[Rhodes22-list] Bilge Pumps -- Not

David Bradley dwbrad at gmail.com
Tue Jan 10 08:59:20 EST 2006


Ahh, I see I replied too quickly yesterday -- it's not such a clear decision
after all.  Thanks again to all who shared opinions.

Dave


On 1/10/06, William E. Wickman <wewickman at duke-energy.com> wrote:
>
>
> I used to own a wooden catboat, and understand that borax can inhibit wood
> rot but it never slowed down mold.  The only answer is to remove or
> minimize one of the three components.  I used to open the cabin on my old
> boat to find such an abundance and variety of mold species that I was
> afraid to get rid of it all for fear that some environmental group would
> come after me for killing an endangered species.
>
> All kidding aside, if you have wood stringers and a damp bilge, the very
> best thing you can do for yourself is go to RotDoctor.com and buy their
> clear penetrating epoxy sealer (CPES).  It is a bit expensive, but it
> really does work to inhibit rot and even stop the beginnings of rot and
> strengthen the remaining wood.  I am fortunate to have the fiberglass
> stringers, but if I had wood I would soak them in CPES.
>
> Bill W.
>
>
>
>
>
>             "Peter Thorn"
>             <pthorn at nc.rr.com
>             >                                                          To
>             Sent by:                  "The Rhodes 22 mail list"
>             rhodes22-list-bou         <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
>             nces at rhodes22.org                                          cc
>
>                                                                   Subject
>             01/10/2006 05:47          Re: [Rhodes22-list] Bilge Pumps --
>             AM                        Not
>
>
>             Please respond to
>               The Rhodes 22
>                 mail list
>             <rhodes22-list at rh
>                odes22.org>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Bill,
>
> You are not alone.  However, I'm more a member of the Dry Bilge Club than
> an
> Anti-bilge Pumper.  I don't think automatic bilge pumps keep a boat dry
> enough.
>
> Apparently Stan now builds boats with fiberglass stringers, but most boats
> have lots of wood down there:  stringer joists and plywood floors.
> Cellulose (wood), warmth and moisture are the three key ingredients needed
> for mold growth.  The only key ingredient that we can control on a Rhodes
> 22
> is water in the bilge.   Ignore a small leak or attend to it only with an
> automatic bilge pump, seal up the cabin, introduce a few of the right kind
> of mold spores, let the boat sit and simmer (at a mooring, dock, on the
> trailer, wherever...) warmed by the sun and what have you got?  A mold
> machine!
>
> Prevention is much easier than the cure for a moldy bilge.  Bilge pumps
> always leave some water under the pump's intake.  An electric pump could
> leave 1/4" or so of water in the entire center stringer section.  I use a
> plastic poultry baster and a sponge to get up every last drop if any water
> is found there.
>
> I'm not sure if salt water helps prevent mold growth.  Most older boats
> sooner or later get rainwater incursions through the ports.   I've heard
> Borax can be used to reduce mold growth too and was thinking about placing
> some in the bilge.  Has anyone tried this?
>
> Regards,
>
> PT
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Bill Effros" <bill at effros.com>
> To: "The Rhodes 22 mail list" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> Sent: Monday, January 09, 2006 11:05 PM
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Bilge Pumps -- Not
>
>
> > Dave,
> >
> > I'm the anti-bilge pump person on the list.  I think they're silly and
> > provide a false sense of security--sort of like draping a St.
> > Christopher's medal over your rear-view mirror, and thinking that will
> > protect you when you run red lights.
> >
> > Your boat won't leak any significant amount of salt water.  The thing
> > that can alter that is if you do something really really dumb.  If that
> > happens, salt water will come pouring in, and the toy size bilge pumps
> > that will fit into our bilges will be completely overwhelmed in 10
> > seconds.  Think New Orleans.
> >
> > You may get some fresh water leakage from rain that doesn't drain
> > properly.  If that is happening, you ought to know about it, so you can
> > prevent it.  Don't let some silly little pump mask a minor problem so
> > you don't know about it until it becomes a major problem.
> >
> > The actual output of these little bilge pumps is pathetic.  I own one,
> > but I never use it.  Instead, I use a manual $20 plastic bilge pump sold
> > at West Marine.  I store it in the sliding compartment under the Port
> > Settee.  Whenever I get more than a spongeful of water, I use the
> > plastic bilge pump.  In a few minutes it will pump out more water than
> > the 12v pumps will pump in an hour.  Literally.
> >
> > If you would like to borrow my 12v bilge pump you are welcome to do so,
> > along with a small jumper battery I keep lying around.  Fill your
> > bathtub with 6 inches of water.  Put this pump into it, and empty the
> > tub into your bathroom sink with the bilge pump.  Tell me how long it
> > takes.  Let a little water keep dribbling into the tub, and the pump
> > will never drain it.  Then the battery will run out of juice, and you'll
> > be in the same position you would have been in with no pump at all.
> >
> > Most boats will sink once enough water gets into the bilge and cabin.
> > Ours won't.  But none of us has enough batteries on board to sustain a
> > pump indefinitely while the water is pouring in.  If the worst happens,
> > you will wind up with a wet cabin, find the hole in the hull, plug it
> > up, and bail out your boat, or pump it out with a pump much larger than
> > anything that will fit in our bilge.
> >
> > I check the bilge every time I go out to sail.  If there is any water in
> > it, I taste it to see if it is salt water or fresh.  Sometimes I keep
> > the bilge bone dry.  Other times I leave some water in it because it
> > acts like water ballast in rough seas, and can make the boat less
> > tender.  If I've got any kind of problem with water entering my boat, I
> > know it right away, because I always check the bilge and I see problems
> > before they get out of control.
> >
> > The extra plumbing and wiring running into the water is just more stuff
> > to go wrong.  For every "the bilge pump saved my boat" story you'll hear
> > on this list, there is another--"the water came flooding through the
> > sink outlet and flowed directly into my bilge" story from someone else.
> >
> > Not to mention what our salt water does to the moving switch parts, pump
> > impellers, and hoses full of stagnant water--seems to me Bruce had
> > trouble with his brand new engine one year because things were growing
> > in his cooling system and no water was shooting out of the coolant
> > tell-tale.  The same thing can happen to your bilge pump plumbing--only
> > you'll never know, because you'll never check.
> >
> > Your boat won't leak.
> >
> > KISS
> >
> > Bill Effros
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > David Bradley wrote:
> >
> > >Today's list traffic on water leaking triggers a question for me on the
> > >necessity of an electric bilge pump.  I am finalizing my "gadget specs"
> for
> > >my new R22 and would appreciate your advice.
> > >
> > >I noted in the archives that a preferred arrangement is to plumb
> through
> the
> > >sink drain, which makes snese to me.  But I didn't see a clear
> consensus
> on
> > >whether an electronic bilge pump is actually needed -- there seemed to
> be
> a
> > >stronger sentiment for just locating the source of leaks (not that the
> two
> > >are mutually exclusive).  Is this a must-have, a nice-to-have, or just
> > >another nuisance gadget?
> > >
> > >And if so, any other recommendations?  Practical Sailor just reviewed
> them
> > >and picked the Water Witch, an all electronic model available at
> Defender.
> > >
> > >Thanks, as always,
> > >
> > >Dave Bradley
> > >__________________________________________________
> > >Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > __________________________________________________
> > Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>
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>
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--
David Bradley
203.253.9973
dwbrad at gmail.com


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