How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

[ziggy]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

i run mine a couple time ea. time i'm out. if i overnight, i run it in the morning. mostly i don't get anything out of it. once in a while after a rough (larger waves) day on the lake. but not often.

i've seen what nitsuj is talking about. my last boat had that. i had a double pull switch on the dash. one pull did the blower, second pull did the blower and the bilge pump. it was a 72. my 75 has the same switch but the two are independent. 1 pull for blower only, 2 pulls for bilge pump only...

 

[Crack of Dawn]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

NEVER!!! Mine is auto with float and it has only run once in the 2 years we've had the boat... and we were in an extremely bad storm at the Blue Angels air show in Pensacola last year. My cockpit is self bailing and it does the job. On a normal day out on the water for 6 to 8 hours, when I pull the plug at the end of the day, there's not enough water to fill up a dixie cup.

 

[jkust]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

Only twice...once when I backed the trailer down the ramp and forgot the plug this season (was seconds from disaster had I pushed the boat off the trailer) and once when I washed the ski storage out on the trailer and forgot to remove the plug last season. I know the float switch works at least but otherwise the bilge is dry. Other than a leak or mistake I am not sure how I would accumulate enough water for the bilge to kick on on inland lakes.

 

[bpmcl00]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

Thanks for all the replys guys. ( and gals)

Well the boat im looking at seems to take on water whenever there is weight on the back. its a 92 monterey 19 foot.

Im going to look at the baot tomorrow, when i have him put it in the water ill look to see if the rub rail is under when the back is loaded, If not then a leaky transom is a possibility too... :/

 

[jonesg]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

Those low rub rails look like a really bad design.

 

[Campylobacter]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

Once a year, when I hose out the bilge, and one time I was caught in a thunderstorm with the boat on the trailer. (yeah, the plug was in, sue me)

 

[SeanT]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

My bilge pump is supposed to have a float switch, but I've never had it come on automatically. If turn it on a few times a day if the boats gotten wet, just to keep the bilge dry.

 

[jmarty10]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

For the first 15 times out this year - nothing.
Yesterday we were cruising about 5 mph and a Rodney passed us (we call 30 + footers that boat on a narow River in 5 ft of water - Rodneys from Caddy Shack) and took on a huge wave. Wife and kids got soaked, water ran back under the ski locker, drink holders in bow filled with water, needless to say I turned on pump and water flowed out for about 10 seconds. I couldnt believe how much flowed out from a wave. Rest of the day, nothing except for water that was below bilge pump.

 

[109jb]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

Unless swimming or skiing with wet bodies getting in and out of the boat, or taking water over the gunwales, my bilge never collects any water.

 

[RoyR]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

Whenever I wash the inside of the boat...

 

[25thmustang]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

I have only seen it come on one time automatically, when a shaft log packing nut backed off. I hit the switch when the bows real high before plane every trip. Never have more water in the boat and doubt it even dumps anything when I hit it.

 

[DianneB]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

My boat is 44 years old, riveted aluminium hull with bad paint and suffering from lack of maintenance and abuse over its 44 years so it seeps a bit and the auto bilge pump runs about once a day for 15 seconds (BIG pump!). There is also a small leak in the cooling plumbing so the pump will cycle about once every two hours of running. I have two pumps, one on each battery bank, and cycle the pumps once on each outing just to make sure they are both working.

(The boat gets the cooling leak fixed, Gluvit and new paint this fall!)

 

[phoenixisrizen]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

The only reason my bilge pump ever runs is when I manually turn it on to make sure it works every time I go out or if it rains. Otherwise, I've never had any water in the Wellcraft yet! (knocking on wood!)

 

[xeddog]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

Let's see . . .hmmm. I have left the plug out twice in 20+ years, so I have used my bilge pump twice.

Wayne

 

[rwidman]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

On my last I/O i never had to use my bilge pump but maybe twice when i had multiple people hanging off the back loweering the rub rail into the water..

This new one im looking at will kick on about every 20 mins if me and a friend are sitting on the back...

Im not sure how normal this is, but i know its not uncommon for I/O's to have to run their bilges every here and there....


My question is how much is too much.... How often in too often?


Thanks ahead

If water is getting into your bilge any way other than rain or people comming on board while wet, you have a leak and that leak needs to be addressed ASAP. It is not normal.

 

[kellmike626]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

I only get some water in the bilge when:

a) A large wake comes over the swim platform of the boat numerous times in a day.
b) A pretty bad storm with lots of rain pccurs
c) When I forget to put the plug back in (only happened once)

Other than that, it's bone dry.

 

[bowler]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

Well I don't know about running it too much unless you just leave it on continuously when it's not necessary. I flip mine on every so often just to see, if nothing I just turn it off. At least 2-4 times a trip or just to check for the heck of it, Makes for good practice for me. In my opinion checking it often isn't being paranoid, its just making sure. You just never know, there is no time limit for something going wrong, it just happens, hose breaking etc..

Agreed 100%.

 

[rwidman]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

It's a good idea to test your bilge pump(s) by running water into the bilge from time to time. Just because the light comes on or you hear it running doesn't mean it's going to empty the bilge.

In my experience, I had one on my previous boat not pump because the impeller was jammed with debris, and I had one on my current boat not pump because the impeller fell off the motor. Both were discovered by testing with water.

On my current boat, the bilge pump came on (and worked as intended) when a waterline on my potable water system came off a titting.

 

[AndrewsArk]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

My boat is from 1989 and my bilge is always dry unless we've been swimming and getting in and out of the water.

 

[JoLin]

Re: How often do you run your bilge pump/ How often should it kick in?

If water is getting into your bilge any way other than rain or people comming on board while wet, you have a leak and that leak needs to be addressed ASAP. It is not normal.

+1. regardless of the power plant (I/O or outboard), there shouldn't be any water in the bilge other than from rain, splashing, washing, etc.

Straight inboards with traditional shaft packings are different- they're supposed to seep a few of drops of water per minute.

ANY boat whose blige pump kicks on every 20 minutes, has a leak that needs repair. Period.