Bilge Pump
 

My family has an 18(?)-year old Shamir Sidewinder ski boat. For several
years now, the bilge pump has not worked. I can hear it humming when I
turn it on, but it does not pump any water. Any suggestions that do not
involve much dismantling of the hull?

I hate to ask the obvious question, but is there water in the bilge to pump?
It's not always the case ya know. I'm not familiar with that boat, but I'm
pretty certain that the pump would be pretty accessable to replace if need
be.

--Mike


"jflash" wrote in message
...
My family has an 18(?)-year old Shamir Sidewinder ski boat. For several
years now, the bilge pump has not worked. I can hear it humming when I
turn it on, but it does not pump any water. Any suggestions that do not
involve much dismantling of the hull?

mgg wrote:
I hate to ask the obvious question, but is there water in the bilge to pump?
It's not always the case ya know. I'm not familiar with that boat, but I'm
pretty certain that the pump would be pretty accessable to replace if need
be.

--Mike


"jflash" wrote in message
...

My family has an 18(?)-year old Shamir Sidewinder ski boat. For several
years now, the bilge pump has not worked. I can hear it humming when I
turn it on, but it does not pump any water. Any suggestions that do not
involve much dismantling of the hull?



Yes, there is water in the bilge. Also, I'm not sure if I've got the
right place for the intake, but there is a ski locker in the floor. The
reason I think this is the place is that there are no other compartments
that could hold water. I also can't even find the pump itself, and there
are about three pipes down there that could be the inlet.

The pump will be a the back of the boat behind/under the rear seat or engine
depending on the layout of the boat.
It will not be in the ski locker as that is not at the rear of the boat.

They are fairly cheap and usually a lot easier to replace than repair.

--
Tony
my boats and cars at http://t.thomas.home.mchsi.com

-
"jflash" wrote in message
...
My family has an 18(?)-year old Shamir Sidewinder ski boat. For several
years now, the bilge pump has not worked. I can hear it humming when I
turn it on, but it does not pump any water. Any suggestions that do not
involve much dismantling of the hull?

tony thomas wrote:
The pump will be a the back of the boat behind/under the rear seat or engine
depending on the layout of the boat.
It will not be in the ski locker as that is not at the rear of the boat.

They are fairly cheap and usually a lot easier to replace than repair.


Are you saying the inlet would not be in the ski locker? On our boat,
the ski locker is in the floor, and extends to the back of the boat.

"jflash" wrote in message
...
My family has an 18(?)-year old Shamir Sidewinder ski boat. For several
years now, the bilge pump has not worked. I can hear it humming when I
turn it on, but it does not pump any water. Any suggestions that do not
involve much dismantling of the hull?

First, are you sure there is enough water to pump out? Many times, you can
"see" an inch of water or so, but the pump may be mounted above that "water
line".

You may want to check the hose, and make sure youre not pumping the water
back in the hull via a crack/break in the line.

Short of that, youre going to need to get to the pump. Cooked impeller, or a
clogged inlet are things to look for.

Good luck.

--
-Netsock

"It's just about going fast...that's all..."
http://home.columbus.rr.com/ckg/

"jflash" wrote in message
...
tony thomas wrote:
The pump will be a the back of the boat behind/under the rear seat or
engine
depending on the layout of the boat.

Not usually on a ski boat. The pump is normally mounted near the center of
the hull.

It will not be in the ski locker as that is not at the rear of the boat.

They are fairly cheap and usually a lot easier to replace than repair.


Are you saying the inlet would not be in the ski locker? On our boat,
the ski locker is in the floor, and extends to the back of the boat.

Depends. Some ski lockers are plastic/fiberglass "tubs" that are separate
from the hull, while others lockers are simple "hatches" that lead directly
to the hull under the flooring.

The pump will definitely be in the hull.


--
-Netsock

"It's just about going fast...that's all..."
http://home.columbus.rr.com/ckg/

May or may not be in the locker. You need to find the pump. It will be
accessable from behind a seat or somewhere around the engine. Just keep
looking and you will find it.

Most boats have drain hoses or outlets that flow the water to the pump which
is located at the lowest point of the boat.

--
Tony
my boats and cars at http://t.thomas.home.mchsi.com

-
"jflash" wrote in message
...
tony thomas wrote:
The pump will be a the back of the boat behind/under the rear seat or
engine depending on the layout of the boat.
It will not be in the ski locker as that is not at the rear of the boat.

They are fairly cheap and usually a lot easier to replace than repair.


Are you saying the inlet would not be in the ski locker? On our boat, the
ski locker is in the floor, and extends to the back of the boat.

Find the hose and outlet from the pump and trace back to the pump.

"tony thomas" wrote in message
news:ka6ne.23397$Is4.3736@attbi_s21...
May or may not be in the locker. You need to find the pump. It will be
accessable from behind a seat or somewhere around the engine. Just keep
looking and you will find it.

Most boats have drain hoses or outlets that flow the water to the pump
which is located at the lowest point of the boat.

--
Tony
my boats and cars at http://t.thomas.home.mchsi.com

-
"jflash" wrote in message
...
tony thomas wrote:
The pump will be a the back of the boat behind/under the rear seat or
engine depending on the layout of the boat.
It will not be in the ski locker as that is not at the rear of the boat.

They are fairly cheap and usually a lot easier to replace than repair.


Are you saying the inlet would not be in the ski locker? On our boat, the
ski locker is in the floor, and extends to the back of the boat.

Bill McKee wrote:
Find the hose and outlet from the pump and trace back to the pump.

"tony thomas" wrote in message
news:ka6ne.23397$Is4.3736@attbi_s21...

May or may not be in the locker. You need to find the pump. It will be
accessable from behind a seat or somewhere around the engine. Just keep
looking and you will find it.

Most boats have drain hoses or outlets that flow the water to the pump
which is located at the lowest point of the boat.

--
Tony
my boats and cars at http://t.thomas.home.mchsi.com

-
"jflash" wrote in message
...

tony thomas wrote:

The pump will be a the back of the boat behind/under the rear seat or
engine depending on the layout of the boat.
It will not be in the ski locker as that is not at the rear of the boat.

They are fairly cheap and usually a lot easier to replace than repair.


Are you saying the inlet would not be in the ski locker? On our boat, the
ski locker is in the floor, and extends to the back of the boat.




I'll try that again, but part of the problem is a)the hose goes through
a bunch of wires, and b)it ends (along with the pump, I assume) behind
the gas tank, which I have no interest in removing for this project.