Mike Smith, INNISFREE, #683

We use a Guzzler 500 for waste pumping from the holding tank. And also installed the same size/make unit for a manual bilge pump to supplement our electric one. Also on a Triton.

Carl Trunk, ALLEGRA, #568

I have a manual bilge pump that exits just above the water line on the port side hull by the cockpit. I have seen another Triton that has the same set up. Am considering raising the exit thru hull higher so that it exits at the same location just under the deck or perhaps running it aft to the stern.

A. J. Matthews, Ay Mon, #605

I have both an electric pump (I actually have two, a Rule 750 and a Jabsco Water Puppy) (and a Guzzler 500 manual pump.) I have two thru-hulls for the three pumps. The 1 1/2" hose for the Guzzler 500 is of course dedicated, but the electric pumps are tied together with a Y-valve. The Water Puppy is simply a redundant pump. A spare, just in case. The Y-valve is mounted underneath the bottom drawer under the galley. That is the same place the Water Puppy is mounted. The primary (Rule) pump is wired as an automatic pump with a float switch. The control is against base of the galley cabinet above the battery box.

The Rule pump and the automatic float switch is mounted on a stainless "L" bracket which is attached to a plank that is bolted to a block on the underside of the sole. The top of this plank is flush with the access panel top the bilge and the bottom end is flush to the lowest part of the bilge (the plank is a trapezoid).

When I find it necessary to perform maintenance on my pump, I unscrew the plank and pull up the pump. I can then detach the hose and wiring and I am out of the bilge. That is oh so important here in the Sunshine State, where too much time in the bilge can lead to vertigo on a hot summer day. I would rather work on my pump in the cockpit where I can reach for another brew from my cooler lashed to the afterdeck. I also avoid getting nasty bilge crud all over my main salon.

Only one of the pumps can operate at the same time. But in a pinch, I can remove the exhaust hose leading into the Y-valve from the Water Puppy and quickly attach a secondary hose that I lead out of the main companion way. That way I can use all three pumps at one time!

Years ago, I installed a Guzzler 500 pump on Ay Mon and I am more than pleased with the performance. I fitted the pump just aft of the blower in the cockpit on the port side. It is mounted vertically with the discharge hose running through the port locker and out through a through-hull in the transom. The intake hose (both intake and exhaust are 1 1/2") runs along side the port engine mount then dips into the bilge just under the A4 flywheel. I use the Whale combination strainer/check valve to keep debris out of the diaphragm (they don't like pennies or crud) and to get that "dusty bilge feeling" when the pump starts making that gurgling sound.

When choosing a pump, you may want to stay away from the aluminum housed models. In time they tend to oxidize and/or corrode which could lead to an expensive replacement. Also, choose the flush mount model. I know the Guzzler models come with everything you would need to finish the job in a neat and tidy package, minus the hose and thru-hull. That includes a removable pump handle and a flush fitting cover. It looks like it belongs there.

Also, stay away from cheep hose. Spend the extra money and get the heavy duty stuff. I started with the plastic corrugated stuff and ended up replacing the hose after five years when it cracked and wouldn't supply suction. In all, I used about seven feet from pickup point to pump and about eight feet for the discharge side.

Ray Alsup, Pegasus, #256

I installed a Guzzler 500 after my Gusher 10 died of corrosion. I also use a Rule 1000 electric pump to clear the bilge of ice melt, stuffing box drippings, etc. I connected the Rule to a 1" bronze check valve then to an existing thru-hull on the port side about 10" from the rail and just below the winch (it was there when I purchased the boat.) This is diffently not the best location for a bilge pump outlet as it siphoned water while on a starboard tack However, I corrected that with a check valve which will do until I can relocate the thru-hull to a high center locating on the transom.

Larry Suter, Dogstar, #607

It was a trusty old Gusher 10 that we stroked 1200 or so times after that fateful race last May when the bilge water was up to Roy's knees and the oil absorber had floated into the forepeak.

Actually, that was one of the last times the Gusher 10 functioned. Same mushy corrosion you described got to the point that I gave up. But I figured, "Hey, that one lasted 35 years", so I got another one. Works great. And this one doesn't even need priming.

Bill Bell, Kialoa,#41

My Kialoa, #41 has had an automatic pump discharging aft, via the lazerette for the past 30 years with no trouble. The discharge is via a thru hull elbpw so that the discharge is straight down. The hole is as close the the center line as I could place it and as close to the transom as I could place it. It is in the bottom - not the transom. I would avoid tying into cockpit suppers for two reasons. One is that you might incur siphoning and two is that crud from the bilge might get blown back into the cockpit by a pasing swell. Remember to switch the hot side of the line - not the ground. Also - in replacing bilge pumpsd over the years - you can get by perfectly well with a small Rule and I find they last as long as the pricier ones. Be sure to carry a spare pump and a spare switch. On my list of "thing s to do" is to wire an hour meter into the pump circuit to let me know if something somewhere is beginning to dribble.

David Butler, WINDWAY, #175

I have my two pumps exiting through to same port side hull opening with a check valve on the electric pump ,I could not sleep nights (at home or on the boat ) without an auto pump installed it might run down the @# 2 Battery by the middle of the summer but I have the piece of mind that she will be there when I go out to her.

Allen Hilburn, KAHOLEE, #158

KAHOLEE's bilge pump exits through the transom, where the possibility of it being below water level are slim. The only drawback is the length of the hose. There is a substantial amount of water that drains back into the bilge, and I am somewhat adverse to check valves if not required.. I plan on installing a system similar to that described in "This Old Boat". This system makes use of two pumps, a small, automatic one located on the floor of the bilge which uses a small hose to discharge the usual rain water, etc.. Drain back is minimal. A second pump of much larger capacity is located slightly above the level of the first, and is manually activated. This pump is for major leaks. It has its own hose of larger diameter,

In order to have both pumps exit at the same point as the smaller pump, you would need a Y shaped connection, and a reducer for the smaller hose. One of more check valves would, most likely, also be required, so I will probably use two separate exit points.

Another thing to keep in mind is that pumps are rated by their ability to pump water to a point level with the pump. Since most applications require that the pump lift the water some distance above the level of the pump, their ability to move water is diminished proportionately to the amount of vertical lift. Take this into consideration when purchasing a bilge pump.

Allen Hillburn, MORNING MIST, #688

I have a bilge pump system like the one in Good Old Boat and proposed by Allen Hillburn. Instead of a Y, each pump exhausts independently in two side-by-side exits on starboard just above the forward portion of the gas tank. The auto pump is rated 12 gpm and the manual electric 20 gpm. The check valves the system came with grew crud and got sticky in Galveston's living, warm water so I removed them. Before extended offshore use I will replace them with valves which can be maintained or are maintenence free. (Is there such a nautical thing?)