Hi - my first post to this forum....
I have to store my fiberglass boat in the water during winter where it must survive occasional freezing conditions. I have little or no opportunity to check on its condition during the winter and worry about whether the bilge may be taking on water. I have installed a 120 watt solar panel that I hope will keep the two 110 amp-hour batteries topped up that power the bilge pump. I'm thinking about installing something like a Jabsco Par-Max 4 bilge pump since it is mounted above water and is self priming, rather than a submersible pump. Let me explain my concerns and ask a few questions.
The concern is whether the Jabsco pump can be mounted in a way that when it stops operating water automatically drains out of the pump and tubes so that it can survive freezing weather without damage. My idea is to mount it horizontally, with the inlet facing down and the outlet facing up. That way ?left over? water in the pump could drain down the inlet tube back to the bilge. The pump outlet would be slightly higher than the through-hull discharge fitting so the output tube could drain out. This might enable the draining of the pump to prevent damage to its internal parts due to expansion of freezing water. Some questions, if anyone knows or has an opinion:
Question 1: during operation, would the pump expel all of the water entering the pump or does some residual water remain?
Question 3: if residual water does remain after operation, does it all drain out completely, or would enough be left to freeze and cause expansion damage?
Question 2: Actually, does it really matter if residual water does remain in the pump since it uses a diaphragm design that might not be damaged by expanding frozen water?
Any help appreciated.
Thanks!
I have to store my fiberglass boat in the water during winter where it must survive occasional freezing conditions. I have little or no opportunity to check on its condition during the winter and worry about whether the bilge may be taking on water. I have installed a 120 watt solar panel that I hope will keep the two 110 amp-hour batteries topped up that power the bilge pump. I'm thinking about installing something like a Jabsco Par-Max 4 bilge pump since it is mounted above water and is self priming, rather than a submersible pump. Let me explain my concerns and ask a few questions.
The concern is whether the Jabsco pump can be mounted in a way that when it stops operating water automatically drains out of the pump and tubes so that it can survive freezing weather without damage. My idea is to mount it horizontally, with the inlet facing down and the outlet facing up. That way ?left over? water in the pump could drain down the inlet tube back to the bilge. The pump outlet would be slightly higher than the through-hull discharge fitting so the output tube could drain out. This might enable the draining of the pump to prevent damage to its internal parts due to expansion of freezing water. Some questions, if anyone knows or has an opinion:
Question 1: during operation, would the pump expel all of the water entering the pump or does some residual water remain?
Question 3: if residual water does remain after operation, does it all drain out completely, or would enough be left to freeze and cause expansion damage?
Question 2: Actually, does it really matter if residual water does remain in the pump since it uses a diaphragm design that might not be damaged by expanding frozen water?
Any help appreciated.
Thanks!
