Keep A Dry Bilge With Arid Bilge...

Saw this device last weekend at the St Pete boat show. Rep couldn't explain to me how to keep it from clogging up with junk from the bilge. He Said the scotch-bright on the bottom of the siphon tube would keep it from clogging..
 
Getting one of these is a band-aid, not a cure. If you get water in your bilge, it’s coming from somewhere. Find the source and save the cost of this device. Oh, and you’ll also be prolonging the life of your boat as well as whatever/wherever the leak is coming from.
 
From what I saw it looked like works like wick to get the water in the tube. I don't want it but saw it t and wanted to share.

MM
 
1B906786-3B29-45D5-BA54-C8F83249A8C0.jpeg
I’ll tell you this. It took me a good 12-18 months to get and keep a dry bilge! No one else will ever care but few things give me as much joy as turning on the lights and seeing a nice clean dry bilge.

Now how do I fix the sideways pictures from my iPhone?
 
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NotHerDecision said:
I’ll tell you this. It took me a good 12-18 months to get and keep a dry bilge! No one else will ever care but few things give me as much joy as turning on the lights and seeing a nice clean dry bilge
Click to expand...


Yes, I do care, and I’m with you. You did it right, and without the band-aid. My bilge looks high and dry, just like yours. So yes, I understand what a good feeling it is!
 
NotHerDecision said:
I’ll tell you this. It took me a good 12-18 months to get and keep a dry bilge! No one else will ever care but few things give me as much joy as turning on the lights and seeing a nice clean dry bilge
Click to expand...

I am on that journey with my new boat. Can't wait to feel that joy...

MM
 
NotHerDecision said:
View attachment 62673 I’ll tell you this. It took me a good 12-18 months to get and keep a dry bilge! No one else will ever care but few things give me as much joy as turning on the lights and seeing a nice clean dry bilge.

Now how do I fix the sideways pictures from my iPhone?
Click to expand...

Bilge looks awesome! Slightly crop your photos from your iPhone, and they'll post correctly.

-Tom
 
30A22722-4A4D-47C5-B3E0-AD641BE8E9EC.jpeg
Ok I think I did it. Testing now.

Seems to have worked. I wonder why that fixes it?

Anyway MM, you will get there. It was the ac condensate drains and the bilge pump check valves that really tested my patience. I finally mastered cleaning my strainer without spilling water and plumber thecondensate drains to the overboard discharge with a sump box.
 
NotHerDecision said:
View attachment 62673 I’ll tell you this. It took me a good 12-18 months to get and keep a dry bilge! No one else will ever care but few things give me as much joy as turning on the lights and seeing a nice clean dry bilge.

Now how do I fix the sideways pictures from my iPhone?
Click to expand...
Im curious where the moisture and wet areas came from? Dry bilges are terrific !
 
Before I owned a cruiser I didn’t understand why bilges were wet. But the reality is there are 100 places where water can come from. The typical culprits are

AC condensate drains
Freshwater fitting leaks
Raw water leaks from engines generators or ac system
Water from cleaning and servicing sea strainers
Shower sump issues and overflows
Freshwater drains
Bilge pump leaks

Bob the reality is it takes months to find and correct all the small things to have a dry bilge, then because I am so picky I have to service all the bilge pumps, switches, and hoses. Then clean the bilges themselves.
 
I started deep in the hole, so to speak. The AC charger had failed just before I went to see the boat, both air conditioners were on and batteries dead. Weeks of summer condensate in all the bilges.

Good news, new charger and batteries from seller, I replaced all the shower sumps for condensate discharge and have now cleaned the bilges and dried them. The battle will begin again in the spring.

MM
 
NotHerDecision said:
Before I owned a cruiser I didn’t understand why bilges were wet. But the reality is there are 100 places where water can come from. The typical culprits are

AC condensate drains
Freshwater fitting leaks
Raw water leaks from engines generators or ac system
Water from cleaning and servicing sea strainers
Shower sump issues and overflows
Freshwater drains
Bilge pump leaks

Bob the reality is it takes months to find and correct all the small things to have a dry bilge, then because I am so picky I have to service all the bilge pumps, switches, and hoses. Then clean the bilges themselves.
Click to expand...
Thanks Josh.
 
On the 50+ DB’s, the main salon a/c pans do not have enough drop to the common drain manifold and they will occasionally “slosh” out when going up on plane. I’ve seen mine slosh in rough water as well.
 
Now even with a clean dry bilge, would you want the system in the original post to get that out instead of you doing it manually?

MM
 
MonacoMike said:
I think that is an issue for all of us with AC.

MM
Click to expand...
Mike - I did not have the problem on my 340 or 410. They had a pretty good drop to the shower sumps. I'm told the boats with the common drain manifolds do not have enough drop to drain as well. I'm going to clean out all my drain lines that run to the common manifold this winter...
 
carterchapman said:
Mike - I did not have the problem on my 340 or 410. They had a pretty good drop to the shower sumps. I'm told the boats with the common drain manifolds do not have enough drop to drain as well. I'm going to clean out all my drain lines that run to the common manifold this winter...
Click to expand...

My 270 AC condensate line plugged with biological growth. I also plan to run a AC pan tablet to kill it.

MM
 
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