Bilge and prop issues

[MTMedic13]

Ok first the bilge problem. I turn in the Manuel switch and I hear it running. but No water come out. Same on Auto, I hear it turn on and no water. So I'm thinking Pump Issues and I have a tournament in two weeks.

Next is the prop. the Motor is a honda 150 with 19 degree pitch prop. at 4500 RPM's or higher it starts to suck air. The motor can not get any deeper on the transom and from what I am reading a higher pitch prop is in order like a 21 or 22 degree prop.

Looking for advise and yes it is a new boat to me.

Thanks.

[Coho975]

Originally Posted by MTMedic13

Ok first the bilge problem. I turn in the Manuel switch and I hear it running. but No water come out. Same on Auto, I hear it turn on and no water. So I'm thinking Pump Issues and I have a tournament in two weeks.

Next is the prop. the Motor is a honda 150 with 19 degree pitch prop. at 4500 RPM's or higher it starts to suck air. The motor can not get any deeper on the transom and from what I am reading a higher pitch prop is in order like a 21 or 22 degree prop.

Looking for advise and yes it is a new boat to me.

Thanks.

For the pump, I would start by checking for trash built up on the suction strainer.

[REW]

MT,
With respect to the bilge pump.
You could try using a garden hose and push water through the bilge outlet backward through the pump. If there is something plugging the pump, by pushing water through it backward, it could very well clear the pump.l

If you do this several times with no change, then I would just install a new pump.

p.s.
If you do decide to change the pump, a heat gun can be your best friend. By using a heat gun to heat the hose that fits onto the pump, the hose will both expand and get softer, so it will be easy to remove. Then, when you put the hose back on the new pump, heat the hose first which will expand and soften the hose and make it very easy to install the hose.

If you do decide to install a new pump, get a big one like 1000 gph or 1200 gph. If you have water in the boat you normally want to get the water out of the boat as quickly as possible which happens if you install a larger capacity pump.



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With respect to the prop.
You said that you have the motor mounted as low as possible. But, do you have the motor trimmed in just as far as possible when running fast.

If yes to both of these questions, try a different prop. If needed just borrow a prop from someone or get one from a dealer on a try before buying. Also, if you don't have a spare prop, pick up a spare prop.

You might consider the use of a 17 pitch prop for your boat. The current prop could be cavitating because the pitch is too high.

Best wishes

[Ltrain]

Take the pump out and check if something is obstructing the fins. Could have old fishing line or some other debris stopping the fins from rotating. Usually that situation would blow a fuse if left on too long.

[Yellow Fever]

So...you can hear both pumps but no water exits the boat? Is there enough water in the bilge to pump? Most set ups have seperate hoses for pumps i beleive so to have both hoses blocked would be strange.pull the pumps (they snap out of the housing easily) and take them apart as mentioned then run a garden hose as suggested. Strange one. I would be interested in the fix

[REW]

MT,

p.s.
I expect that none of the information today is not already known to you, but in case you need a refresher, here it is.

================================================== =========================
Just to be clear - you indicate that you are talking about a BILGE pump.

The Bilge pump is in the bottom of the boat and is used to empty the Bilge.

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Then you have a livewell pump that is used to pull water in from the body of water in which the boat is located and pumps it to your livewell.

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The 3rd pump is the aerator pump that simply takes water out of the livewell, and pumps it back into the livewell with a sprayer nozzle to aerate the water in the livewell.

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If you are talking about turning on the bilge pump to empty water out of the bilge there needs to be several inches of water in the bottom of the boat for the pump to pump water.
In the manual mode, the pump will run anytime that the switch is turned on.

In the auto mode, the pump will run anytime that the water raises high enough to trip the float to turn on the pump, or if an electronic sensor - high enough for the electronic sensor to turn on the pump to drain the water out of the boat.

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If you are talking about the livewell pump:
In manual mode, the pump will turn on just as soon as the manual switch is turned to the on position. If the boat is sitting in water, and if there is no air lock in the pump, and if the pump is working correctly, and if there is no blockage on the outlet of the pump - water will begin to flow into the livewell.

If the livewell switch is turned to the auto position, the switch turns on an electric timer. Thus, the pump will began to run - and if the afore mentioned conditions were met, water will begin to be pumped into the livewell. The pump will continue to run, until the timer expires. Then, the pump will turn off. After the off time expires, the pump will restart and will run for the duration of the on timer and the cycle will continue.

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So, in the case of the bilge pump pumping water - there has to be sufficient water in the bilge for the pump to suck it up and pump it out.

In the case of the livewell pump, the boat needs to be in the water with the livewell inlet not plugged and below water level. Then, there needs to be no blockage between the water and the pump, and there needs to be no air lock on the output of the pump. Also, the pump need to function correctly with a working motor, a good impeller and no junk in the motor or hoses that would not let the water be pumped through the pump and into the livewell.

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If you find that you can not get your livewell pump, unless you back the boat up for a bit to create pressure into your livewell pump you likely have an air lock issue. An air lock is created when the livewell pump outlet hose first goes up and then comes back down - before getting to the livewell. The rise and fall before the livewell of the hose creates the potential for an air lock. If you find that your system is doing this a good share of the time you need to examine the entire path of the livewell pump outlet hose and make sure that there are no high spots followed by a low spot anywhere in the livewell pump outlet hose path. If so, you need to do what ever is necessary to resolve the issue.

This rise and fall of a livewell feed hose is not uncommon in a lot of different brands. The reason for this happening is because of the way that boats are built.
For convenience and speed, many boat livewell systems are assembled with the livewell out of the boat. Fittings are attached to the livewell and then hoses are attached to the livewell. Since the livewell is out of the boat above the floor at the time the hoses to the livewell are longer than needed when the livewell is finally dropped into place and made secure. As a result of using these longer hoses, unless the boat builder is careful, with the hose placement when putting the livewell in place, the hose and or fitting to the livewell can end up being higher than the inlet to the livewell and thus - build in an air lock.

So, in the worst cases, the only solution for this due to access considerations is that the livewell needs to be taken back out of the boat, resolve the plumbing and hose placement issues and angle of the spray nozzle hose inlet on the outside of the livewell. Then, the livewell needs to be placed back into the boat and made secure, all the while not upsetting the correct placement of the pump hoses to the livewell.

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Take care

[chudockms@yahoo.com]

Originally Posted by MTMedic13

Ok first the bilge problem. I turn in the Manuel switch and I hear it running. but No water come out. Same on Auto, I hear it turn on and no water. So I'm thinking Pump Issues and I have a tournament in two weeks.

Next is the prop. the Motor is a honda 150 with 19 degree pitch prop. at 4500 RPM's or higher it starts to suck air. The motor can not get any deeper on the transom and from what I am reading a higher pitch prop is in order like a 21 or 22 degree prop.

Looking for advise and yes it is a new boat to me.

Thanks.

I had same problem with bilge see if you can blow air from the exit hole on the side of boat back to pump. I had a blockage in the elbow by the exit hole.

[jax833]

get down there and clean off the intake!! clogged up I suspect