1995 Adventure install forward bilge pump

[marki55e]

I have a 1995 Adventure. It spends all season in the water at the marina. It usually has a few inches of water in the bottom in about the middle of the boat. The aft bilge is always dry. Since it is always in the water it is not at an angle where the water flows to the back bilge.

A bit about the boat. There is a deck plate in the bottom of the cabin floor just forward of the small drain hole. From there you can see down to the the hull. In there you will normally see about two inches of water. There are no leaks, just rain water and water from washing the boat. From the hull back there there is a wall so you cannot go further back.

I want to put the bilge in the area just back from there. about under where the seats are. This way as the boat sits the water can get pumped out.

Has anyone attempted to install a bilge in the same space? What is the best way to access the area? As you step down into the cabin there is the wall under where the door is. If I cut a hole and install a deck plate on that wall will I be able to access the hull? I think this will be key since I will also need to run a hose to the side of the boat for the bilge to pump the water out of. Of course I would be putting the outside hole for the hose above the waterline. Any suggestions for a good way to get a hose through?

It seems like a good winter project as I think it might get complicated. If anyone has pictures of what it looks like in there it would be very helpful

 

[seasick]

In addition to the painful work to install a pump and plumbing, there is another issue. I have this same issue on my 208 and other boat; On myotherboat the forward area even with a pump will still have some water in it. Water gets in through the anchor locker lid. In winter, that small standing water will freeze. It may and probably will freeze with the float up causing the pump to run ( if automatic). That will do two things, run down the battery and kill the pump. If the new pump is manual only, it too will sit in standing water and will freeze in the winter. That can also kill the pump ( I know, it took 3 pumps until I realized that the only way to keep the pump from being damaged was to physically remove it in the winter.

Note that adding antifreeze to the mid bilge are doesn't solve the freezing problem. Eventually rain water will dilute the solution and it will freeze.
Another factor will the low lying mid bilges is that when the hull is somewhat level, water in the aft bilge can flow forward.
In storage, the only way to effectively drain the mid bilge is to raise the bow up relative to the stern, high enough to allow the forward water to drain aft. You would be surprised how much you have to raise the bow to get all the water to drain aft ( and out the transom drain).

 

[glacierbaze]

.A true bilge pump has an open impeller, which is submerged. If you just want to drain the standing water, and if access is the problem, and if you can reach it with a length of hose, you might be able to use a livewell pump, with a few feet of hose attached to the pick-up side. As long as it is fairly horizontal, you won't be creating too much lift, but you will need another through hull in the side of your boat for discharge. Unless, you can run a discharge hose aft far enough for the water to drain to the aft pump, but it doesn't soundd like you have the access for all that plumbing.

 

[Sdfish]

I have also thought about this, my boat is on a trailer so I just back down the ramp after washing and let the water flow out.
I wonder if it is really an issue to have water sitting there (other than being a nuisance) , with the number of 208s in slips, if there was an issue - I think we would have reports of what they were? Is there a negative impact to having water sit there?

 

[marki55e]

Thanks for the replies and suggestions. I do understand the potential for a freezing issue. That is a good point. The boat spends the winter on a trailer with the plug out. I keep the front up enough so water flows out the back. When we pulled it out and up the ramp it was lifted high enough that all the water went back. The regular bilge pumped it out. This is the first time since April it has been drained.
A downside is having a bunch of stagnant water floating around in the bottom. A real problem is with weight. The boat is already heavy enough with the hardtop, gear, and supplies. Sometimes we can pump out 3 bucket loads (15 gallons). That is about an extra 150 pounds.

I guess like most of our projects the issue is access. It is hard to get to anything under the deck. All those deck plates seem promising until you open them and find out most are dead ends.

 

[seasick]

Regarding the pump burning out; It is not the ice that killed it. It was the fact that the freezing water since it expands, pushes up and hold up the float switch. The pump runs and drains the liquid water under the ice but then runs dry...for ever... until the motor overheats and burns out.

On the other topic of how much water is in the bilge, my aft bilge on my 208 is pretty much dry. The water that accumulates in the forward bilge runs aft when the bow is fairly higher than the stern is no where near 15 gallons. If you have that much water you have something else going on.

And finally, I have had the water in the mid bilge area for 15 seasons of north east winters and as far as I known, no damage has been done.