refrigerator draining to bilge?

[butchrobbins]

also posted in Catalina 310 forum



In my 2001 Catalina 310, there is a small white tube that drains water from the refrigerator to the bilge. Is this the proper place to drain?

It keeps the bilge pump going amost all the time, because the float switch will engage the pump and when it shuts off, a great deal of water flows backward into the bilge and this keeps cycling. Finally last night I sponged out the bilge so I could get some sleep. I did manually run the pump until it was sucking air and I let it run a bit longer than normal. That seemed to keep the water from coming back in the bilge somewhat.

Will the pump continue to pump air if I let it run?
Will the pump burn up?
How bad is all this work on the bilge pump?
Should I be concerned about a fire?

 

[Ron McCoy]

You've got a typical setup found on most production boats. Unless the manufacturer included a gray water collection box w/ pump, all your condensation water will drain to the bilge. This includes water from your air conditioner, refrigeration, shower drains, etc. The bilge pumps are there to empty bilge water overboard, but are not designed to run continuously. Therefore, I'd recommend installation of a water collection box w/ float switch. Connect all your condensation lines to it and it'll work fine. They're generally quite, efficient, inexpensive and designed for the problem you described. Keep bilge pumps ready for the job when the "big" water starts flowing inside your boat. Condensation drip is an irritation, but easily fixed. Most important, it keeps your bilge dry, free of stagnate water and smells.

 

[Tim R.]

This is the reason many bilges smell so bad. Food bits get in the bilge and grow. Connect a foot or hand pump to that line and install it over your galley sink. This way you can pump it overboard via the galley sink drain.

The fact that production builders are still doing this(as of 2001) amazes me.

 

[Chris Burti]

On the later model C-320's, Catalina ran the condensation hose to a wye valve in the hose between the shower sump and the shower sump pump under the head sink.

When installed this way, you simply divert the pump intake from the shower sump to the reefer drain and push the shower pump switch until it runs dry. Switch back for the shower. This should be an easy modification for you to try. I'm a bit surprised that your @001 C-310 isn't plumbed that way as our 2001 C-320 is.