Bilge Pump

[BenTen]

Not sure if this is the correct sub-forum but here it goes....

While reworking my water holding tanks etc. I moved my bilge pump forward a bit to where the water settles naturally in my 3697. In doing so I noticed that the Automatic function of my bilge pumps don't seem to be working properly which leads me to ask you all:

Shouldn't the bilge pump, when not in the continuous position, power the pump via the float (or water sensor if equipped)? My helm switch turns the pump on in both positions as long as the pump breaker is in the 'on' position in the main panel. Now I haven't pulled the switch yet to see if the PO changed anything, but my common sense tells me it should be working differently.

Thanks!
Ben in SC

[Cooler]

Ben - yes, the FWD & AFT pump should turn on with the float switch, assuming your batteries have power. That does not apply if you have a float switch on the pump in the shower sump box. (Shower sump breaker needs to be on ) The float has to get high enough to engage, so pull up to test. More often than not, it may be the float switch that is bad, not the pump. You can test the switch by using a common pin, and pushing that pin through both brown wires connecting the float. If you get the pin thru middle of the wires, the pump will start running. If the pump does not run, it is bad. If you need to replace the float, make sure you get the right profile if it is located under anything. A shower sump needs the low profile to fit under the round tube strainer. Hope that makes sense. er

[bud37]

What kind of pump....do you have the one with the internal float switch or the external separate float switch ?

[Viper]

The pump should activate when you lift the float. In some applications, there is a toggle breaker at the panel for the manual circuit and a push-button resetable breaker for the automatic circuit. Check to ensure the automatic circuit breaker hasn't tripped.

Use caution if you're going to "pin" the wires. This is a common practice in the automotive industry but not advisable in a marine application. This leaves the wire core exposed and the only way to then fix it properly is to cut the wire anyway and butt connect them with an adhesive lined shrink butt connector. Considering this, to test properly, you might as well cut the wires right from the get go. Leaving the wire exposed will lead to failure pump failure that might happen at the worse possible moment not to mention other consequences such as shorts and stray currents that can lead to destroyed thru-hull hardware, running gear, etc.