Bilge pump replacement

[Captainpeter]

My 1984 Ericson 38 has Wilcox Hi Cap bilge and shower sump pumps. They no longer work because I think their impellers are to stiff and old. Unfortunately, Wilcox no longer makes this pump or the replacement parts. Has anyone found a suitable equivalent replacement pump or equivalent impeller? Submersible pumps will not work since there is not room in the bilge and the output hose is only 5/8 ". Capt. Peter

 

[Loren Beach]

By '88 Ericson was using (Par) Jabsco Diaphragm diaphram pumps. My boat came with two. They are spendy, but unlike the centrifigal types will not back-flood.
You might want to check these out at your favorite chandlery.

Loren

 

[Westy]

My recently purchased 1974 32-2 had a barely working Jabsco diaphram pump. I tried replaceing it with an impeller pump that was worse. I finally bit the bullet and bought a new Jabsco for over a hundred and thirty bucks and am impressed with its performance. I had to replace the old hose as it was cracked and mount the pump hirizontally instead of vertically as it had been. The pump cames with a easily accessable strainer, (one reason for remounting it), and that sure helps. It sucks the bilge dry in no time at all.

Good luck

 

[JORGE]

How many do you have?

my E32-2(1972) has only one in the main salon which pumps out the transom.

 

[John Yandow]

Pump replacement

Peter, I had the same problem as you and the same pumps. After much research I replaced both the shower and bilge with FLO-JET pumps. They mount in the same location as the old Wilcox pumps did. Here are links to them:

Bilge Pump:
http://www.flojet.com/prodInfoApp/s...atalogId=Marine&categoryId=FMMPU&typeId=FMQSP

Shower Pump:
http://www.flojet.com/prodInfoApp/s...atalogId=Marine&categoryId=FMMPU&typeId=FMQSP

Catalog:
http://www.flojet.com/flojet/pdf/2002FlojetMarineCatalog.pdf

 

[Sean Engle]

Get rid of the shower bilge all together!

I tore out my shower drainage - and glassed in a new PVC pipe from the shower pan into the old shower bilge - past a check valve - where it was connected to a Water Wolf (Jabsco, I think) impeller pump. I added a pump switch in the shower.

The result was a nice system, where the user would pull the switch, and it would pump the water out and overboard - and the user just had to listen for the sucking sound to turn off the switch.

Also - when finished, they were instructed to run some clean water down the drain and blow it out - so the water that remained in the line was clean. The check valve below the pump ensured that the pump would always be primed and there was NO gross shower water (and soap, and hair and whatever else) left in the bilge.

//sse