Dock on river, no shore power, bilge?

[Crued]

If your boat was moored to a dock on a river which had no power, would you leave the bilge pump on (with some sort of float switch I presume?), and how long would you expect to be able to last this with with the battery still able to support the pump?

 

[Alumarine]

Re: Dock on river, no shore power, bilge?

I have a 16.5' open boat with no cover and routinely go 2 weeks in rainy weather with a GOOD battery using 2 bilge pumps with 2 float switches. Either switch will activate the pumps.
I don't have any leaks and the pointy end is facing the waves, so it's just rain I have to deal with.

 

[jestor68]

Re: Dock on river, no shore power, bilge?

Check the draw(amps)of your bilge pump against the capacity of your battery to see about how long that battery will run the pump.

Sample quiz: You have a 700 AH battery and your pump draws 9 amps. How long will the pump operate?

 

[Scott Danforth]

Re: Dock on river, no shore power, bilge?

If your boat was moored to a dock on a river which had no power, would you leave the bilge pump on (with some sort of float switch I presume?), and how long would you expect to be able to last this with with the battery still able to support the pump?

I would leave the bilge pump on, and I would get a few 50 watt solar panels and a bank of batteries for the dock. that way if 2 days of solid rain come up with 10" of rain, the boat is plugged into enough power to not worry.

 

[Jlawsen]

Re: Dock on river, no shore power, bilge?

Rule makes a nice automatic pump. Get at least an 1100. Wire it up and leave it in auto mode. Check your boat frequently and more often during storms.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Dock on river, no shore power, bilge?

I have a 16.5' open boat with no cover and routinely go 2 weeks in rainy weather with a GOOD battery using 2 bilge pumps with 2 float switches. Either switch will activate the pumps.
I don't have any leaks and the pointy end is facing the waves, so it's just rain I have to deal with.

agreed. My family has kept boats in the water with no power for decades; single battery, float switch (or sometimes a chlorox bottle bailer).
The float is designed (or should be set) so the boat accumulates a safe amount of water before it kicks on, to preserve battery. Keep in mind that heat wears out a battery, too.
Forget the solar and the weight of extra batteries can cancel the benefit (at this point, a lot depends on the size and design of the boat, how far away you are from the boat and how long it would go unattended). If you are going to get a storm that dumps 10" in 2 days you should pull the boat out.

 

[Crued]

Re: Dock on river, no shore power, bilge?

I thought you were to always assume that every boat would have some sort of leak... that's kinda where I was going with it. If that is not the case, then I feel much better about just having float set to a certain level with good battery to last a week or two of boat not being used.

My "new to me" boat is at the shop getting tuned up. I have the ability to have a free dock on the river for it, so I'm trying to plan for that as it's an offer that's hard to pass up.

 

[OllieC]

Re: Dock on river, no shore power, bilge?

LOL - I replaced my old pump and float with the new Rule 1100 that has the solid state auto mode...

 

[Scott Danforth]

Re: Dock on river, no shore power, bilge?

Bubba, the solar panels are to keep a charge on the batteries during sunny days. they only dont work in Seattle where you get 30 days of sunshine per year.

I got the idea from the electric boat lifts I just put in the water with a friend and a friend of mine who lives on his sailboat in Florida relying on nothing but 3 solar panels and a bank of batteries when not running the engine.