Do I need an auto bilge?

[Figment]

Looking to put my boat in a marina for the 1st time. My bilge pimp is jus wired into a dash on/off switch. Do I need to install a float switch or auto bilge?

Thanks

In my opinion, having a float switch installed on your bilge pump is well worth the effort and little money involved doing so. Two of the the three pumps that we have are set up with floats and switches that can overide the floats . There are a lot of choices when it comes to float switches. Like anything else , Quality & style varies widely with float switches. Simple to install . Nan Sea Lee

[Figment]

FishNtails , I pulled the paperwork on what we are using for bilge float switches. We have Attwood electronic switches . West Marine # 10964153 . (Attwood # attwo#4801-7) these switches are electronic and have no moving parts. Cannot get jammed up with any debris and stick.

[fishNtails]

Thanks for the info!

[LEfriend]

I wouldn't keep a boat in the water without an auto bilge if I was away at all. (If nothing else I would be worrying all the time) I added a second pump two year's ago. Also have two batteries. Each bilge is direct wired to a separate battery so it is a totally redundant system. Some folks T both outlets together, but I went out the opposite side of the gunnel with the second hose for complete separation. So even a hose break or one pump failing still leaves me with a complete system. The original bilge is on a float switch and also wired to a console switch. The second new one is the auto-sensing so was an easy install. For not a lot of money you could install a float switch on what you have and an auto sense backup.

I was a little leery of the auto sensing at first. It kicks on every minute or so, for a second or two, to sense for water. I was worried about it draining the battery, but that hasn't been a problem. Seems to work fine, going on my third year now. Only negative, when you are anchored perch fishing you can hear it cycle on and off (a hum). Just a little bit annoying, but have got used to it. The plus with that is I always know my bilge is working and you don't have to worry about the float hanging up. And out there in rough water, having two pumps is peace of mind.

[M.A.D. Eyes]

Very good points LEfriend!!

[Hoytman86]

As everyone else has said, don't leave your boat in the water without an automatic switch. Also, don't leave it at the dock without plugging in the shore power and turning on your charger. If something like LEfriend mentioned happens and nobody notices or there's heavy rain you'll have a problem on your hands.

And, credit to Wakina on this one, clean your bilge regularly during mayfly season. Those little suckers will burn out a pump in a hurry.

Just as an aside, our boat has a self draining deck and technically shouldn't ever have any water in the bilge. It always had water in there last year and it took us until the end of the season to find the leak. If our pump wasn't automatic or we didn't leave the on-board charger plugged in while we were away we might not have a boat that floats anymore.