Bilge pump capacity

[SoWhat]

To me, that sounds like a yard that cares about nothing but money and getting more boats through, doesn't give a damn about the safety of the boats and can't be bothered to do things right. And knowing they work that way, I'd never go there outside of a dire emergency.

It's the only lift in Boston and they are a very safety conscious operation. Owners need to assume responsibility for water integrity of their boat prior to requesting a launch.

They do require unlocked doors. I suspect if they notice a boat dropping below the waterline they would haul it out but in my case the partially open valve wasn't a gusher. It would have headed to the bottom around 2AM.

 

[rgano]

Shipyard does not allow owners on board when it is in the slings being launched. Shipyard may, may give you a day but not a time for launch. Shipyard does not check your boat after launch. They go get the next boat. They call you once it's in. I always go down at some point after launch but after years of no problems there was no sense of urgency.

Moral of the story is the handle isn't necessarily closed at 90 degrees on old bronze seacocks, and plug the seacocks if you remove a hose.

Never had a boat launched in the many yards I have been in where I was not riding the boat with a view of my bilge. Cannot imagine letting them launch without the owner aboard.

 

[rslifkin]

It's the only lift in Boston and they are a very safety conscious operation. Owners need to assume responsibility for water integrity of their boat prior to requesting a launch.

I don't care how sure you are that your boat is watertight, taking it out of the slings without confirming no water ingress is downright stupid. It takes 2 minutes on most boats to hop aboard and take a quick look around. You're not doing a detailed inspection, you're just confirming that you're not launching a sinking boat.

Generally I open a few hatches before launch so when they drop us in, I can step aboard, take a quick look around and give the all clear, at which point they drop the slings a bit further and walk us back. Then I've got a few minutes to get the engines running and be ready to go (lift pit is long enough that they can walk us back and then launch another boat while we're getting ready to move). I've seen them drop 8 boats in before lunch without having to rush, or skip any checks, etc. 2 lifts, 2 cradle trailers and a hydraulic trailer, plus the one double length lift pit. They could probably go faster, but they'd need more people for that.

 

[BlindHog]

Great discussion. One item that has not been brought up is a high water alarm. They are so easy to make, just a float switch mounted up high, then a piezo instead of a bilge pump and a fuse. I mount the alarm where people outside the boat can hear it as it’s been commented several times “most siblings occur at the dock”. At the last marina we kept our Hatteras I was checking on the boat one night and heard a faint buzzing noise, as I got closer, almost on the boat I could tell it was an alarm, probably mounted deep in a bilge - the Marina was able to save that one that night. Such a simple device and every boat should have one.

 

[OldDan1943]

My high water alarm is a 5" fire bell.
Cant ignore that.

 

[Comodave]

As far as bilge pumps go, I always use smooth bore hose due to the less resistance. I always wire to a 3% voltage drop to get better flow.

For high water alarms, I like Borel Manufacturing. They make an exhaust temp alarm, Water if Fuel and high water alarm, or any combination of them per your preference. They draw no power until they alarm and are very easy to install. No affiliation.

 

[Fish53]

This is a flooding rate chart based gpm by hole diameter by depth. Pretty easy to calculate a flooding rate and size pump capacity to match your pucker factor. Any bilge pump should never be expected to move more than 30% of it's rated capacity.

 

[BlindHog]

One other item to consider is the type of hose. Smooth bore hose will pump much greater volume then corrugated hose. Pretty sure not many if any here would *ever* use that cheap “bilge pump hose” bit something else to always consider. I prefer using white sanitation hose for my bilge hoses. It might take a little bit of heat to soften the hose to get it installed but it lasts a long time, easy to keep clean and has a smooth bore inside.

 

[CarlF]

If you feel the need to check your seacocks each trip, you aren't maintaining your boat properly.

In 40 years of cruising, I've never had an "emergency" with a seacock. I exercise them twice a year, replace any seacock showing the pink of galvanic corrosion, replace any hose clamps showing rust with two 316 stainless clamps, grease if there's any stiffness, and replace all below-the-waterline hoses at 5-10 years (even the best marine hoses are only warranted for 5 years).

I also carry two tubs of Stay-Afloat. Because leaks rarely come in the form of a nice smooth circle where a tapered wooden plug will be of any use. I once hit an uncharted rock in Maine and had to use StayAfloat to seal a 6" jagged split. Worked like in the promo video here:

https://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1&id=6545219

 

[OldDan1943]

If you feel the need to check your seacocks each trip, you aren't maintaining your boat properly.

In 40 years of cruising, I've never had an "emergency" with a seacock. I exercise them twice a year, replace any seacock showing the pink of galvanic corrosion, replace any hose clamps showing rust with two 316 stainless clamps, grease if there's any stiffness, and replace all below-the-waterline hoses at 5-10 years (even the best marine hoses are only warranted for 5 years).

I also carry two tubs of Stay-Afloat. Because leaks rarely come in the form of a nice smooth circle where a tapered wooden plug will be of any use. I once hit an uncharted rock in Maine and had to use StayAfloat to seal a 6" jagged split. Worked like in the promo video here:

https://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1&id=6545219

Also known as wax toilet bowl seals

 

[FF]

"Also known as wax toilet bowl seals"

The lowest cost source for bees wax for zippers and other needs.