Bilge pump not working help please.

[Hungry Man]

Hi Folks, I just bought a 99 X22 off of jeffcpa.  It's an awesome boat! The kids went nuts because I didn't tell them I just showed up from a 28 hour drive with it.  They thought I was working!  Anyhow, the bilge pump did not work when I bought it and it makes no noise at all.  Any suggestions on where to start.  I will check the pump for junk stuck in it first.  I brought it into Canada, Edmonton AB.  Can't wait for the weekend.  Oh and is there supposed to be a seal on the drain plug? It does not have one, its just plastic onto plastic?
Thanks for any help!

[skiboarder]

Check with a tester if you are getting power to it if there is no power check fuses. If there is power and its not plugged up its prabably junk buy a new one. The plastic drain plug should have a rubber washer to seal it.

[cyclone]

it is an off-the-shelf Rule 500 GPM pump, located forward of the battery. Check that the wiring is not backwards, i.e. brown to black and vice versa instead of brown to brown, black to black. It's a quick fix either way, just cut the plug off the old one and solder it to the new one, or use heat shrinkable crimp connectors. All available at a marine store. The pump snaps into a blue plastic holder screwed to the hull liner.

[boneil]

If you have a trunk (or compartment that runs across the entire stern of the boat) I would pull up the plate on the bottom and see if any water is coming in.  Through the rudder post and drain plug.  I can see both at the same time on my boat.  Plastic on plastic can be a good seal...  although mine is metal on metal

When you say the pump it isn't working... is that b/c you see water in the bilge and while stopped it is not pumped out when you turn the switch from off to on? 

Growing up on other people's boats I remember hearing a whine when the bilge pumps where turned on manually with or without water in the bilge.... or automatically when water hit the sensor.  The only sound I hear after buying a Toyota is when water is pumped out and it's the sound of water splashing on water after being pumped out.  I don't think I ever hear my pump running.  I think we have auto pumps when the switch is in the on position, but because of pump placement or a dirty sensor I usually have to cycle mine manually to expell water.   And usually only when I'm stopped or at idle.

Also if sealed up properly I can take an hour trip and not take on enough water to have the bilge cycle even if I toggle the switch.

If this is not the case it sounds like a decent option to replace with off the shelf part.  Very smart enthusiasts on this site!

Good luck and glad to hear about your new purchase and the kid's excitement.  Best and most economical boat to own in your situation.  In my opinion.

Brian   

[boneil]

I also forgot to mention that I always have spare pumps on the boat to fill ballast sacs. and/or in case of taking on too much water.  So don't go out if you don't know it's working for sure....  Better off to find the parts and worst case wait a day or two on shipping.

B

[epic_toy]

I think there is a float switch in the bilge pump. So even if you turn it on at the dash, it wont turn on (and you wont hear anything) unless there is enough water to float the switch. At least that's the style in mine...

[PSullivan3]

same here

[Lakeside]

Mine didn't work at the beginning of the season.  I opened the battery cover on the floor, reached in and unsnapped the pump from the plastic bracket on the floor, cleaned some gunk out and it's worked perfectly since.

[Ktown]

I have the plastic on plastic plug and it works great.  I used to unscrew it after every trip, but quickly realized that it is not necessary.  Once you get the bilge pump running, it will displace almost all of the water.  I typically don't get any water out of the plug after pulling my boat out of the water.  As for the pump, all of the previous recommendations are good ones.  The obvious answer would be no water/ no pump because of the auto on/off.  However if you push the switch with the pump exposed, you can normally hear the pump click.  Good luck.

[cyclone]

The factory Rule pump cycles every two minutes when in auto, no float switch.