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Rockmeister
USA
307 Posts |
 Posted - 06/10/2009 : 11:23:04 AM
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A few years ago, had an un-attended near sinking at the dock that was initiated by human error and was made worse by the way things were wired on the boat.
This caused me to re-think the entire bilge pump system and how it was connected.
Woodboat made me think about sharing this info with you. Thanks Dude! 
Here is what I came up with:
The system MUST be foolproof, and have redundancy built into it, if you plan on depending on it.
* At least 2 bilge pumps on totally separate circuits.
* Increase pumping capacity.
Consider larger pumps, especially as back-ups with the floats set slightly higher, that way the smaller pump with less battery draw will operate first, then the larger pump will operate if needed. (Thanks to Jimbosong)
* The two circuits are fed from separate battery banks.
* The bilge pumps are fed directly from the battery banks and are NOT switched by ANYTHING in the main panel, INCLUDING NOT SWITCHED by your large battery selector switches. (Foolproofing.)
* Self re-setting circuit breakers on the bilge pump circuits.
Self re-setting breakers will keep trying to work without a fire risk if an actual short/overload exists.
Most any fuse will eventually open after prolonged use, even though the current is ok.
You can get self-resetting circuit breakers at most any Radio Shack or NAPA auto parts.
* 2 separate battery chargers, one for each bank. (Had one fail once due to a lightning strike.)
Smart chargers will also prolong the life of your batteries and provide longer pump run-time.
* AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) batteries provide much longer run-time and much faster charging.
* ACRs (Automatic Charge Relays) help keep things foolproof and batteries fully charged.
* Separate 120v AC circuit breaker for the chargers, totally independent from the main panel and not too easily accessible to most people.
(Can't easily be flipped off by accident.)
(Mine is under the Dinette seat, as are my chargers.)
If shore power is connected, my batteries charge, period.
* A dedicated NON-GFI outlet for the chargers, so a false trip can't cause a problem.
(Highly recommend all other outlets be GFI-protected.)
*Redundant float switches.
Float switches are notorious for failure.
Keep in mind that all your pumps etc are absolutely worthless if they do not operate automatically when you are not there!
* A buzzer or alarm operated by a time delay relay.
An audible alarm that will operate after your bilge pump has been operating for a few minutes (operation should be quick in normal conditions.)
This will notify you and others when you are not around that something is wrong. (Thanks to monterey74)
A second option is a separate float switch that operates the alarm, you can buy a complete bilge alarm kit for less than $40. Cheap insurance...
* Keep sources of water to a minimum.
All boats that stay in the water will leak some kind of water if even simply from rain.
Shaft packings, rudder packings, etc, all this stuff may let water in, maintain these and service as required to minimize water intrusion.
* Regular maintenance.
Having good batteries, checking pumps & float switches for blockage and proper operation etc regularly.
No normal battery powered bilge pump system I have ever seen will keep up with the huge amount of water coming in from torn bellows on an I/O, check these kind of things...
(Nor will your arms with a manual pump...)
(Have had TWO friends experience torn I/O bellows! Both survived it due to sheer determination, quick thinking and lots of very hard bailing with a 5 gallon bucket! Does this sound like fun to you?)
* Keep the bilge clean.
Something as simple as a hair-pin or a stray wire-ty, etc can stop many bilge pumps from functioning.
Some of these things were already done by Carver at the factory, but not all.
Your vessel may be quite different, for the better or worse.
You may want to look at it closely before you need it.
As monterey74 mentioned, most will never notice your boat sinking, they WILL notice that it has sunk AFTER the fact!
(So will the governmental jurisdictions that fine you large amounts of money for the environmental spills...)
With proper care of your systems, your boat is likely to be above water next time you see it.
As I think of things, will add them to the list, as well as your suggestions. 
79 28' Mariner twin inboard V-drive.
Western Lake Erie: Maumee Bay & The Islands
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Edited by - Rockmeister on 06/18/2009 09:46:11 AM |
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monterey74
USA
51 Posts |
 Posted - 06/10/2009 : 12:16:49 PM
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Nice system Rock. Particularly important for every boat owner whether or not they add the additional hardware is the Regular Maintenance and Cleaning. Neglect is usually a factor when an unattended boat sinks.
Another safeguard that is relatively inexpensive and easy to install is a small horn or buzzer operated by a float switch.
A Short Story:
Two years ago a boat three slips down from ours sank while sitting in its slip hooked to shore power. It was a late 1990s 28' Carver Express, a beautiful boat. This occurred in the middle of a marina with over 125 boats, many live-aboard folks, at the height of the boating season in mid August.
One evening after work my wife and I were heading out for a cruise in Lake Huron. As we walked down the pier toward our boat I noticed that the Carver Express was tied up pretty tight. We had never seen any people use the boat all season and at the time I simply assumed that they must have finally come and taken their boat for a ride and tied it up a bit tighter than it had been previously.
Upon returning about 3 hours later we initially noticed a gasoline smell in the marina. I glanced around looking for the source and immediately noticed the Carver Express was 90% submerged. The only thing keeping it from settling to the bottom were the mooring lines attached to the floating finger pier that was itself struggling to keep above the water. Needless to say, the beautiful <10 year old boat was now inundated with oil and fuel and water.
Now this boat sank on a summer evening sometime just after work in a large marina on a pier with 24 other boats. People had been coming and going right past this boat and all the while nobody realized that it was filling with water. Whether the bilge pump was on an automatic switch or not I cannot say. In a large marina it is common to see water pouring out of a thru-hull on any number of boats. Usually the reason for the water is a running heat pump, it is not an attention getter. Who knows how long this boat and its pumps may have been struggling to keep afloat?! It could have been days.
If this boat had been fitted with a float-operated horn the sinking never would have occurred. Some person irritated by the constant horn blowing would have investigated the cause and discovered that the boat was filling with water. I suppose also that if the boat's owner had _used_ the boat once in a while the problem would also have been detected sooner.
1974 2885 Monterey
1978 2896 Mariner (Stripped down to the gunwale and ready to cut) |
Edited by - monterey74 on 06/10/2009 12:32:24 PM |
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Jimbo Song
225 Posts |
 Posted - 06/10/2009 : 5:29:47 PM
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Rock, good suggestions all! Personally, I opted to wire my bilge pumps without a breaker of any kind. As long as the batteries have jioce they will operate. The other thing I did was triple the size of my pumps. Originally my boat came with 1500 gph pumps fore and aft. I now have 4500 gph pumps fore and aft. Unless it is a HUGE hole they will more than keep up with the inflow.
quote:
Originally posted by rockmeister
A few years ago, had a near sinking that was initiated by human error and was made worse by the way things were wired on the boat.
This caused me to re-think the entire bilge pump system and how it was connected.
Woodboat made me think about sharing this info with you.
Here is what I came up with:
The system MUST be foolproof, and have redundancy built into it, if you plan on depending on it.
* At least 2 bilge pumps on totally separate circuits.
* The two circuits are fed from separate battery banks.
* The bilge pumps are fed directly from the battery banks and are NOT switched by ANYTHING in the main panel, INCLUDING NOT SWITCHED by your large battery selector switches. (Foolproofing.)
* Self re-setting circuit breakers on the bilge pump circuits.
Self re-setting breakers will keep trying to work without a fire risk if an actual short/overload exists.
Most any fuse will eventually open after prolonged use, even though the current is ok.
You can get self-resetting circuit breakers at most any Radio Shack or NAPA auto parts.
* 2 separate battery chargers, one for each bank. (Had one fail once due to a lightning strike.)
Smart chargers will also prolong the life of your batteries and provide longer pump run-time.
* AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) batteries provide much longer run-time and much faster charging.
* ACRs (Automatic Charge Relays) help keep things foolproof and batteries fully charged.
* Separate 120v AC circuit breaker for the chargers, totally independent from the main panel and not too easily accessible to most people.
(Can't easily be flipped off by accident.)
(Mine is under the Dinette seat, as are my chargers.)
If shore power is connected, my batteries charge, period.
* A dedicated NON-GFI outlet for the chargers, so a false trip can't cause a problem.
(Highly recommend all other outlets be GFI-protected.)
*Redundant float switches.
Float switches are notorious for failure.
* Regular maintenance.
Having good batteries, checking pumps & float switches for blockage and proper operation etc regularly.
No normal battery powered bilge pump system I have ever seen will keep up with the water coming in from torn bellows on an I/O, check these kind of things...
* Keep the bilge clean.
Something as simple as a hair-pin or a stray wire-ty, etc can stop many bilge pumps from functioning.
Many of these things were already done by Carver at the factory, but not all.
Your vessel may be quite different, for the better or worse.
You may want to look at it closely before you need it.
With proper care of your systems, your boat is likely to be above water next time you see it.
As I think of things, will add them to the list, as well as your suggestions.
79 28' Mariner twin inboard V-drive.
Western Lake Erie: Maumee Bay & The Islands
1987 Carver Voyager 28
Jimbo Song |
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Rockmeister
USA
307 Posts |
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ONLY thing your boat can do by itself, is SINK...
