Should I recess my auxiliary bilge pump?

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OS2Dude

OS2Dude

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May 7, 2011
239
Catalina 36 1430 Lake Lanier
Our 1985 Catalina 30 mk I SR Fin Keel has a large bilge pump with a float switch that leaves about 2 inches of water in the bilge. In order to get a drier bilge I bought a small 500 GPH RULE automatic bilge pump to get the last little bit out. I don't want my stainless keel bolts sitting in standing water as well as the dampness it causes.

The water comes from a few windows that leak (Still working on that one...), the companionway hatch boards that don't stop a driving rain, the shower drain, ice box drain and the A/C condensate.

I'm thinking of drilling a small 'sump pit' about 2.5 inches across and .75 inches deep for the new pump. (Drill, paint with epoxy, mount pump) This would let me check the condition of the 30+ year old bilge floor and make a spot for the water to pool in one place. As far as I know, the floor is thick enough to do this. Is this a good idea, or will I regret it as soon as I drill a bit down?
 
rgranger

rgranger

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Jan 19, 2010
12,926
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
OS2Dude said:
... As far as I know, the floor is thick enough to do this. ....
Click to expand

Oh boy! My gut just clenched.... That phrase is the key.

I once added an above the water line drain for my cockpit... from the dock I carefully measured the height of the deck seam above the water... I then went into the boat and started drilling a hole.... can you guess what I failed to consider!!!!!!

My big lard asterisk on the settee caused the boat to list a few inches and now my new hole was below the water line... anyway I managed to work through it and got my new through hull installed before I took on too much water but not before I jacked my blood pressure ...

If you are really wanting to do this, I'd wait until you are on the hard and can repair any oversights that occur before you boat sinks.

It is never good to make the highlight reel.
 
OS2Dude

OS2Dude

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May 7, 2011
239
Catalina 36 1430 Lake Lanier
I based the idea that the floor is thick enough on a webpage from someone who removed layers of rotted plywood from his bilge floor, enough that when he replaced it with fewer layers along with a metal plate his corroded keel bolts were high enough to expose new threads...
 
centerline

centerline

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Mar 20, 2012
3,983
Cal 34-III, MacGregor 25 Salem, Oregon
You have multiple postins of the same question.... are you hoping for someone to say, "yes, thats a great idea"???
 
OS2Dude

OS2Dude

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May 7, 2011
239
Catalina 36 1430 Lake Lanier
No. I asked in the ASK ALL hoping for some genuine opinions, not just quick judgments. I'm not so stupid as to think I can drill a hole through the bottom of my hull without any consequences...

Since the folks in the ASK ALL forum do not seem to have a clue as to how a Catalina stub and bilge floor are constructed, I asked a similar question in the Catalina forum to see what those with the same boat (and hopefully a clue as to how they are constructed) would offer a more precise, informed opinion.
 
Meriachee

Meriachee

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Aug 1, 2011
3,972
Catalina 270 255 Wabamun. Welcome to the marina
Your boat, your choice.
Consider, however, that you're about to take material out of a structural area in the boat that you are not certain of the actual composition, or the integrity impacts that may occur. None of the people on any of these forums, although a good knowledge base, were involved with the design of that structure, so you have to temper every response. While you may not think you are removing anything necessary, you may just be removing enough support that the structure is weakened to the point of failure under load. This is probably not a good idea.
 
Davidasailor26

Davidasailor26

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May 17, 2004
6,150
Beneteau Oceanis 37 Havre de Grace
I'll admit that I don't know anything about the construction or tolerances of the C30 bilge, but personally I'd be reluctant to take material out of the area for the same reasons Meriachee writes. My recommendation would be to put the time into fixing the root causes of the moisture instead. The leaks should be fixable, a hand pump could be installed for the ice box, a Venturi style pump for the AC, and a sump pump for the shower. Even with a small bilge sump added, there will still be some amount of residual (smelly) water that the pump can't remove unless you stop those sources.
 
agprice22

agprice22

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Aug 3, 2012
2,542
Performance Cruising Telstar 28 302 Watkins Glen
Catalina is still building boats... I bet they have some people around who could give you some advice... I bet they advise that this will DEFINITELY void your warranty! I doubt they will say this is a good idea.
On the other hand, they should know what is down there.
Perhaps you could run a smaller tube into the bilge and get that water without drilling holes.
 
P

Padrone

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Mar 28, 2014
49
Catalina 30 Hyde Park NY
I also have a Catalina 30, no window or companionway leaks. I made a separate sump from a "Tupperware" box with it's own sump pump to handle the AC condensate and shower drain.
 
OS2Dude

OS2Dude

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May 7, 2011
239
Catalina 36 1430 Lake Lanier
Do you have a description and/or pictures of how you made your tupperware fix? Did you add a new thru hull for it? How did you get your companionway to not leak in a blowing rain? It comes in over it and under it, as well as thru the air slots in the top board. Does yours have a strip in the bottom of the companionway that the bottom board sits against? (Mine does not, but I've read that Catalina added it for this very reason in later models.)

I tried to get a venturi for the condensate, but the A/C manufacturer does not have one (In fact the person in customer support said it may void the warranty to put one in), one from another brand would not fit, and I don't have the tools/materials/know-how to build one.
 
J

Jongleur

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Feb 15, 2014
180
Catalina 30 Bremerton, WA
Here's what I recently did. Not
recommending, just what I did.
750 gpm with small discharge hose on
floor of bilge. 1500 gpm with
larger discharge hose elevated 1 inch (because
that is all the depth there is).

(Since I took this picture, I secured
all wires up and out of the way)
 

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Padrone

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Mar 28, 2014
49
Catalina 30 Hyde Park NY
Following on from the "Tupperware Box" install....At the end of the Whale Pump hose I installed one way valve, a "T" piece with one branch of the "T" covered, so with the vertical section attached to the hose, and the blocked part of the "T" uppermost, the remaining part is in contact with the sole of the bilge and removes virtually all the water that the electric bilge pump does not.
 
woodster

woodster

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Sep 15, 2009
6,244
S2 9.2a Fairhope Al
i have always found that if you need advice or help i get better results if i don't jump in the middle of others backs ...works for me very well
 
JohnVTX

JohnVTX

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Jul 14, 2015
840
Catalina 30 Stillhouse Hollow Marina
OS2Dude said:
Do you trolls not have anything better to do than to write comments that show you do not even bother to read the posts you respond to? If you have nothing constructive to say, then don't.

Since you need it spelled out in small words, the post was referring to the A/C when it mentioned that the A/C maker's rep said a venturi in the A/C's discharge may void the warranty on the A/C.
Click to expand
By! Good luck dude on future posts.
 
Jackdaw

Jackdaw

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Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
Fix your leaks and your problem goes away. Bilge pumps are there to de-water the boat, not sop up for years of deferred maintenance. What should accumulate naturally in a modern fiberglass boat's bilge should be sponged out weekly. More than that you got a problem. If you think you need pump to do the job you certainly do.
 
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