Wash Down Pump

[shoeless]

I'm going to install a wash down pump and a manual seawater pump on 04 Hunter 386. I am planning tie into the Galley Drain seacock and pipe to a Tsplitter. Now, this Seacock functions as an outlet, but 3 credibale sources and I agree that this can also function as and intake without any problems or safety issues. One side of the T splitter will go to a foot pump through a shut-off valve to carry water to the Galley sink . The other side will feed through a strainer to the wash down pump. From the pump I will split and run a water line fore to anchor locker and aft to the swim transom. The pump rated @ 7gpm. Anyone had any experience/recommendations with such an installation?

 

[Rich Stidger]

Here is an alternate solution

I would not use a drain seacock as an intake seacock at all for several reasons. First, when you are rinsing dishes at the galley sink, you are essentially recycling the water since you are picking up water from the very place that it is draining. Food debris will likely cause pump problems. Adding a strainer will not fully solve the problem since you are stil recycling "dirty" water.

Second, when you run the electric pump for the washdown outlets, you will likely pull air from the galley drain into the pump and it will cease to deliver water.

Here is my solution and one that I implemented several years ago on my h40.5.

I tapped off my air conditioning intake. A strainer was already in place. The electric pump output was plumbed to the anchor locker and to the galley sink. Now the pump will pull clean solid water and deliver it to both places. No foot pump is required; the electric pump does double-duty.

I installed a single valve additional faucet at the galley for the seawater. No balancing on one leg to pump a weak spurting stream of water on dishes for rinsing. I have a solid powerful stream for this task. I have thought that an addition of a hand rinse hose from the seawater faucet would also be a good idea, but to date I have not installed this.

See pix below for my setup.

 

[shoeless]

Rich, Thanks. Good points. Now, we were staying away from the A/C water intake seacock for fear of interfering with the flow rate required to cool the A/C. Apparently, you have not encountered any problems with that. After reading your alternate I agree the Galley drain seacock is not a good seawater source for a Gally sink delivery. I don't know if the Gally drain presents too much of a problem for anchor and deck wash down since Gally draining water would be intermitant. Likewise seawater delivery to the Gally would be intermitant and shouldn't cause the A/C to overheat. If the valve were left on or the faucet malfuctioned the A/C shuts itself off before overheating.

Now, I'm trying to imagine the anchor/deck strained sea water with gray water introduced and I don't see a major problem with that. So, since a boat cleaning could draw more water over a longer period of time, perhaps the Gally drain seacock would be a more appropriate source for that draw instead of A/C, but is definately inappropriate for the Gally sink. This seaprates the two so that the wash down pump doesn't draw air through the Gally sink, as you pointed out and me Gally Mate says she prefers the foot pump ( hands free in the sink work) only one electric pump is needed.

 

[Rich Stidger]

Let me add some more info...

After reading your last thoughts, I realized that I did not include the fact that I tee-ed off the strainer to the pump and then put a check valve after the tee and before the A/C pump. That way you can't draw water backward from the A/C. See the attached modified picture.

You need not be concerned with the flow rate from the A/C strainer- there is more than enough to supply the A/C, wash-down, and galley all at the same time.

Regarding the hands-free preference of your galley mate, with a faucet that is turned on supplying seawater for rinsing, both hands are free. I would think hard before putting in a foot pump.

 

[Jerry Clark H356 SV Persi]

Wash down from head intake

My wash down pump is plumbed off the head intake after the strainer. Since the AC is working most of the time and the head is normally inactive, think about using this source. I have two outlets - one at the anchor well and another on the stern. I use the stern one more than the anchor for cleaning off bugs, washing down the cockpit and washing off a stern anchor whenever I use one (rarely). I am in freshwater, so I don't have to contend with the salt.

 

[Doug/Karen]

Yet another approach...

Being on an inland lake, we are required to disable our macerator. Using that thru-hull, I hooked up a small water pump, led it to a 1500psi power washer that I mounted in the port swim deck lazerette and wired the whole process into the port cockpit lazerette where I have a switch. Then, I obtained a pressure hose extension to the existing power washer hose allowing me to reach the bow. This setup simplified the old problem of having to get out the submersible pump, the power washer, the extension cords, etc. etc. every time I wanted to wash down the deck.