, oh, and fuses, so takes the thinking right out of it. I just messaged a few sellers, told them what I wanted and they bundled a price together for me. I haven't pulled the trigger yet as I'll be away when it would be delivered, so while I'm away,Last Day, I'll just put the order in and it should arrive as I get home. Most of the marine shops have Ebay stores and I've dealt with 2 or 3, I know there Aussie retailers, so I'll normally look there first, They all want your buisnes, so they pretty well get back to you straight away...........hth

Col

[Marco1]

Thank you Blacklab, I looked up Withworth marine and they have a lot of choices. Rule was a brand mentioned in your thread, and I discovered I can have a secondary pump that is a submersible pump only 1.5" in diameter that would fit right at the bottom of the keel cavity. So I can have that in the keel next to the strainer and a big bilge pump at the back. Plus they have some heavy duty hand pumps with through floor connection that would bail out a lot of water with a long demountable handle.
All good fun ... Gazza, come to visit and I show you the first ever 1/2 inch bilge pump. I even found a replacement impeller tucked away as spare by the previous owner. It is 20mm in diameter.

I will have to post some pictures. Next weekend may be.

[gazza2006au]

Marco if u only have 1.5 inches by 400 to 500mm in width for your bilge area that wouldn't hold a great deal of water if u were ever flooded i would plan on just placing a decent bilge on the floor unless there is a drain from under your floor to the bilge area but if its about 40x400mm i doubt u would even be able to look in there to see if it has a drain for under the floor

[NAGG]

Rule & Johnston make good pumps .... & I know that rule have auto float switches & self contained units .

Over the yeas I've seen all manner of mounting methods - usually a bracket off a stringer .

I did mount a second 1000 gph bilge pump up on my old hornet due to the lack of sub floor access - I simply used a marine adhesive & glued a piece of marine grade Aluminium plate to the bottom of the boat & then screwed into the plate ……. all wired in separately & with its own outlet .

chris

[Marco1]

Yes, mounting the bilge pump.
i don't have much choice as to where to mount the pump/s. Existing position is mid cabin in front of the motor. Like I said it was screwed to a tiny piece of wood siliconed to the bottom of the hull and this came off quick smart. The bottom of the bilge is of course the hull itself and there is where you want the pump to be, lowest possible position. To glue an aluminium plate with epoxy seems like a good idea.

As for the submersible pump to go inside the keel cavity ... the keel does not hold much water, true, but all is relative, most likely 50 litres would fit comfortably in there and whilst at rest the lowest point is mid cabin and the water can be pumped out from there, when at sea, the water goes all the way back towards the gland and the fuel tank. No good. At the moment I can dry out the keel with the manual pump with a lot of effort due to position and small size.

An alternative to the skinny submersible would be an electric diaphragm pump located away from the bilge and with a hose all the way down there since it is self priming. Mmm ... will need to chew on that one for a few days.

Has anyone had experience in drilling a bigger hole to have a larger outlet? Would hate to make a mess of that one.

[scottar]

Plenty of boats use a plywood pad glassed onto inside of the bilge. Silicone however on unsealed timber in a wet environment with a bit of oil as well was always going to fail. If the location is close enough to a vertical surface from a bulkhead or stringer you could fabricate a mount that is removable for servicing. If not, I would glass a pad in. Rule pumps are my pick of brands. I would also consider a secondary switch above the height that the pump should keep the water to but below anything critical hooked up to a bilge alarm - lets you know if you pump takes a vacation day. If you have a holesaw arbor that can have the drill removed and a longer rod put in it's place,you can fabricate a plug that fits in the existing hole that is pre drilled to stop movement. Could also do a quick bog job with builders bog so you are effectively starting on a virgin surface.

[gazza2006au]

The self priming pump on the floor with the intake hose going down into the tiny bilge would work but u would need to keep the boat tidy at all times as a single leaf or sinker could block the hose

[Marco1]

The self priming pump on the floor with the intake hose going down into the tiny bilge would work but u would need to keep the boat tidy at all times as a single leaf or sinker could block the hose

Yes, debris are a concern agreed. i would use something like this


And a pump either like this one
https://www.whitworths.com.au/jabsco...ter-puppy-2000



Or like this one: