Flooding at the dock

[Driftwoods]

Well, not really flooding but there was about 8 gallons of water in the bilge. I know because I bailed it with a bucket, way faster than the manual pump. Making it seem like a big deal was the bilge pump blowing off the discharge hose and turning the bilge into a whirlpool. Loud and wet.

I replaced the bilge pump and float switch - been on my list all summer long anyway. While there, replaced the discharge hose since it was hard as a rock, probably a contributor to blowing off the hose. Put in a new wiring terminal also since it was a little corroded. So all good there now.

The question remains, where did that water come from? Fresh water system is holding pressure and pump not running. Now that I bailed it all out, there's no more coming in, staying dry, so can't be a leaking thru hull or it would keep filling. Rained really hard so I checked the deck drains since 2 of them have a fitting that runs through a locker inside the boat and they're both dry as they get. The water looked really clear so I don't think it was sea water - the Houston are sea water looks pretty nasty.

Right now, I'm thinking 2 things happened. My AC unit condensation drains into the bilge unfortunately. I'm thinking the float switch got jammed up somehow and let condensate run off build up for a day or so. It's so humid here and hot that the AC runs 12 hours a day and can dump a good 6 gallons a day I'm told. Then, once whatever was blocking the switch popped, the pump fired and blew right off the hose.

That's my theory. Once the rain starts, my wife will sit in the boat looking for leaks while I hose the boat down a section at a time so maybe we'll find something out different.

Anybody else got a better one because a compound issue like that seems a little far fetched but it's all I got right now.

[Astrid]

Did your bilge pump hose have a kink in it by some chance that might have allowed accumulated grunge to build up to the point where the line was too restricted when the pump was operating?

[Driftwoods]

That's a good question. When we took it out it looked like it ran pretty cleanly BUT ...

The discharge hose in my boat (Morgan 43) runs from the bilge and into the engine room into the drain manifold for the deck drain. Consequently, it runs in there and then runs to the top of the engine room and over into the drain which runs from there into the bottom of the boat - below the water line.

It very well could have built up gunk in there over the years despite not being a kink - there are some tight turns and it never pumps fully out. Plus, that hose looked original to the boat.

I gotta say, I don't like that arrangement. I'd prefer it pump over the side above the water line so it's obvious to anyone on the dock that something is going on.

[gonesail]

agree the bilge hose should exit above waterline. plus if it below waterline there is always that chance of syphoning back into the boat.

[Driftwoods]

That was on of my thoughts, that it had somehow begun to siphon back into the boat. But the cockpit drains are above all of it and clear so I figure that would act like a siphon break. Wouldn't it?

[monte]

maybe the hose fell off a couple of days ago so the switch was working fine, just recirculating the water. Always taste test the water to see if its salt or fresh (or maybe holding tank?? ) find somewhere to run the AC besides the bilge. T it into a sink waste or dedicated above waterline through hull. Fit a dedicated through hull for the bilge as well...

BTW, a bit hard to follow the running of the pipes, but why doesn't the water from the cockpit drains return to the bilge? Is there an anti siphon loop between the bilge and manifold?

[Sailmonkey]

was the water fresh or salt?

And yes, condensate can easily fill your bilge with 8 gallons in a short time. I prefer a condensate pump to keep the excess water out of the boat.

[Driftwoods]

I don't know if it was fresh or salt because I didn't taste it. If you saw the Houston/Clear Lake water, you'd not taste it either. That's a gastro-intestinal meltdown in that soup.

It was very clear, not Clear Lake grey/green. I think it was fresh. Either AC condensation or rain water.

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by Driftwoods

I don't know if it was fresh or salt because I didn't taste it. If you saw the Houston/Clear Lake water, you'd not taste it either. That's a gastro-intestinal meltdown in that soup.



It was very clear, not Clear Lake grey/green. I think it was fresh. Either AC condensation or rain water.

I see that water all the time, usually end up with a good bit in my mouth too, but make it a point to spit it back out!!


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[Terra Nova]

Sounds like you should have a pro diagnose and repair it.

[onestepcsy37]

Are you connected to dock water? I'm not. Visions of a burst hose and the entire city resovoir sinking my boat at the dock...

[FilBrown]

I've used food colouring to trace leaks before with some success.
If you put a few drops in a pipe or onto a tissue in or under the pipe outlet you'll find the same coloured water in the bilge.

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