78 43dc forward shower sump

[Captain Ralph]

Lids on a shower sump? Why?

[Jims43DC]

Well now, that’s very interesting. Is your galley stock? Mine is and I’m trying to collect ideas on it up fit.

Yes galley is basically stock configuration.

[Pascal]

Lids on a shower sump? Why?

Eliminates odors…. Not a huge problem but some people have sensitive noses .

Also when the POS rule switch fails, the shower will back up alerting you instead of overflowing into the bilge until you notice the bilge pump is running …

I have a lid on one, and none on the other one

[Captain Ralph]

Eliminates odors…. Not a huge problem but some people have sensitive noses .

Also when the POS rule switch fails, the shower will back up alerting you instead of overflowing into the bilge until you notice the bilge pump is running …

I have a lid on one, and none on the other one

Wills Hatt and other older Hatts have original open sumps. No issues.
Our Bert has 3 open shower sumps and sump in ER for AC units. No issues.

I remember working on Rule covered sumps. PIAs.

Most ole Hatts I've worked on have a light that is visible when the sump pump cycles on/off.
Watch that or bilge pump lights cycling.
Amazing what these lil lights are trying to say sometimes before your sensitive nose has an issue.

[Pascal]

Wills Hatt and other older Hatts have original open sumps. No issues.
Our Bert has 3 open shower sumps and sump in ER for AC units. No issues.

I remember working on Rule covered sumps. PIAs.

Most ole Hatts I've worked on have a light that is visible when the sump pump cycles on/off.
Watch that or bilge pump lights cycling.
Amazing what these lil lights are trying to say sometimes before your sensitive nose has an issue.

Mine didn’t have any indicator light for the shower sump and no evidence that such light ever existed. I think they may have been used with manually switched shower sumps.

And the light only indicates the pump has is receiving power not that it s actually pumping

As to bilge pump lights, on way too many boats the bilge pump lights are hard to see. On mine they were originally on the helm next to the gauges. I now have a bilge and sump pump panel with breakers, overrides and LEDs visible from anywhere in the salon or galley. (Pardon the unfinished trim )

[brettportzer]

Do you have a better picture of that panel? I’d like to do something better for my
pumps too.

[Pascal]

Do you have a better picture of that panel? I’d like to do something better for my
pumps too.

Here you go. Reflections made it hard to get a good pic. I used a piece of scrap black lexan I had. The panel is fed directly from the house battery bank with a heavy duty 100amp breaker.

Each pump circuit has a breaker, override switch, green LED to show that circuit is on and ready, then two Red LEDs showing pump running and high water

Each bilge pump is a rule 3700 with float switch and a high water switch all mounted on starboard bracket so the whole assembly can be easily removed for maintenance.

The CB at the top is to protect the high water alarm. This way if there is a short in the high water circuit, the bilge pumps remain usable.

The bottom breakers are for the shower sumps, at this point I don’t have any high water alarm on sump pump as they re too shallow to install. Maybe one day I ll make deeper sumps with high water warning.

I have one spare row which at some point I ll use to put a second 3700 aft.

And maybe one day I ll finish the trim around the panel

[brettportzer]

Very cool. Thank you for the detailed info!

[jim rosenthal]

No lid on mine (1971 36C) but the shower sump pump is manual, with an indicator light- basically just a little Rule manual bilge pump that discharges overboard.

[Captain Ralph]

Something I have incorporated in the bilge and sump float switch installs.
Use the Rule HD switch. Purchases two when a failure occurs. Keep your receipts.
These switches come with a clip apart base. Your going to need this.
When replacing a float switch for the first time and a high and accessible terminal strip is not already installed, install it now.
Install the switch so it can be easily reached.
You are going to go thru a few switches before you get good ones, about 1 out of 3 are good now days.
When the float switch fails, install your spare and with receipt, get an exchange for another float switch, your new spare.
I also tried to incorporate this approach in our customers boats.

Our Bert has 10 float switches. There for a while I was going thru a switch every other week. Now it has been a few years since my last float switch failure.

Sadly, that little Rule sump uses the debris protected switch. The regular float switch will not fit with out modifications to the sump.
That's why I luv the big Hatteras and Bertram sumps. Full size pump, real sized float switch.