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The bilge pump in my boat is connected to another float of some sort that is wired into it. Is that thing supposed to be secured to the floor of the bilge area? I think as it is now, the bilge pump runs all the time the switch is on.
Yes, the pump and float should be secure. Some boats are wired with an automatic bilge pump float that does not need the switch on to work. The switch is typically used to manually turn on the pump. You can check this my turning the switch off and then go lift up the float, if it turns on no issues, the switch is for manual use if the float fails.
trash some times jams the float switch. the also go bad. i prefer and auto/manual bilge pump w/ intergrated switch. it has 3 wires, and can work automatically, or be actived by a switch on the dash.
All my boats have been wired as TD suggest. It is more versatile as you can kill the bilge if you need to (switch gets stuck on ex.). I generally have the switch in auto and hit the on after hours of in/out of the water fun. I generally never have enough water for the auto to kick in unless I do something stupid...
My pump also works automatically unless I flip the switch to turn it on. Sometimes when the kids are climbing in and out you'll hear it kick on after awhile as they drag water into the boat. I usually switch it on before we leave the boat just to make sure it's working and to pump any water out that may be in there. It seems to take over an inch of water to kick on automatically.
