Help! Bilge problems.

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Jun 4, 2004
133
- - Plymouth
I'm launching my boat this upcoming Friday for 4th of July weekend and I'm having a great deal of difficulty wiring a bilge pump for automatic operation. My original bilge (Rule) had an outside switch. I didn't have any confidence in it so I replaced it with a self-contained automatic bilge pump. My boats wiring included to the old bilge a green, black and red wire. The bilge has a brown striped, black and solid brown wire. I can manually turn on the bilge but I can't get it to turn on automatically by turning it upside down allowing the mercury switch to go to the top. The manufacturer said brown stripe to switch, ground to ground and brown to battery. How does one attach one wire to the battery with two currents? Help!!!
 

Alan

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Jun 2, 2004
4,174
Hunter 35.5 LI, NY
Will explain

You should have 3 wires coming into the bilge area. One will be 'hot' alive all the time. This wire will go to one side of the float switch(it doesn't matter which side). Of the other 2 wires coming in to the bilge, one will be ground. To test which it is put a test light on the hot lead and touch the other wires. The ground wire will light the other will not. Attach the ground wire to the pump. The remaining wires are all(3) connected together. This is the manual switch circuit. PS if the pump runs in reverse, switch the two pump wires.
 
S

Scott

Bilge pump issues II

I thought I would jump on this thread since I've had recent headaches with my new Sahara 500 bilge pump. It draws water down and then won't shut off until I reach in and twist the little knob that they have on the housing. After it stops drawing water, there is still enough in the bilge so that a little boat rocking causes the float switch to switch on and then it won't stop no matter how I clean the thing to try to get it to operate properly. When I'm not on the boat, it is switching on and draining my batteries before it stops. Unfortunately, I can't just dry out my bilge because I'm getting a slow leak from somewhere and if I leave the boat for a few days, the bilge is filling up if the pump doesn't run. This is starting to wear thin!
 
Jun 4, 2004
629
Sailboat - 48N x 89W
pump connections

Bilge Pumps, with 3 wires, are generally connected: Solid Brown goes to (fused) Positive on Battery. Black goes to Negative return on Battery Brown Striped goes to a manual “On” (test) Switch, if used - iof not used cap it off & seal it.
 
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