!984 O'Day 25 Bilge pump

[Sharon P]

Dear O'Day Sailing Community,
We are brand new to the boating world and would love to hear your advise regarding a bilge pump for our 25' O Day. We have owned this beautiful boat for two months and we have never taken any water into the area a pump would go. We are under the impression we should have a bilge pump in place just in case we do take in water. Would you please share your thoughts:

1. Do we need a bilge pump if we haven't taken in any water?
2. What is the best bilge pump set up for our boat?


Thank you all so much for your thoughts and happy safe sailing to you all!
Sharon

 

[Ward H]

Hi Sharon,
I was once told I was endangering all of my passengers by not having an automated bilge pump. I don't because I look at it this way.

I have an outboard motor so I have only one thru hull for the galley sink drain. I keep it shut when not in use, it is in good shape and the attached hose is new and has double hose clamps. The only other hull penetrations are above the water line, have good thru hulls, good hoses but do not have valves. They are for the head sink and cockpit drain.
The only water I get in my bilge is some occasional rain water and I have been working on fixing the leaks. My boat (knocking on wood) has been dry this season.

Now, if I had an inboard and there was a possibility of the prop shaft seal dripping water, like some do, I might consider a bilge pump. I would also have to consider how much power it would draw, is my battery big enough to supply the pump for a month if I don't get to the boat or do I now need shore power to supply a battery charger to charge the battery to run the bilge pump and is the battery charger smart enough to not overcharge the battery since it is hooked up full time?

Too complicated for me. That is why I have one thru hull which is always closed and an outboard motor.
I've been planning on a small pump with hose that plugs into the DC cigarette lighter but it is low on my list of projects. A sponge works pretty well.

Others firmly believe or need a bilge pump, have multiple batteries, a charger and shore power.

Your boat, your choice. (Borrowed from Stu)

If your choice is to have a bilge pump, sorry can't help you there.

BTW,
The coast guard does require you to carry a dewatering device. I have a bucket and a hand pump.

Where on LBI do you sail out of? I sail out of Mariners Marina in Barnegat and stay mostly south of the inlet.

 

[Sharon P]

HI Ward,
Thank you for your thoughts! We also have an outboard (9.9 Mercury). We have a hand bilge pump stowed with the life jackets so that would likely satisfy the Coast Guard. We are in the High Bar Harbor Yacht Club right across the water from you! My husband and I are getting more and more comfortable with the boat each time we go out. We're planning to take it out of the water the end of August and I'm going to miss it!
Thanks again for your feedback!
Sharon

 

[Ward H]

I'm guessing you come into the bay via the inlet? Do you head north or south of the inlet? South is a lot less crowded with plenty of room. I don't see the markers for the Double Creek channel anymore. Someone said it filled in and is not passable.
A 9.9 seems about right for our size boat.
Glad to here it is coming together for you and your husband. It took us a season to really calm down and get comfortable. We are on our third season and have just started bringing our golden retriever with us.
So, if you see a boat like yours with a golden retriever, two people and Moon Shadow on the side, give us a shout.

 

[Sharon P]

We'll look for you, Ward!
Our dogs also haven't been with us yet - maybe next year!

I've heard great things about Mariner's Marina.
From HBHYC, we don't go through the Inlet - we enter the channel just west of the Inlet - thank goodness!

We are finding the bay to be more shallow than we anticipated and our depth finder is acting up. One minute - it reads 68' (not possible I believe), the 2'. We'll replace that soon. We go through the channel all the way out to the open bay. It takes a solid 35-40 minutes to get to the open water.

 

[Ward H]

Yes, a depth finder is valuable in the bay. Twice I cut too far east of the BI marker and had to power through the shallow water with the OB in shallow water position.
My new Garmin chart plotter/fish finder doesn't read under 5' depth but my Humminbird $85 depth finder works down to 2' very well.
One thing I learned is when crossing the wake or path of a power boat the bubbles in the water will make the DF go crazy for a bit. I can see that being a problem for you trying to run the channel with all the power boaters.

The reason we chose Mariners is the location. Less traffic to get there and about 5 minutes of motoring to open water.

 

[Sharon P]

Ah, yes, those pesky power boaters!!!