Ron Thornton ) writes:

I
thinking of using a plastic toilet tank float with a straight stainless
steel rod of maybe 2-3 feet.

a ping-pong ball inside a lenght of plastic pipe mounted vertically?
or a sealed length of plastic pipe set inside the vertical pipe?
either should foat up and trip a switch. the oringinal problem posted in
the thread was the need for a damper to keep the pump from getting turned
on and off frequently, I think. you cold weight a sealed pipe float so it
only rises when the water reaches a certaian level and then pumps the
bilge dry before shutting off.

as a cartop sailer I don't have bilge pump experince and could be off.

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