Question for Anna - Bilge Pump

[Bigplumbs]

Anna

You seem to have done most things on your Fletcher 19 GTS So there is a good chance you could help me here.

My Bilge pump is knackered and it is as you know in a terrible position. I have a simplish solution but I need to find the electrical wires to the pump. Mine has the float switch and the helm switch and having put some water in the bilge the float switch is operating and heating up the pump. I am sure the float switch wire is connected after my battery isolator switch.

I was wondering if you know which colour or indeed where this wire is generally connected. I am sure I can with some work track it down but any of your vast knowledge of this boat would be very much appreciated and I am sure helpful.

Here is a pdf for the old pump by the way if anyone is interested. Interesting the bit about regular maintenance....... That is easily done when it is under the engine !!!!!!!!

http://www.safety-marine.co.uk/download ... df?did=283

Thanks

Dennis

[annageek]

Hi Dennis - Yep I've had the misfortune to have to mess about with our bilge pump!

I think ours had a bit of an after market bodge done to it, in so far as the switch in the permanent live to the float switch was just on a makeshift plastic bracket on the side of one of the battery boxes. Nevertheless, the switched 12V from the cockpit switch should be the blue and white one in the loom. The permanent live to the float switch was plain red all the way through, and that will join somewhere to the attwood float switch wires, which are black ad grey if I remember rightly (with the pump wires being black and brown, but it could be the other way around).

I had intended to put a really good sealed connector on the float switch and on the pump so I could replace either with minimum fuss, but ran out of time before the boat went back into the drystack last season. I did manage to sort out the connections that were just bound in black insulation tape and were dangling down in the bilge water!!

The only way I could reach it was to take the infill from in the cuddy, tie a rope through the little finger hole and then last the other end to one of the stern rails. With the front end of the infill resting somewhere over the engine (can't remember way it was, but it was sturdy enough), I had a sort of downward facing ramp that I could lay face down on and slide into the engine bay head first! It worked - but it did cause alarm to the next door neighbour that just saw a pair of legs sticking out of the top of the boat! It was not easy to say the least.

Good luck!

[Bigplumbs]

Anna

Many thanks for the reply. I knew you would have had to grapple with the bilge pump.

I have been at the boat all day and have I think located the wires to the Pump but they are incredibly difficult to get at. I had power to the pump again today for ages as I did yesterday and it did not get in the slightest bit warm, as opposed to yesterday when it got very hot. I think we have possible blown a fuse or burnt something out which actually is good. I will leave all the old pump etc in situ as it is in my view next to impossible to remove

I have now decided to put a smaller (750GPH) new pump in the bilge at a reasonably accessible point to the front of the engine with a switch in the engine bay and no float switch. I will run a new waste through the port locker and cable tie it to the self draining pipe from the cockpit scuffers and out a new hole just above this self draining hole.

My theory is that not much water will get in the bilge but if it does I will just lift the engine access from time to time look for water and if there is any I will just throw the switch in the engine compartment for a while. The switch at the helm position will then be redundant. Working in that engine bay is no fun

Dennis