My bilge pump sucks...

Actually, it doesn't suck enough!

In my quest for a completely dry bilge, I recently rerouted the AC drains from the bilge to the shower sump and to a separate sump I stalled. That solved that problem!

I recently washed the chain off in the chain locker, and all the water drained right to the bilge-- I didn't expect that but maybe that's normal. My problem is my bilge pump does not get all the water out. It leaves about 1/2" of water there and that drives me crazy.

Is there a better pump that would suck it all out? Maybe install a secondary pump? I've been use the wet vac to get it all out but that's getting old.

Mine does the same thing except it sucks all the water out , shuts off and water that's left in hose drains back into bilge . I thought about a check valve close to the pump on discharge side but most everybody here on TF says that's not a good idea .

Maybe you should wire your wet vac to a bilge pump switch.

Ted

There is a company that makes a pump that pumps down to almost nothing but not quite dry. Can't find it now.

Unfortunately I think only a vacuum can get it perfectly dry.

Maybe you should wire your wet vac to a bilge pump switch.

Ted

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Mine does the same thing except it sucks all the water out , shuts off and water that's left in hose drains back into bilge . I thought about a check valve close to the pump on discharge side but most everybody here on TF says that's not a good idea .

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Yeah I get some water drainage back into the bilge when the pump shuts off also. So check valves are a nono huh?

cardude01 said:

Yeah I get some water drainage back into the bilge when the pump shuts off also. So check valves are a nono huh?

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You could rig a tiny bilge pump with a check valve and on/off switch so you could get more but still not all out.

This pump would be in addition to your other 6 rated at 20,000 gph

psneeld said:

You could rig a tiny bilge pump with a check valve and on/off switch so you could get more but still not all out.

This pump would be in addition to your other 6 rated at 20,000 gph

Click to expand...

That's kind of what I was thinking. Maybe a diaphragm pump?


I suppose I could ghetto-install something like this and set it on top of the shower sump I installed in the bilge and drain it into that. ?

My bilge is gettin busy...

Mine does the same thing....always a few cups of water there that cannot evacuate with the bilge pump. I bought a cheap water blaster that I use to suck the last ounces of water and spray it into a plastic can. Just a few pumps worth and a sponge finishes it off. Since I have dripless logs, I expect a completely dry bilge, but some gets in from rain and condensation through the laz hatch.

I added a check valve in an old boat, it still drained back. Just slower.

I wait for it to drain back and shop-vac it out, then the bilge stays dry till the next time.

My Trojan rope locker drained into the bilge so I glassed the bulkhead and closed up the bottom of the rope locker. Then I put a drain hole at the bottom of the rope locker through the hull and covered it with a clam shell facing down and aft. That stopped the water from the anchor rode from getting into the bilge. You just have to address each entry point in turn. The best solution is to keep the water out to begin with. There are very few pumps that will get all the water out due to loss of suction as the water gets low. And then as mentioned, the water drains back down into the bilge from the discharge hose. I used a Whale remote pickup pump to evacuate most of the water. It has a check valve built into the pump. I used it just to get the residual water out of the bilge. I had the major pump mounted a little higher without a check valve.

I think this is one of the companies you guys are talking about...

Dry Bilges are possible!

It uses a vacuum line to various points to suck out the last bits of water and keep it dry.

I think the cause for the residual water is back-flow, when the bilge pump shuts off, any left over water in the drain line runs back into the bilge. Usually this isn't a problem though. PSNELD's suggestion seems to be a good one by putting a tiny bilge pump deeper with a check valve, just to get the first & last water pumped out. The check valve would be just outside the pump on the exit line, so minimum back-flow. That would be cheaper than the vacuum systems...

I was on a boat at a boat show and heard a sucking sound. The sales guy said it was the vacuum system checking each shower bilge for residual water. I would want that put on a timer so it wasn't doing it every few hours...

psneeld said:

You could rig a tiny bilge pump with a check valve and on/off switch so you could get more but still not all out.

This pump would be in addition to your other 6 rated at 20,000 gph

Click to expand...

I know a guy that did that in his Catalina 400. He used a small pump with a small line with a check valve. It was plumbed with an anti-siphon loop into his galley sink drain line. He kept that sink drain thruhull open. He used a water sensor switch very low in the bilge and had the hose of the small pump right at the bottom of the bilge.

The hose was very small diameter and was able to remove the small amounts of water that his regular bilge pump wouldn't get. Definitely you should never use a check valve in your regular bilge pumps.

Here is another bilge suction system...
- Boat drying system; automatic, reliable, and affordable.

Use a Sealand/Dometic diaphragm pump. Install a foot on the suction hose that draws from the very bottom of your bilge.

Bosworth makes a foot that works great for this.

Bosworth Co-Diaphragm Pumps: Hand, Foot & Electric; Y-Valves

Jabsco makes a series of diaphragm pumps for this purpose, for those who aren't so anal about it that they have to have one of the $$$ "dry bilge systems". For instance:

Jabsco 36960 Series Diaphragm Bilge Pump

Personally my feeling is "it's a boat; water happens".

I could never understand the desire for a perfectly dry bilge. Sounds to me like the hunt for the Holy Grail.

Having had a wooden boat for 23 years, I find the small amount of water left in the bilge pump sump comforting and nostalgic.

hmason said:

I could never understand the desire for a perfectly dry bilge. Sounds to me like the hunt for the Holy Grail.

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I don't even try. With 3 screens to clean (AC/generator, water maker and engine), changing water maker pre-filters plus the shaft packing. I keep adding enough water so it never gets stagnant to smell and the bilge stays pretty clean.

hmason said:

I could never understand the desire for a perfectly dry bilge. Sounds to me like the hunt for the Holy Grail.

Click to expand...

On my boats, the bilge water flows to a small area near the bow. It's a simple process of rolling back a small section of carpet and opening a 12 inch wooden hatch. I might only check it once a week on a longer trip unless I suspect something. If I see water on a dry trip, I'll be looking for a leak.

I've also noticed less "boat smell" since I've made drying it more regularly.

Unlike dwhatty, I find it reassuring when it stays dry.

Greetings,
" It leaves about 1/2" of water there and that drives me crazy. "

The Jabsco diaphram pumps work good, especially with a Water Witch type pump switch that has a stop delay that keeps the pump running for a few minutes after the water at the switch trip point is gone.

Bilge pump solution

I recently purchased a Gb 36. In addition to a traditional bilge pump and float switch , there is a whale diaphragm pump in the sump. It is wired to a very sophisticated timer . I have it set to run two minutes , twice a day. When I start to use ac more, I will add more intervals. There is room for 42 programs.

psneeld said:

There is a company that makes a pump that pumps down to almost nothing but not quite dry. Can't find it now.

Unfortunately I think only a vacuum can get it perfectly dry.

Click to expand...

I met Al of Arid Bilges at the St. Pete Boat Show.

Article here: http://janice142.com/Articles/2015StPeteBoatShow.html

Al's business: Arid Bilge Home

I'll tell you, the system sure did look spiffy.

Install a diaphram pump on a manual switch and pump the bilge dry when ever you feel the urge. Also, I'd recomend washing the anchor chain as it comes aboard, you don't want to put mud, salt, critters or what ever in the bilge anyway, sooner or later, it will stink.

Arctic Traveller said:

Install a diaphram pump on a manual switch and pump the bilge dry when ever you feel the urge. Also, I'd recomend washing the anchor chain as it comes aboard, you don't want to put mud, salt, critters or what ever in the bilge anyway, sooner or later, it will stink.

Click to expand...

Yeah. For some reason it didn't click while I was squirting water into the chain locker that the water would drain right into to bilge, but after actually thinking about it that's the only place for the water to go. When I lifted the hatch to check the bilge when leaving the boat it was full of grimy water from the chain locker. SMH.

After reading everyone's thoughtful and sometimes humorous replies, I think I will attempt to just chill about the excess water left in the bilge. I really didn't want to spend $200 plus for a separate diaphragm pump system, but if it keeps bothering me I guess that's what I'll do. Until then I will keep sucking out the excess with my little bucket vac.

Now onto my next worry-- attempting to remove the seawater pump on my little Yanmar so I can replace the impeller. From what I can see and from what I've read, there is no way to get to the impeller while the pump is on the engine. ?

The only boats I have been aboard that have a nice dry bilge have a bilge sump that catches the hose back flow .

The sump is wet , the rest of the bilge dry.

In theory you could run a diaphram pump to empty the bilge and keep it operating till any moisture in the pickup hose would evaporate , but it might take hours.

Greetings,
Mr. 01. "...just chill about the excess water left in the bilge." I think that's probably the sanest approach. I tend to over analyze and focus on some things that really don't matter much in the greater scheme of things, boatwise.

We do NOT have the PSS style dripless shaft seals so there's always just a touch of water in our bilges. My personal feeling is that I'd rather live with a bit of water than stress over the potential of a catastrophic failure of the rubber bellows or deal with leaking face seals...

If you can find [or have one] an old Jabsco pump [shown above] it can be converted from a pressure water pump to a bilge pump. The only thing needed is the bilge pump valves as the press. water valve holes are too small to pass any junk.,

I did this with an old press. wtr pump that got frozen and the web between the two chamber cracked. It would not hold/pump pressure but it works well as a bilge pump. Just get a small bronze screen for the pick up end.

Spot on C lectric. Thats one of the best things about the "old" Jabsco pumps, they can be reconfigured. Parts are readily available and they will run almost forever, even dry, without burning up.