M 25 bilge pump location?

Nov 19, 2018
84
macgregor m25 puerto vallarta
Good morning folks, i am getting ready to install a 800 gph bilge pump in my 1985 Mac 25 & would really appreciate it if anyone out there with the same boat would send me pics of the location of their pump & also how & where you exited the water . Thank you in advance for any replies !
 
Feb 8, 2017
107
MacGregor MacGregor 25 Middle River
So, I’m wondering why you think you even need an auto bilge pump. I have the same boat same year as you that I bought new and have never ever wished that I had one. (Knock on wood...!) Even if there was a hull breach, all the floatation would keep it from sinking.
 
Jul 7, 2004
8,402
Hunter 30T Cheney, KS
So, I’m wondering why you think you even need an auto bilge pump. I have the same boat same year as you that I bought new and have never ever wished that I had one. (Knock on wood...!) Even if there was a hull breach, all the floatation would keep it from sinking.
I thought the same thing but I don't know the 25. There are no thru-hulls are there?
 
Nov 19, 2018
84
macgregor m25 puerto vallarta
Because i just spent 5 hours bailing out close to 200 gallons of rain water in my bilge, from an undetected source ,from the cabin of my boat with a 1 quart bucket & a sponge after a tropical depression with 40 mph winds,on a mooring, 400 yards from the shore, in a cove in the Pacific Ocean, south of Puerto Vallarta,Mexico, why in the world would i not want a automatic bilge pump ? And that was only approx 3" of water in the bilge @ the compression post ( lowest point in a M 25 ) Yes, my boat does have all of it's flotation blocks in it & i don't know about your boat ( it sounds like it is kept on a trailer )but if mine sunk to the cabin windows the damage to the electronic equipment, laminate flooring & upholstery would be more costly than the boat is worth & besides that, how in the world would you bail it out while on a mooring ? i hope that answers your question & thank you for replying & i am hoping someone out there can help with an answer to my request on their bilge pump location & for the person who asked about a thru hull on the mac 25,there is a water exit/drain in the cockpit transom.
 

shine

.
Sep 14, 2009
74
Macgregor 1985 25 ft. Macgregor swingkeel Mo
I put mine about10 inches aft of the keel cable where it goes thru the hull. I then wired directly to a rocker switch mounted on the bulkhead near cabin entry. Then wired it directly to battery. It does have a fused near the batter as well. I will send / post pictures tomorrow. pictures will make it much easier to see what I did.
 
Nov 19, 2018
84
macgregor m25 puerto vallarta
Hey,thanks for the reply & i'll be looking forward to seeing a picture of it,what size is your pump & where does the water exit ? I was thinking that it should be somewhere near the lowest part of the boat & on mine it is at the compression post by the keel bolt, That settee is where my battery is located so it would be easy to wire into the battery but if i put it there then i will have to exit the water somewhere out the starboard side of the boat above the waterline with a loop in it so it doesn't drain back in if the boat is heeled over (i don't intend on ever sailing that way ) I know nothing about the drilling through the fiberglass process, i don't know if there is only one wall to go through or 2 so if you can offer any advice i am all ears ! I have the hose,clamps & thru hull fitting that came with the pump & i intend on using 4200 to seal it. Could you please send me a picture of the pump wiring to the switch in case i decide to do it like your's because i what i know about electricity is that it will kill you & that is all i know about it ! Thanks again, Shine !
 
Sep 25, 2008
957
Macgregor & Island Packet VENTURE 25 & IP-38 NORTH EAST, MD
On a level sitting M25, the lowest point in the bilge is in the storage area where you access the keel bolt and lock down ( under the forward settee seat). I would mount pump in there, run the hose along the keel trunk, then all the way to a thru hull high up on the transom ( a loop would be good too, to keep following seas from flooding in).
 

shine

.
Sep 14, 2009
74
Macgregor 1985 25 ft. Macgregor swingkeel Mo
Ok, before we get going too far, I want to say that this is just what I did. I don't have a lot of experience with bilge pumps. You can see in the pictures where I mounted the switch. It has a built in fuse. I wired it with 16 gauge thru the switch and directly to the battery. I used 3/4 inch hose and ran it with a loop up high and out the back of the boat. You can see in the picture with the ladder,,,,its right under one of the ladder mounts. If you measure from the center of thru hull to the center of the rub rail its around 14 inches. The switch is PN- Ab1 - 4 deluxe led rocker amarine-made. I use 4200 on the thru hull. I would like to say that your leak could be coming from the keel bolt. I know you got a lot of rain and that's probably it, but make sure your not getting a small drip from the keel bolt,,,over time it can really add up. Good luck. Let me know if you need more info.
 

Attachments

Nov 19, 2018
84
macgregor m25 puerto vallarta
Mark, thanks a bunch for the pics,they are worth a million words !!
I think that i'll drill holes in an aluminum bracket maybe 3" wide x 1/16 " thick that will be bent to the correct angle of the bottom of the boat at the keel bolt location & fasten it to the bottom of the pump bracket & cut it to the proper length &bend it at the top & screwed to the fiberglass settee & then run the hose with a loop in it,over to the starboard side & out , about 12" to 15" above the water line. What scares me is drilling the 3/4" hole in the side at this location because i don't know if i would be drilling through one wall or to, what do you think ?. The reasons i have for putting it in this location is because this is the lowest part in my boat & also my battery is located under the settee there, making it a breeze to wire it. I'll put a inline fuse for it also.
I'll check the keel bolts for leakage but when i took in all the( tastes like rainwater ) water from TD Narda, when i opened the cabin hatch my settee cushjons were soaking wet so i suspect rainwater is entering the cabin @ the hatch/pop top area when the wind is blowing the rain at a certain angle. I don't think it's bad because the water accumulated over a 3 week period of time. Iam going to throw a tarp over the cabin area which should also help. Also i think by draining the bilge from the lowest spot will be better than having it at your location because i need to keep the bilge as dry as possible because my boat sets on a mooring in tropical conditions, unattended for 2 to 3 weeks at a time & with the high humidity the mold inside the cabin grows fast & always smells musty. I tried a Sun force solar powered vent fan in the cabin roof where the head is to keep some air moving in the cabin but it quit after 3 months,, not well built & most definitely would not recommend it to anyone unless they wanted a 4 1/4" hole in the roof of their boat to worry about sealing up somewhere down the road !! Once again i thank you for the pics & info & if you can tell me how to do the drilling process i would feel like i would owe you a brewery !!
By the way, i was able to get my bent mast straightened out pretty good & just finished building the new standing rigging which was a job but came out good.. I now have to take my new 1/8" fore stay cable to a rigger & have the turnbuckle stud rotary swaged onto the cable & then i'll put all of the mast hardware back on it along with a new masthead light & wind vane & then we''ll take the mast out to the boat by panga & i'll get it hooked up (Pray for me, it should be fun, trying to step a mast while rolling around in the ocean !! )
 

shine

.
Sep 14, 2009
74
Macgregor 1985 25 ft. Macgregor swingkeel Mo
I mounted mine with aluminum bracket as well and yes I think thecuscus guy is right, the keel bolt area or a little forward of that would be a better place. I’m not so sure about the side exit. Your pump, wires and switch could all be close to battery, but I would like to see what some of the other sailors think about the height and placement of exit. Anyone out there want to chime in. We are humble and all ears. Thanks
 
Sep 25, 2008
957
Macgregor & Island Packet VENTURE 25 & IP-38 NORTH EAST, MD
What year is your boat? Does it have the built in galley/sink? I put a small thru hull on the port side for the sink drain, and its only the hull thickness there (no liner). I think the liner comes down to at least the waterline on the starboard side, so you would the liner and the hull to drill through. Also, how will it be hidden on the starboard side? The loop should be higher than the expected water level when heeling. If I was going to install a pump, I would definetly run the discharge out the transom. And put a seacock on it so in the event of big following seas, I could shut it. Adding complex systems to a simple designed boat introduces many compromises and problems. It may be easier to just prevent the rain water ingress.
 
Nov 19, 2018
84
macgregor m25 puerto vallarta
Hello & thanks for the reply ! My boat is a 1985 M 25. I do have the galley but it isn't plumbed. My boat is on a mooring in the ocean & i have no desire to take out all of the flotation blocks & crawl into the space under the starboard cockpit settee to access the drain,especially in choppy water ! Also, i have no intention of ever having her heeled over that much as i am new to sailing. What would i run into if i drill the 3/4" water exit hole appro,x 15" above the waterline on the Starboard side across from the keel pivot bolt ?
 
Sep 25, 2008
957
Macgregor & Island Packet VENTURE 25 & IP-38 NORTH EAST, MD
The liner may or not be tight against the hull right there. I would drill an exploratory hole just through the liner to verify. If its tight against hull, drill the 3/4" hole and install the mushroom (sealing it of course). If the liner isn't against the hull, drill a hole in the liner big enough to get the nut on the mushroom and then drill the 3/4" hole in the hull. At 15" above the waterline, you will be outside on the settee storage area and up the wall some? no?
BTW, you will heel over that much......unless you never put the sails up ;). It's not uncommon for the rubrail to be in the water on a Mac :yikes: