Emergency Bilge Pump

[GMaurer]

Is this crazy? (New boater here - simply stying to stay afloat!)
On my E28 (1988), I'd like to have an emergency bilge pump that I could leave on standby when I'm not on the boat.
I have a manual pump in the main bilge that's controlled at the breaker panel.
I have a separate and isolated shower bilge where the pump is either manual, or automatic with a float switch. But, the breaker for the water pressure pump must be in the "on" position for the shower bilge pump to function.
If I rewire the shower bilge pump to be continuously hot, and leave it in the auto position, in case of a leak it would kick on once the water level topped the cabin sole.

 

[Geoff Johnson]

I think that typically one bilge pump is wired directly to the battery (with a fuse) so that it is always "on". However, whether this will save your boat depends on your battery capacity. I would certainly set it to turn on before it got to the level of your cabin sole!

 

[andy beach]

bilge pump

My 1990 E-34 was wired exactly like your boat is. I wired the main bilge pump directly to the battery (with fuse) so that it is hot while I am not aboard.I also attatched an automatic float switch.This is all wired to a three way switch(auto/on/off).I agree with Geoff this only lasts as long as your battery does.But maybe someone will notice your bilge pump running constantly and notify the powers that be!

 

[Geoff Johnson]

But my boat is on a mooring, so I have become obsessive compulsive about closing all the thru hulls before I leave.

 

[RicoPaolino]

I rigged up a Y connection on the water pump of the a4. On the Y there is a quick disconnect for a "garden hose". If there is an emergency I'll take the hose that I keep on the boat, plop it in the bilge and pump the water out the exhaust pipe.

You have to watch that it does not run dry. This is not for every day pumping. It's for a last ditch effort.

BTW it gives a easy way to flush your engine with fresh water or suck in some antifreeze for winter storage.

 

[Geoff Johnson]

But if you look at the specs for the engine water pump, it pumps only about 3-6 gpm, I believe, hardly enough to make a difference. Also as one Sailnet article pointed out, you do not want to do anything that risks disabling the engine, which you need to keep batteries charged.

 

[Bob in Va]

This might not be quite what you had in mind, but it works pretty well for me: I bought a Rule 500 with automatic switch integral to the pump. It cycles every 2.5 minutes (too frequently for my situation, but I can't change it) and checks for water flow across the impellor - if no flow is sensed, it shuts off until the next cycle. The literature claims 0.2 amp/hr per day draw in that mode, and I believe it, because I leave a small solar charger hooked up all the time and it is able to keep the battery up, even through several rainy or overcast days. My boat takes in a little water down the mast when it rains, and I suspect a small leak in the centerboard trunk too, and since I'm not able to get down to check it every week, I'm jumpy about leaving it with no protection. Have had some bad experiences with standard float switches in the past, but this set up has done fine so far. I just wonder how many times the pump can cycle before it wears out.

 

[Geoff Johnson]

That's my setup too, but the constant on/off cycling gets old after a while. Rule used to make a Platinum series which was much quieter because it did not cycle up to full power and turned on only every 10 minutes. However, for reasons it would or could not explain to me, it discontinued that line. In the spring I plan to switch to a system using the no moving part See Water smart switch (sold by Boat US).

 

[Bob in Va]

Yeah, Geoff,

I'm trying to figure out a way to cut the power to the pump for half a day - something like a nightlight switch that uses a photosensitive cell. So far everything I find is 110 volt specific. If I can find one that operates on 12 volts, that would do it However, that would also mean the boat is not protected for half a day as well.