Cutting sole to install shower sump

Apr 27, 2011
423
S2 9.2A Newport News, VA
I'm actually using my shower now and then, now that the hot water tank is in and working well. I'm, of course, not happy with it draining into the bilge (although using Skin So Soft shower gel - it has a hanger hook on the end, so it's convenient - sure makes the boat smell nice!). I noted the Woodster's comment on an earlier post about cutting an access panel to allow you to put the sump foward of the current opening. I want to do that (and will probably go with the Trionic system he mentioned - before going to a composting head, I bought one of their holding tanks and liked dealing with them) and would like some tips on cutting the opening neatly. I've got a multi-saw (of the Fein-but-actually-Bosch variety) and thought that might do the best job. Any suggestions on how to make this a professional-looking job (other than hiring someone else to do it) would be greatly appreciated. It looks like the bilge runs nearly two feet forward of the current opening. I try to avoid overuse of parenthetical expressions in any replies!

Thanks.

John
 
Sep 15, 2009
6,243
S2 9.2a Fairhope Al
i am not close to my boat now john but i will be around thanksgiving week and will take some measurements of what i did so you will not shoot yourself in the foot and hold off on buying that sump till you can make a cardboard mockup of it to see if you can get it in there ...i wound up making a sump box out of fiberglass and added a homed removable screen and water witch switch t activate a diaphragm pump mounted aft of the engine ...also used a beckson 6" clear screw out port for access in the box and installed a auto-off-manual switch in the head to control the sump pump ...the longer i use these rule type bilge pumps the more i come to dislike them ...just things to think about ......
 
Apr 27, 2011
423
S2 9.2A Newport News, VA
Thanks, Woody. I'll unplug the saw! I'll look forward to your follow up.

John
 
Jan 25, 2011
2,391
S2 11.0A Anacortes, WA
I have a small sump under the shower that drains directly to a pump. No float switch but you really dont need one for a shower. Can you take the shower drain line directly to a pump and then overboard?
 
Apr 27, 2011
423
S2 9.2A Newport News, VA
I've not closely examined this, but my understanding, from the rudimentary company plumbing schematic, is that, on the 9.2, there's just a hose running from the drain to the bilge. No sump. And, since it's draining to the forward section of the bilge, I can't really get to the output end of that hose without cutting an access panel in the sole.

John
 

BobM

.
Jun 10, 2004
3,269
S2 9.2A Winthrop, MA
You could tee it into the sink drain if you have a pump, but you will always get a small amount sitting in the pan.
 
Apr 27, 2011
423
S2 9.2A Newport News, VA
Hmm. I've got a new macerator pump that was destined for the head before I switched to the composter. I guess I could use that to move the shower water out. I've also got a mushroom fitting nearby that was for the holding tank breather that I could run it to. I'd still like to cut the sole to add an access panel to the forward part of the bilge. It'd make getting to the shower drain hose a ton simpler, for one thing.

It'd be nice to find some way to have the pump trigger automatically. I'm not sure how I'd make that happen in any reliable fashion, so probably a simple, manual switch would be best.

Had to put in a new bilge pump and, while I was at it, put in a nice monitor with a digital counter. It shows the pump is running once a day. Checked the stuffing box and it looks like repacking that and generally cleaning it up are next on the agenda.

Got in two nice sails in the last four days and will probably get out again this morning. Yesterday it was in the seventies here in Virginia's Hampton Roads, with winds 15 to 18 knots. Thank you El Niño!
 
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