If the pump cycles even once, there's still a leak somewhere,but it
might not be enough to bother with. After I found my leak on Tuesday,
I left the boat with the pump turned off, and I was still able to draw
a pint or two off of the accumulator a day later.


Roger Long wrote:
I found the leak. The PO (with typical optimism) put the brass hose
barb fitting into a brass elbow without any tape or sealant. The seep
ran down the hose to where the shelf the pump sits on was always damp.
Since it was the cold water hose, I thought it was condensation on the
hose.

Once that was tightened up, pump cycling dropped to maybe once in the
night before I installed the accumulator.

I could have lived without the accumulator after fixing the leak. The
water flow was fairly steady. It's nice though to be able to fill a
cup or brush my teeth without the pump coming on. It's also nice to
be able to get a usable amount of water when the pressure pump switch
is off. I'm not sure I would have paid the sixty bucks of materials
and my three hours work if I could have done a direct comparison
beforehand but it's nice now that it's done.

I woke up this morning and the water flowed the usual amount without
the pump coming on so the system is now completely tight.