Bilge Pumps

[seasalt]

Does anyone know where the factory located the three original bilge pumps on a 35TE? I have seen the aft pump and one in the forward part of the engine room which runs when I select the forward pump. Is there supposed to be one forward of that?

This may seem like a very elementary question that might be solved by looking around but I have some extra switches in the salon that are wired in a bazaar manner.

[amber jj]

On our 31 we have a forward pump just outside the head door along side the shower sump.I don't know if that is the is the same or not ,but is worth a try. Bob

[whwells]

Ron: Nibbles does have the 3 original pumps. Actually, i have only seen the one mid ship ahead of the batteries center of the bilge/ and then the second is located at the rear near the transom center bilge mount. I have heard the other one run. Pretty sure it is located forward under the forward cabin bed. Won't be able to really vertify the forward pump until late Jan. my next trip north.
It could be that the mid ship pump is located under the battery box and the one I see ahead of the shower is the forward pump.
whwells "Howard"
2006 35te Sportfisher/flybridge
2004 Osprey Pilothouse 22

[DougSea]

I have three.

Forward pump can be seen from the engine room (looking forward) at the aft end of the forward bilge. It is just aft of the water heater shelf.

Midship pump is in the center bilge area, below the batteries.

Aft pump is located just in front of the transom.

[seasalt]

Hence the question. When I turn on the pump forward of the batteries the forward bilge light comes on. When I select aft the transom pump runs. When I select the mid pump switch nothing runs.

Under the hatch outside the head is the shower sump and a high water float switch. I cannot readily see forward.

Thanks everyone

[DougSea]

Maybe this will help. Yellow circles are the approximate location of my 3 pumps.

BilgePumpLocationsSonnyIV.jpg

And of course you should be able to trace the hoses. My bilge pump hoses are all 1-1/8". The forward and mid come out via the group of thru hulls on the starboard side, the aft pump runs out via the transom.

[whwells]

Doug: Thanks helpful to us all. After my posting, I got to thinking the mid ship pump had to be under the battery boxes. One any more forward than the one in front of the engines would be in the bow rise area and ineffective.

Will be doing all three of my 8D batteries before this season of boating. That will be my first chance to view them & the mid ship pump up close. Since they are AGM batteries there has been no service issues. Starting is still fine - but I think it is time to change for longer periods out on the hook. Hoping to do a serious run this year to the far north and all must be perfect. Did the golf batteries AGM for the inverter last year so this will bring me to all new ones. That is if the money does not run out first. Always an issue as to how much this year!

Happy New Year.

whwells "Howard"
2006 35te Sportfisher/Flybridge
2004 Osprey Pilothouse 2004

[Halcyon]

My 2004 has the mid bilge pump located aft of the batteries. I can access it by laying on the battery box facing aft.

[seasalt]

i have a confirmed sighting on the one that turns on when I select "Fwd" (just aft of the shower sump) and the one that runs when I select "Aft" (at the transom). The middle is the mystery. For some reason the light for "Mid" stays lit all the time on the bridge and in the salon. I was told that it was the way it had to be wired to work but now I am wondering about it. The switch labeled "on and off" with a middle position does nothing that I can hear so I assume that where ever it is, it is kaput. I suspect under the rear set of 8 D.s.

Today I replaced the generator battery with a series 31 AGM. To further the mystery this battery is connected to a small bilge pump directly under the back of the center fuel tank. The wire to the pump is labeled on masking tape "automatic bilge pump". I can see the pump but do not see a float switch. What I can tell by the numbers on the little pump it is not a float swithless model.

So the mystery continues and the mechanic has been called. I suspect that I do not have a single working float switch for any of the pumps because when water accumulates I have to manually activate the forward pump to remove it. It is a good thing that the boat is behind my house.

[seasalt]

A revision to the above based upon further investigation.

After all the neighborhood "Mow, Blow and Go" yard contractors had left for the day and quiet had returned, I got my neighbor to help me researh the pumps.

The small pump under the aft end of the center tank (that is wired to the generator battery) clearly says: Fully Automatic Bilge Pump. I need new glasses. But, there is water about half way up it so I suspect that the fully automatic part is dead. I hope my mechanic likes standing on his head because it is way, way down there.

The mid bilge pump switch in the salon with the light that "must be on" really must be on to allow the fly bridge Mid switch to activate the pump. The salon switch itself does nothing but provide on-off power to the bridge switch. Figure that out??? Further, where ever the pump is, it is either is a broken fully automatic pump or the float is broken. Quite a bit of water flowed when I held the bridge switch on.

My reason for concern now is that while on our six day trip to Ft. Myers Beach over Christmas the fresh water pump was cycling every 7 or 8 minutes keeping me awake at night. There is a leak somewhere causing a loss of pressure. When I looked in the bilge the next morning the water was higher than normal and not a single automatic function had removed it. I was able to get rid of it manually activating the Fwd pump, which also may be a broken fully automatic version. I can't see enough of it to tell.

This boat is no different than anyother boat that I have owned. When I get off the gremlins get on...every day.

[DestinSteve]

Ron,

We have 3

Forward just behind shower sump. This pump is a electronic switch type that looks for water by coming on a second or 2 every 2 1/2 minutes. A bit annoying but you tune it out after a while.

Mid pump is a remote pump mounted on the starboard battery shelf with no access and hard to even see without moving the 8D in front of it. The Inlet is a bronze strainer below the shaft log (single engine version) with a float switch beside the strainer.

Rear pump is just forward of transom below center rear hatch. Also with a float switch.

All of mine are wired with full time power directly from the house battery to the float. They are also wired to the fly bridge switches -2 way switched with 1 side pump stays on and the other side a momentary switch.

I changed all 3 this summer after the mid pump failed. It was the hardest for me as i could not find a place to move the 8D battery so i could work on the pump so it had to come out of the boat.

I think our boats are within a few hull numbers except for the single/twin differences should be similar.


Steve Purvis
Albin 35TE
Gulf Girl

[seasalt]

Steve,

I am pretty much like you are. My foreward one has a Rule-A-Matic (float in housing) switch which does not work. The mid pump and Rule-A-Matic is visible between the battery boxes. It is going to be a bear to fix. My aft pump is same as yours with a Rule-A-Matic switch. I have an extra 500 ghp fully automatic pump under the aft end of the center fuel tank that does not work.

I am convinced that none of the Rule-A-Matics work. All of three main pumps work on manual.

The forward pump has an extra rocker switch (center) rather than the traditional bilge pump switch. Also in the salon is a normal (bottom of picture) bilge pump switch (momentary on, mid and off). This switch is wired such that, in the center position, the light is on which allows the bridge switch to work. Any other position and the bridge does not work. Plus, the stick must be upside down because off is momentary and on stays on. I know that this should not be that way but it is.

Thanks for the help.

Ron

[seasalt]

The mechanic came today and fixed everything on my list having to do with bilge pumps except the mystery light above. He is coming back next week for some other chores and will think about the light until then. He suspects that the wiring block above the mid pump is wired incorrectly. Time ran out this morning or he would have tried switching some wires down there.

Today's fixes:
1. Forward high water float swich got replaced.

2. Loose wire on forward pump was fixed and now works both manually and automatically.

3. Mid pump float was stuck. Now it works on auto...if the damn panel light is on.

4. Fully automatic pump under aft end of center tank was replaced.

Now I have four working bilge pump floats/pumps.

The easy to get to aft pump and switch always has worked.

[seasalt]

The light on the panel pictured above is now off. The electrician found the hot and auto wires crossed on a terminal block in the bilge above the pump. Now the bridge switch is independent of the salon switch and the salon switch will run the pump manually. The auto function is not affected by either switch.

$71 bucks....cheap!

[whwells]

Ron: Out west the phone call would be 71. Great result.
whwells "Howard"