Transfer or bilge pump in pontoons

[phlpittsny]

First post ... could not find this topic anyplace, so please be gentle if this is covered someplace I could not find.

I have a 2005 SmokerCraft Sunchaser Fish 824 pontoon boat. I bought it used at the start of the 2014 season.
During the season, the pontoons took on enough water to make sloshing easy to hear when you stopped the trailer.
As per discussions in these forums and elsewhere, I took it to a welder with experience in these things, who pressure tested it and welded a LOT of cracks to get it back sea worthy (~ $700.00/9 hours labor).

So far so good. I would like to add either bilge pumps or an 'outside the pontoon' transfer pump system to pump out the pontoons when and if more water accumulates.

Has anyone had any experience with installing such a system? If so, could you explain and, perhaps, provide photos?

Thanks in advance ...

 

[Grub54891]

Are there no drainplugs in the toons? If not you could have them put in at the welders. Or would you like a systym to drain them while on the water.

 

[Scott Danforth]

a bilge pump in the toons would be difficult because most toon logs are compartmentalized. and cutting a big access hole sort of defeats the purpose of a sealed chamber.

if you get water in a toon log, you have a leak. most likely a crack at a weld for one of the brackets (been my experience 95% of the time).

we always used about 3psi pressure and a siphon tube to drain the water out of the chambers while using the air pressure to look for the cause of the leaks.

 

[phlpittsny]

grub1grub2 ...
I was hoping to have something to use on the water. I thought maybe a transfer pump, up on deck, next to the batteries. Then tubing leading down to the pontoons. I would need (I think) 2 tubes per pontoon. One leading to the bottom of the pontoon and one just to allow are INTO the pontoon, so a vacuum does not occur.

 

[phlpittsny]

Scott ...
I agree, thus the repair I had done. Was looking for something to tide me over between repairs. Usable ON the water.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Scott ...
I agree, thus the repair I had done. Was looking for something to tide me over between repairs. Usable ON the water.

if you have a leak that you need to address while on the water, head to shore quickly a pump wont keep her afloat.

 

[BrianMc]

A pump could keep up just like it would in any other boat with bilge pumps, as long as it's not too big of a leak. There is a way to do this without cutting holes in your tubes.

My tubes have 3 compartments each,but only the back compartments have a drain. I used my wash down pump to do this. It has to be a self priming pump with 5'-10' of lift. The day I mounted the pump I got to thinking it would work as a bilge for any compartment using a manifold system. Wash down pumps or 12 volt pumps used for field sprayers at your local tractor supply store use 1/2" hose. A 1/2" garden hose will drop into the fittings on top of your tubes. I used that white 1/2" RV hose which fit tight enough that I didn't have to seal it.

To see if it'd work I pumped about 50 gals. of water into a front compartment at home. I was also testing the wash down pump with the intake hose dropped into a 5 gal. bucket of water. On the suction side of the pump you place a T with one drop for the fresh water intake,and the other to the tube draw hose. There has to be a valve on both suction tubes. Once the pump was primed I closed the valve to the fresh water suction hose,and opened the tube hose. It took less than 10 mins. to pump it out. Worked slick....

Haven't had to use it as a bilge yet,but it will work. This winter I plan on making a small manifold to pull from each compartment. Why not? It'd be simple to do.

 

[Grub54891]

Most toons already have a vent. The second hose should not be needed. I suppose a tube toward the rear of the toon could be installed,just by drilling a hole up top and sealing in a tube. Me,I wouldn't worry about it. Just have the plugs installed when ya get a chance. You already have the leaks fixed,it should be fine till ya get 'er done.

 

[BrianMc]

The second hose is for my wash down drawing lake water. It does help as I'm pulling about 18' to where my pump is mounted. It'd probably go ahead and prime itself,as there's only 2'-3' of lift. Haven't tried that though.