We are not... but I think I've had that. On my H356 I think the pump with a built in float switch twisted into a fitting that was screwed into the bottom of the bilge. Factory's bad. I suppose they knew how long the screws could be. Do we?
Exposed lead keel
- Thread starter Ziggler
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- keel lead bilge pump
Many years ago I went with a friend for a sail on his new Hunter 30, We found a foot of water over the sole when we got on board. After bailing the boat, we found that a half-inch screw securing the bilge pump had backed out and was allowing a steady stream of water. The boat had a fixed keel...
So..no screws no matter how short...
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Plywood wouldn’t be my choice there. Even if it’s coated in epoxy the screws will provide a place for water to intrude. Eventually it will get mushy. If you want to take that route maybe use plastic like star board instead.
Keel bolts are set into the keel, slathered with a sealant and the hull is lowered onto the keel. This forms an effective seal between the keelboats, the keel, and hull. Drilling down through the keel sump and into the keel violates that seal. Even if caulked, it is caulked on the wrong side, any water pressure will push the caulk away from the inside of the bilge in contrast to the caulk between the keel and hull where water pressure pushes the caulk against the hull.
A very short screw will probably not be an issue, however a larger longer screw that penetrates the hull could be. But why put a screw there at all? It is easy enough to use some adhesive caulk to secure the bilge pump to the hull. There isn't much stress on the pump, so the adhesive does not need to be all that strong. Something like 3M 4000 would work just fine and would not be too difficult to remove.
I would never have the balls to drill or screw into the bottom of my bilge. Of course, I can't reach the bottom of my bilge as it is 51" below the cabin sole. My bilge pumps are clamped to long rods with T grip handles so I can pull them out. They are both just resting on the bottom of the bilge. The pump switches are on vertical aluminum angles which are fastened under the floor stringers and are fairly easy to pull out. I suppose my arrangement is a bit peculiar due to the depth of my bilge and the floor arrangement so the idea of bonding a pad to the hull with 3M 4200 would be better for most.