delay relay for when bilge pump on
- Thread starter sunlover
- Start date
I'm not sure I'd go the route of an alarm after the bilge pump runs "for a few minutes". You bilge pump is primarily designed to take care of nuisance water and, unless it is a pretty good leak, it will only run for a few seconds and then shut off and start up again for a few seconds and cycle. If you have it set for an alarm based on time, there is a good chance you could have a small constant leak that will still not cause the pump to run for an extended lone time (minutes.)
My suggestion:
1. Install a bilge counter that "counts" every time the bilge pump starts, even if it only runs for a few seconds when it starts. You'll get a feel for what is "normal" and then when you see something that is beyond that number of counts you can take action. For my boat, the counter reads 0 even after weeks. If I see 1 or 2 after a couple weeks I probably wouldn't be too concerned but if I see 20 then something is wrong.
2. If you really want an alarm, you can buy one that you install a few inches above your "normal" bilge water level that will then tell you your bilge pump is not working or you have a really big leak that is beyond the capacity of your bilge pump.
The Bilge Counter is a valuable tool. Unless you have a completely dry bilge, when you get to your boat after a few days or weeks away and see water in the bilge, you don't really know if you have a leak or not since you won't know how many times the bilge pump had to run to keep it at that level.
Just my 2 cents.
My suggestion:
1. Install a bilge counter that "counts" every time the bilge pump starts, even if it only runs for a few seconds when it starts. You'll get a feel for what is "normal" and then when you see something that is beyond that number of counts you can take action. For my boat, the counter reads 0 even after weeks. If I see 1 or 2 after a couple weeks I probably wouldn't be too concerned but if I see 20 then something is wrong.
2. If you really want an alarm, you can buy one that you install a few inches above your "normal" bilge water level that will then tell you your bilge pump is not working or you have a really big leak that is beyond the capacity of your bilge pump.
The Bilge Counter is a valuable tool. Unless you have a completely dry bilge, when you get to your boat after a few days or weeks away and see water in the bilge, you don't really know if you have a leak or not since you won't know how many times the bilge pump had to run to keep it at that level.
Just my 2 cents.
I’ve long been an advocate of bilge pump cycle counters for exactly the reason Smokey73 describes and also backup bilge pumps. My primary bilge pump is on a cycle counter and I have a secondary bilge pump, higher in the bilge, which is on an alarm. Both are on float switches and wired to separate batteries. The cycle counter will tip you off to minor issues before they become serious and the alarmed secondary pump provides an alert if the primary pump is overwhelmed or fails.
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