Bilge Question

Jbreamsiii

Jbreamsiii

Member
Sep 14, 2021
33
Louisville, KY
Boat Info
1996 Sea Ray 215 Express Cruiser
Engines
5.7L Mercuiser
Is it normal for your bilge to kick on for like 15-30 seconds about every 45 mins/hour or so at anchor? Plug is tight. Where else may I have a small Water intrusion to look for?
 
It's either water intrusion or fresh water line leaking... For my e.r. it's a little easier as we float in salt water, I smell first and then taste it if doesn't smell like shit...lol
 
Everything about a boat is designed to keep water on the outside. Start by eliminating dynamic conditions such as rain, wash-down, swimmer splashing, etc. Once that water has been expelled, the pump won't come on again unless you have a leak.
 
Jbreamsiii said:
Yes, spit out a stream of water for like 15- 30 seconds
Click to expand...
That doesn't seem long enough. I wonder if your float switch is set too low to allow your pump get all the water out and it's just backfilling the bilge. While you're there for some time, turn you pump off and monitor the bilge water level. If it's noticably rising after a few hours, then you probably have a leak. If not, then it's something else. Make sure you turn the pump back to auto before you leave.
 
We don’t leave it in the water. It’s in a valet lot and they put it in and take it out when we want to use it. Going to have a mechanic take a look and let me know what they think. Thanks all for the recommendations!
 
Well, a few places are main bellow ,shift cable bellow, exaust Y pipe leaking, any thru hull fitting ,sea cock valves etc.
 
Jbreamsiii said:
Is it normal for your bilge to kick on for like 15-30 seconds about every 45 mins/hour or so at anchor? Plug is tight. Where else may I have a small Water intrusion to look for?
Click to expand...
Mine turned out to be the bottom of my hot water heater was all rusted out and was leaking. New tank solved that problem.
 
Jbreamsiii said:
Well it was the shift cable boot. It was ripped pretty bad. Going to have both bellows replaced.
Click to expand...
That's the "sink the boat" one. It would have leaked more when the drive is trimmed up. Good to do all of the boots and bellows at the same time when they have things apart. If your trim senders are not working might be an idea to do them at the same time.
 
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