Check valve

Roger Long · Jun 7, 2009

paulj said:
Are there any better check valves?[/quote]

Yes, there is a better check valve. No check valve. The valve is just slowing the pump's output and creating a potential clog point. It will only slow and not prevent back flow that could sink your boat.

Unless your through hull is well above the waterline, you should re-route the discharge line so it runs in a loop as high as possible under the deck with a siphon break loop at the high point.

The bronze check valve will make a nice paper weight.

sailingdog · Jun 7, 2009

I second removing any check valves from bilge pump lines. Most bilge pumps are rotary impeller based pumps and as such don't generate a lot of pressure, and water in column behind a check valve in a hose can often prevent them from being able to open the check valve....

William12213 · Jun 7, 2009

What do you do about the water that comes in when you are in following seas? I have no check valve so when I am in following seas the water comes in the thru hull and into the bilge. Then pump has to run and push it back out. when it is at it's worst more comes in than is going out. I don't think Catalina could have put it in a worse place as it is about a foot above the water line in the center of the transom.

Roger Long · Jun 7, 2009

William12213 said:
What do you do about the water that comes in when you are in following seas? I have no check valve so when I am in following seas the water comes in the thru hull and into the bilge.

Do you have a high loop up to the deck? If not, a few feet of hose should solve your problem.

Maine Sail · Jun 7, 2009

William12213 said:
What do you do about the water that comes in when you are in following seas? I have no check valve so when I am in following seas the water comes in the thru hull and into the bilge. Then pump has to run and push it back out. when it is at it's worst more comes in than is going out. I don't think Catalina could have put it in a worse place as it is about a foot above the water line in the center of the transom.

This is because of a very poor installation. I owned a C-36 and mine too was a direct path...super dumb and flat out dangerous. As Roger said the bilge hose should be re-routed to a high point, the highest physically possible, and as close to center line as possible and a siphon break should be installed there. Check valves are one of the worst items to have in line with a centrifugal pump..

Stu Jackson · Jun 7, 2009

William12213 said:
What do you do about the water that comes in when you are in following seas?... I don't think Catalina could have put it in a worse place as it is about a foot above the water line in the center of the transom.

Then stop whining and put a new one in! We have the same issue on our C34.

Paul, the guys are right about the check valve, take it out. It'll clog up on you at the worst of times: like a ferry bearing down on you...

William12213 · Jun 7, 2009

Stu Jackson said:
Then stop whining and put a new one in! We have the same issue on our C34.

Paul, the guys are right about the check valve, take it out. It'll clog up on you at the worst of times: like a ferry bearing down on you...

Stu, I wasn't whining about it, I asked a questions about how to fix a poor design/install.

Roger and Maine thanks for the suggestions. I am sure that it is run directly to the pump because a lot of water comes in when the waves are hitting from behind. Last summer it filled the bilge in a matter of a couple hours. I have updated the pump mainly because it was 20 years old and didn't seem to have the push it should have.

sailingdog · Jun 8, 2009

Paul—

This is why I generally recommend that most bilges have a dual automatic pump setup. One pump is a small "maintenance" pump, which has a float switch as low in the bilge as possible. The second is a much larger dewatering pump, which has a float switch about an inch or two above the "maintenance" pump's float switch. The maintenance pump has a much smaller hose and the backwash from when the pump shuts down is much less, and generally prevents the short-cycling of the pump.

Ideally, you should also have two high capacity manual bilge pumps, one accessible from the cockpit and one accessible from inside the boat, preferably with both mounted near the companionway... but on a coastal cruising boat, this is usually overkill.

paulj said:
Well Stu I put everything back together today and did not reinstall the check valve:dance::dance::dance::dance:.

I put the bilge pump switch in auto position and the pump comes on and pumps the water out.
The bilge pump shuts off and the water comes back in and trips the float switch and the pump comes on and pumps the water out again and again and again.

This was so funny I stared laughing until tears came to my eyes.

I fixed the problem with a Rube Goldberg.....tossed in a ShamWow

When I came up on deck I was pleased to see I had provided the dock entertainment tonight for everyone......

paulj :troll:

Check valve

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