What is this pump for?

[JosefR]

Oh, so you're saying the gurgling is normal and the pump is working. First person to suggest that.

I'll never use it anyway as it is a fridge and not an icebox. Wish I could make it pump seawater into the sink instead, would be 100X more useful.

 

[Parsons]

So your refrigerator will have a small amount of water anyhow, despite not putting ice into it. There is condensation from opening it to humid air on the food and walls. That part of the humid air will also form ice on your Aldor-Barbor cooling coils, which are not frost-free like your home fridge. When you cut the fridge off, that ice melts and falls to the bottom. The problem with letting it just roll to the bilge, or accumulate in the bottom and evaporate, will be smell.

You could re-plumb the diaphragm pump to a through-hull to do seawater rinse, but I suggest not to the sink drain through-hull as you would just suck in food particles! The closest through-hull is probably the head intake, which is aft on at C30, right? Unfortunately, it would be difficult to pump that foot pump while standing at the sink.

 

[Bob4203]

"Oh, so you're saying the gurgling is normal and the pump is working". YES. Better yet, just remove the drawers and you can see the foot pump where its mounted and the drain hose(s). Open the access door under the sink and you can follow the hose back. The "gurgling" noise is more air mixed with water and the water draining back through the sink. This is the set up I have in my 1988 Mark II that is all original, so I know it was not a modification. Nothing wrong with this to remove water from the icebox and it will keep your bilge dry unless your weeping water from the packing gland or a zillion other places on the boat that keeps the bilge wet. You can go to the International Catalina 30 Association website and get more info about your boat.