The jury is in.
I installed the new pump today. I used one of the old mounting holes, and drilled three new shallow holes. I had to buy an additional one-inch screw and washer. I cut the old wires, and used two 10-12 gauge butt connectors to connect the new wires. The pump came with a new filter, but I could have used the old one. It also came with a variety of hose fittings that worked out well. I filled the freshwater tank, and tested the new pump. I’d rate it as a qualified success. My expectations were very high. Probably unreasonably so. Turning on the water pressure switch at the electrical panel with the system depressurized, you can definitely hear it running at full speed for about 5 seconds to build pressure. It doesn’t start running immediately, but has about a one-second delay. Running at full speed during pressure building, it may be just slightly quieter than the stock pump. I was surprised at the sound, but after all, it is just a pump. The good part comes when running some water. With one faucet on fully, I could just barely hear the sound of the pump running at slow speed if I concentrated. What sound there was, was almost entirely masked by the sound of the water running into the sink. You wouldn’t notice the pump noise unless you really listened for it. Instead of the THRUTHTHTHTHMP-------- THRUTHTHTHTHMP ------- THRUTHTHTHTHMP --------- THRUTHTHTHTHMP of the original pump as it cycled, there was an almost inaudible steady prrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr as the new pump ran at about 1/4 speed. With both spigots open, the pump noise was only slightly easier to detect. The pump doesn’t start and stop abruptly at all. It’s difficult to hear it start or stop in normal operation. The maximum water pressure of the new pump seems like it might be slightly less than the original. But the original pump pulsed, so it probably averages out the same. I still got good flow with both sink faucets and the shower going at the same time. I think this pump is a good match for the C310. A high-pressure fire hose type of stream would be nice for a shower, but I’d probably empty the tank in less than 5 minutes. I wish I had the opportunity to try the other higher-pressure pumps just for comparison, like the Shurflo Smart Sensor, and the other Jabsco’s. But I really think the Jabsco Sensor Max 14 is a best fit for this boat both functionally and economically. This upgrade gives me a more refined, and less obtrusive water pressure solution. I think it was definitely worth the money, and the modest time and effort involved. The installation was actually on the easy side.
