What kind of shower/tub sump system do you have?

[tallswede]

Well, I have finally got both my heads working! WooHoo! So while I was under the decks running new hoses to the thruhulls, I noticed my fwd. shower sump was full. It has a drain from the shower with what looks like a little plastic box with a bilge pump and float switch. The inlet to the box has what looks like a home made pvc strainer setup to catch hair etc. The fuse holder to the float/pump is bad so an easy fix for that. My aft shower/tub drain looks to have a pex line going straight to a water pump (not bilge pump) with a switch in the shower to turn it on. I don't see a sump/strainer on the pump suction so I'm looking at doing something about that. These do not seem to be very good systems to me. What do ya'll have and how well does it work. Thanks in advance for the input.

Kevin

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. ts. Drain from shower to plastic box (sump). In the box is bilge pump (with, yes, what appears to be a PVC home made screen) with float switch to overboard drain. Can be manual or automatic drain from control panel. Works just fine. Occasionally I have to clean out any scum and or hair but it only takes less than 5 minutes with the shop vac and a bit of spray cleaner.

 

[BruceK]

Those little plastic boxes are a standard chandlery item. My boat has an OEM box with a much larger higher capacity pump and no filter, the box collects all grey water incl the shower.
Where does the water from the aft shower exit to? I hope the manually switched pump has "run dry" ability. Could you fit another "box" there? Maybe the bath needs higher pumping out capacity.

 

[Conrad]

Blue Sky came with a centrally located grey water sump system that is fed by 2 showers and two head sinks. (We actually only use one shower as the other is in a wet head.)

The sump box is an approximately 2 gallon capacity Whale product with a small Rule float switch inside; the float switch activates a Whale Gulper pump that is located about a foot away from the box.

I'm not aware of any screen; the Gulper pump supposedly will pump anything and so far it seems to do exactly that. Rarely does the box need to be cleaned out.

 

[hmason]

We have two showers. Each is drained directly to individual Whale Gulper pumps. As these pumps can run dry, no sump is needed. No screens are used as the pumps can handle everything that normally appears in a shower drain. A float switch is not needed. Turn the pump on when you begin a shower and shut it off when done.

 

[hmason]

Thread drift alarm, but this seems appropriate:

About 6 months ago while shopping at Lowes I discovered "Method Daily Shower Spray Cleaner." After showering you spray the wet shower walls and floor with the cleaner and walk away. The shower(s) have remained spotless with no further cleaning necessary. The boss and I are amazed.

 

[FlyWright]

We have two showers. Each is drained directly to individual Whale Gulper pumps. As these pumps can run dry, no sump is needed. No screens are used as the pumps can handle everything that normally appears in a shower drain. A float switch is not needed. Turn the pump on when you begin a shower and shut it off when done.

Sounds a lot like mine. Don't know the pump brand but a fellow TFer helped me ID and find replacement parts to mine and it's worked perfectly ever since. Love that fact that there's no sump!

 

[rochepoint]

We have two showers. Each is drained directly to individual Whale Gulper pumps. As these pumps can run dry, no sump is needed. No screens are used as the pumps can handle everything that normally appears in a shower drain. A float switch is not needed. Turn the pump on when you begin a shower and shut it off when done.

Exactly what we did years ago. Installed a Gulper inline with the tub/shower drain the straight overboard, decommissioning the old sump box along with the odors and cleaning......

 

[Xsbank]

The diaphragm pump is what I've got too, toggle switch turns it on. We have a dollar store screen in the tub drain but that might be a waste of time.

Shower sumps are great in theory but they stink, they need to be cleaned, the float switch fails etc etc.

 

[Lollygag]

My two heads both drained to the bilge... nasty. I built a grey holding tank and rerouted the drains to the tank. I plumbed a drain line into the bilge drain, powered by a diaphragm pump. Very simple.

 

[Bay Pelican]

Used a Rule shower sump. Rule has a plastic box with a 500 gallon per hour Rule pump and float switch. There is a course plastic screen to collect hair. This lasted for 15 years, with changes to the pump and the float switch at several times.

Now using an Attwood system, very similar with a pump with a built in float switch. So far the Attwood system seems to work. Strange benefit is that the pump is noisier so we can hear that it is working.

Change was necessitated by broken hose barb on the Rule plastic box.

 

[BruceK]

In a previous boat I had the "all in one" box. Now I have the original IG centralized sump with a 1500GPH pump that would suck start a Harley Davidson, no filter, auto/manual bilge pump switch actuated. Both work fine.

 

[KneeDeep]

We have two showers. Each is drained directly to individual Whale Gulper pumps. As these pumps can run dry, no sump is needed. No screens are used as the pumps can handle everything that normally appears in a shower drain. A float switch is not needed. Turn the pump on when you begin a shower and shut it off when done.

Similar set up for us - just installed the Whale Gulper last fall to replace a diaphragm pump with a screen. Simple and effective. Our master shower / tub is really just storage now so it doesn't count. (BTW does anyone really use their tub??)

 

[what_barnacles]

For those with the whale gulper, whats the hose size? On my shower it looks like a 1-1/2" host going to the sump. I'd like to swap the sump for a gulper.

 

[caltexflanc]

Hatteras molded sumps , boxing some sides in, into the hull. We had three on board. Each had a standard Rule 2000 bilge pump and separate switch (which i converted to UltraSafety Pumpswitches). A feature I really like is that the sumps acted as high water overflow bilge pumps as well, thus the bigger than needed pumps. We found that regular doses of distilled white vinegar kept them smell free and virtually scumless. Since we lived on board full time, these things got a real workout. Like a bilge pump, they were automatic or could be run manually.

 

[sdowney717]

I used a dish pan about 6 inches high - open on top plastic tub.

Inside is a 300 GPH bilge pump with builtin float switch. I drilled hole in the side for exit hose and sealed hose to the tub. Pump is automatic and manual with a switch on in the bathroom.

It works, I also have the AC condensate lines emptying into the tub.

Another advantage, it marginally adds a potential 300 gph to the boat pumping capacity. Which might not be worth anything if the bilger water gets that high, a serious leak is happening.

 

[FF]

My shower sump is the bilge.

The amount of oil dumped in the bilge from a cartridge oil filter is still evident 15 years later.

Any soap helps remove the past.

A simple shaped monel screen keeps hair out of the RULE , and seldom requires cleaning.

 

[tallswede]

Thanks everyone for the input. Sounds like my systems are pretty standard though I do have two different setups. Both of mine pump overboard. I do think I need to look at the size of line going to my aft diaphragm pump. It keeps up pretty well with the shower but looks like it could stop up easily. All my sinks drain overboard with the aft sink going to a thru-hull valve below the waterline. Thanks for the tips about shower sprays and vinegar too.

Kevin.

 

[koliver]

both of my showers and one sink are hosed to a sump in the bilge, In this sump is a Rule 2000gph pump on a float switch and a button at the dash. The open top of the sump is about a foot above the bottom of the bilge, so if ever there is a high water event, this sump will add 2000gph to the two pumps that are fore and aft in the bilge, on a separate circuit and a separate vented overboard discharge.

When I got the boat it had sat unused for long enough that this sump stank of soap and other nasties. After cleaning, it hasn't stunk since. There are screens at the drains of each of the showers that take care of hair, and otherwise the Rule bilge pump will handle everything that reaches the sump.

 

[CaptTom]

Kevin:

Mine came with two of the diaphragm shower pumps, fore and aft. And a box of spare belts. The forward one never worked right, and was easy to replace with the standard plastic box sump. It works great.

As you're well aware, the aft tub drain on our boats is virtually inaccessible by humans. My PO essentially welded it all together with some sort of permanent "goop", out of which the grey (Qest) hose runs to the pump. One day I'll drill out the mess and figure out a way to put in a proper drain. Meanwhile, I've terminated the drain hose in another box shower sump and retired the diaphragm pump, but kept it around in case that turns out to be a mistake.

In other boats, I've had good luck with the bilge-pump-in-a-box shower sumps. Yes, you need to check them once in a while, and clean out any hair and grime, but it's quick, simple maintenance that only needs to be done occasionally.

 

[rochepoint]

For those with the whale gulper, whats the hose size? On my shower it looks like a 1-1/2" host going to the sump. I'd like to swap the sump for a gulper.

Our was also 1.5", we just use a hose reducer and a short piece of hose to the 220 Gulper it has a .75" and 1" hose option.......

 

[caltexflanc]

We put screens on the shower drains in the showers themselves to cut hair off at the pass.

Actually a diaphragm pump is superior for this specific purpose, least prone to jamming and better run dry performance (why they're preferred for waste pump out), but lack much capacity for acting as a high water backup.

 

[Marin]

Our boat's shower is fitted with a unique type of pump for a boat. It is a peristaltic pump, same operating principle as a blood transfusion pump. No part of the pump itself touches the material being pumped. So it is not susceptible to being clogged by hair, soap scum, etc.

 

[Moonstruck]

We have two showers. Each is drained directly to individual Whale Gulper pumps. As these pumps can run dry, no sump is needed. No screens are used as the pumps can handle everything that normally appears in a shower drain. A float switch is not needed. Turn the pump on when you begin a shower and shut it off when done.

yep, Howard, Moonstruck has the same set up. The water drains to a basin under the floor grate. We can pump it during or after the shower. As you say, the pump is self priming, and can run dry. Pour a little bleach down to the basin with water, and the whole thing is sanitized. What a relief not to deal with a shower sump in the bilge.

In addition to the wall/door spray cleaner, I recommend a water softner to keep down spotting. Parks sold me one about a year ago, and it has been great for boat washing and use inside the boat.

 

[River Cruiser]

Similar set up for us - just installed the Whale Gulper last fall to replace a diaphragm pump with a screen. Simple and effective. Our master shower / tub is really just storage now so it doesn't count. (BTW does anyone really use their tub??)

My daughter uses the tub to give the kids a bath, her oldest son is 9 and has been boating with us since he was 5 months old uses the shower now the 2 younger ones use the tub. I think that is the only practical use for it. I also have a transom shower with hot/cold water that gets a lot of use after swimming or playing on a sandbar.


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[FF]

"the 2 younger ones use the tub. I think that is the only practical use for it."

With an added bar it could be a great hanging locker for wet gear.

 

[swampu]

Do you have to catch the grey water and then pump or can you just let it go overboard

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. KD. " (BTW does anyone really use their tub??)" Well, we don't have a tub BUT, aside from bathing the tykes and/or the dog there are many, many uses.
As has been mentioned, storage or... fill with ice and beer for parties, live bait well/koi pond (depending on species, could be one and the same), home brewery/distillery, grow-op, dog pottie spot, snake pit and many more much too numerous to list. Ya just have to be a bit creative...

 

[caltexflanc]

Do you have to catch the grey water and then pump or can you just let it go overboard

In most boats the shower drains are below the waterline so you have to pump it.

 

[swampu]

Is it wrong to let it go directly overboard? I know the boat we rented in the bvi's let all of it go. Black and grey