Bilge water!

[Peter Dubé]

I rebuilt the Guzzler 500 bilge pump today. It was easy and simple. It was nice to have written instruction s from the manufacturers website.

http://www.thebosworthco.com/instructions/flapper_valve_replacement_guzzler_500_pumps.pdf

http://www.thebosworthco.com/instructions/diaphragm_replacement_guzzler_400_and_500_pumps.pdf

The pump works much better now!. Ie: it actually empties the bilge.

Now I will be checking the bilge to see if there is a leak.

Peter

[Tom Ray]

What was wrong with it? Were parts deteriorated or was it plugged up or what?

[Peter Dubé]

Tom,

I really could not see anything obviously wrong. There was evidence that some one had done some previous work on it. Lots of silicone sealant. I cleaned that all out, replaced the valves and diagram, and all was well.

Peter

[Tom L.]

When I rebuilt my pump I really couldn't see why it didn't work. All the parts seemed OK but I think they get hard and the flapper valves don't seal properly. Any how after the rebuild all is well.

Tom I did as you described to the transom drains. I removed the flapper valves. There is an obvious seam between the PVC tube and fiberglass transom. With a Dremel I cut a 3'16" "V" groove that cut into the PVC and the fiberglass transom, and sealed the groove with Boatlife, life seal. It's a fair adhesive but more importantly it remains flexible. I did the two cockpit drains and the center drain for the fuel tank storage area in the back of the cockpit. After sailing all day Saturday I had a few ounces of water. I think that may have been left over and seeped out from under the concrete ballast. The only way I can get all the water out is with a wet vac. That works very well.

I wish I could yank out those stupid PVC drain tubes and install thru hull fittings with proper marine hose with double clamps but I don't think there is any way to access the transom to install thru hulls.

Tom L.

[kevnh]

Tom,
I've had the same idea about the thru hulls, especially for the lower drains.  On my list to tackle someday.
Do you think it's possible to access by removing the tiller horn?
-Kevin

[Tom L.]

Not possible on my boat. Just under the tiller horn is the top of the gas tank storage unit which goes almost all the way to the transom and is permanently glassed in. In fact I had a hard time reaching the nuts that hold the rudder casting to the transom. There is just enough room to get a hand and part of your arm in there but I could not reach to the bottom of the hull, too tight. Taking the tiller horn out is a real slow job. It is sealed in with a tenacious sealant and I had to slide a flat blade and pry out a little at a time being careful to not scratch the back of the cockpit and not break the horn.

Tom L.

[kevnh]

Tom, thanks, yes I forgot about that gas tank locker being in the way!
Kevin

[bvd]

I was told to gain access to the inside of the transom, you have to crawl through the cockpit storage. I did this when my rudder bracket was loose and needed to be tighten up.  It's a tight squeeze.

[Tom L.]

Do you mean enter via the cockpit seat lockers?  No way I could do that. You would have to be a really small person to do that.

Tom L.

[capt_nemo]

Tom L.,

Sounds like its time for a crash DIET in order to enter the locker and access the rear of the transom!
Remember to go in feet first.

Seriously Tom, do you have a "small" friend that would donate an hour of their time for a good cause?

capt_nemo

[Catawampus]

We have a youth program at our sailing club. I hired a teenager to get in to the seat locker with a wrench while I worked outside with a ratchet.

[Tom L.]

Steve, I was able to gain access to the bolts that hold the rudder in place by removing the tunnel that houses the tiller. It was tight but very reachable with out crawling into the bilge.  In fact I drilled out and replaced the original four 1/4"bolts with 3/8" bolts and then drilled four more holes in the casting as far out on the perimeter of the casting as possible to spread out the load and reduce the leaver arm dis sadvantage of the relatively small casting for the rudder pivot. Because there are large lugs  near the corners those four bolts had to be 1/4". Still the unit is now many times more secure than before.

Capt with all due respect the job of trying to remove the PVC drain pipes is well beyond a an hour or so and would require some skill with grinders to remove all the fiberglass that is tabbing in  the tubes. Then the addition of new cloth and resin. Making a suitable surface to mount three bronze thru hulls. A big job dealing with the nastiest of stuff,  fiberglass grinds. Sorry I don't have any friends that I would ask to do that.

I actually think if I ever decided I had to replace the tubes it would be easier to cut away some of the fuel storage locker. Then put it back in after the work at the transom was done. The good news I think the leaks are permanently sealed. My comments were mostly an observation as others have said too it's a poor method to drain the cockpit. PVC and fiberglass don't bond.

Tom L.