Sump Question

L

Lakesponge

Member
exMember
Joined
Jan 1, 2000
RO Number
847
Messages
249
My Monterey 302CR is rigged for the gray water to go into the holding tank. My galley and head sink both drains into a plastic self contained sump in my forward bilge. My AC drains into the bilge and is pumped overboard. When at rest and not putting anything down the drains, the sump pump cycles on for a second every 5 minutes or so. After a year with the boat, this is the first I heard it. When investigating the sound I realized the smell coming from that area is skank! The AC drain water is very clean, but the plastic sump is cruddy on the inside.

Any idea why the sump is cycling on every several minutes or so?

Am I supposed to take the sump apart and clean it once in a while? And if I do, because I have a VacuFlush system, will I alter the vacuum? Any words of advice?

Thanks

Jim
 
Pour some bleach (an ounce or so) in the condensate pan once a week. The bleach will serve to kill the stuff causing the skank and the problem will take care of itself in short order.

If you have kids with long hair, anticipate the filter on the sump unit will get nasty and will eventually clog. All that requires is removing the cover and filter and flushing the filter with some soap and water. Twenty minute job tops. While you have the cover off, pour some Dawn detergernt or bilge cleaner in the sump with a bit of water. The sloshing around will help to break up the skank as well
 
AC drain into the bilge is a bad idea, it too will stink soon.
 
first, I see that you are on a lake... is there a local rule stating that grey water must not be discharged ?

if not, you shoudl reroute your sinks to drain directly overboard (gravity) and route both the shower and the AC condensate to the sump and overboard discharge.

indeed running the AC condensate in the bilge is a bad idea...

IF you are not allowed to dump grey water overboard in the lake you're in, then everything incl condensate needs to go the holding tank, either directly or thru the sump.

Sumps gets nasty, and you need to clean the screen regularly. how often depends on how much you use the showers and who does... long hair make it worst... sending galley water in there can only make it worst with grease and food residue... chekc if you can easily route the sink directly to the holding tank by gravity, that may help.

sumps have a cover so odors shoudl not be an issue in the boat.

using bleach is ok but since you're sending that into the holding tank, only do it before pumping out or the bleach will kill the "good" bacteria in your holding tank.

your sump and holding tank have nothign to do with the vaccum in your VF. Vaccuum is only built in the vac tank. downhill of the vac tank and vac pump is normal plumbing...
 
Thanks for the responses.

I am on a lake that does not allow any gray water into the lake, it must go into the bilge. My forward bilge where the AC drains has a bilge pump that sends it into the holding tank. I will put a little bleach in the AC condensate pan so it will drain into the fwd bilge. We don’t use the shower but do use the galley sink and pour a lot of stuff down it. I’ll use a bit more Dawn and see if that helps. The boat comes out of the water in a few weeks and I’ll clean the sump and filter then.

Thanks.

Jim
 
Gray should go to a tank directly, not the bilge. Same for A/C condensate.

I -really- do not want to sniff what you bilge must smell like. Try to keep it dry.
 
Jim, your sump is cycling because the check valve is bad. The check valve is supposed to keep the water that's sits in the hose between your sump box and the through-hull from re-entering the sump. Yours is leaking, so the water is backflowing into the sump, which triggers the pump, only for it to happen again in a few minutes. The check valve design varies from brand to brand. In an Attwood sump for instance, it's nothing more than a rubber flap at the base of the hose. This flap is easily warped by bleach or other harsh cleaners.
 
When I purchased the boat, almost new last year, it was rigged for the gray water at the factory: AC condensate into the fwd bilge and the galley & head sinks into the plastic sump.

I plan on cleaning, rinsing and winterizing it over Columbus Day and will be able to deal with the check valve then. I did add the bleach today it it helped – and yes it did stink in the enclosed area, but nowhere else. More to follow.

Jim
 
Lake George, NY is one of the few areas in the country that doesn't permit the discharge of gray water overboard. For the sump, get a couple of bottles of Raritan "CP - Cleans Potties" and put several healthy squirts of it in the sump on Sunday nights, before leaving the boat. It is a bio-enzymatic cleaner that will dissolve the soap scum and hair that is accumulating in the sump, and will leave you with a nice clean, good-smelling sump. But it takes a little time to do its job. So if you squirt it in on Sunday night, and leave it there until next time you come on the boat, you should have a pleasant surprise when you return.

Water should never be drained directly into the bilge - it should be drained into a sump, then pumped from there into a storage tank for dockside pumpout. If it drains directly into the bilge, you're going to have all sorts of things growning down there (algae, etc.) which will eventually stink up the boat.

Here's the BoatFix link for Raritan "CP - Cleans Potties" (also cleans other things, too )

http://www.boatfix.com/elec/rarclean.asp

As far as the pump cycling every so often, the others have hit the nail on the head. The check valve either needs to be cleaned or replaced. Bleach, in spite of popular opinion, shouldn't be added to the sump. It affects the rubber seals and valves, and over time, renders them useless. A lot of boaters seem to think that bleach is the answer for everything! It often causes more problems than it solves.
 
Thanks Vic. I’ll try the “CP - Cleans Potties”, before I perform the final end of season cleanout. And as a point of clarification: I went back and confirmed my AC plumbing…. My condensate does drain into the forward bilge and it’s very clean. The Attwood pump takes the AC condensate from the bilge and pumps it directly overboard. Only the galley & head sinks and shower drain (we never use) are drained into the plastic sump. I agree, the AC should go directly overboard or thru the sump to the holding tank.

Thanks to all.

Jim
 
The A/C condensate may put a burden on your gray water tank in terms of capacity. This may be an alternative solution. Expensive but here in VA the humidity gets so bad, it is not uncommon to have the sump turn on several times an hour. I would venture to guess that in the heat of August the condensate being pumped over the side was in excess of 10 gallons per day.

You may also consider another sump in the bilge to pump over the side as well. When all is said and done, price wise it will be close to a wash.
 
AC condesate isnt' that clean... there is always dust and maybe even some mildew on the fins which will drain down with the condensate water. you really want that going to a sump.

especially under the cabin/fwd bilge which should remain dry, unlike the engine room bilge where you always end up with some water.
 
David, I've found that most people who think their sumps are working hard actually have bad check valves. If you have followed your own advice of pouring bleach into the condensate pan, and you still have an Attwood sump, your check valve is likely toast.
 
Pascal beat me to the punch - I was going to say that.... [:-spin] But he's correct, A/C condensate picks up all sorts of dirt, etc., and pretty soon it starts growing things down below - and they don't usually smell good.
 
Anyone ever try those gizmos that send condensate out with the cooling water. Some kind of venturi. Do they really work? Anyone know where to get one?
 
quote:
Originally posted by PascalG

AC condesate isnt' that clean... there is always dust and maybe even some mildew on the fins which will drain down with the condensate water. you really want that going to a sump...

Click to expand...


Agree...BUT...(I didn't want to bring this up in the event there were liberals lurking)...DAMMIT no gray water but I can pump bilge water over the side. This is an interesting antithesis to Big Brother Legislation to force you to pay obnoxious sums of money for licensure fees in order to pump bilge water over the side.

IT'S INSANE!!!!!!
 
quote:
I can pump bilge water over the side.
Click to expand...


You can? I've never boated in an area where gray water is prohibited, but bilge water that creates a sheen on the water is illegal pretty much everywhere that I'm aware of. I'd be surprised if the language of the gray water laws would allow bilge pumping in anything but an emergency...
 
i dont' think clean bilge water is a problem in areas where gray water discharge isnt allowed. afaik, the only areas where clean bilge water can't be discharged are a few small spots marked by buoys in the Fl Key over the reef where it expressly says you cannot discharge black, grey or bilge water. yes... cooling water is still ok. It's some kind of sanctuary, and no more than a couple of square miles altogether.
 
there's an area like that in Lake Huron too - it's a "no dis-charge" zone. That's why I was curious about the law KiDa referred to.
 
quote:
Originally posted by lark

Anyone ever try those gizmos that send condensate out with the cooling water. Some kind of venturi. Do they really work? Anyone know where to get one?

Click to expand...


See my post with the link 4 above this one. I have heard pros and cons, but they do work. IIRC, there is a suction noise that bothered some. However, I never heard a complaint that they did not work. Dometic recommends the sump route and they own MarineAir. They will use the venturi in a situation where they cannot get to the sump.

Break

SLW,

here is the legislation I was referring to.

http://www.boatus.com/gov/Fed_Alert.asp

WRT the check valve, could have been. I sold the boat. the only thing that went to the sump was the shower drain and the A/C. It was not so much the pump was overworking as you could actually watch the sump slowly fill and cycle on about every 10 to 15 minutes. It was humid as could be in 8/2006.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top