Interested in installing an electric bilge pump.
Regarding commercial alternatives, is Bluewater still up and running? Other commercial alternatives to ginning up a personal set up?
If there's no commercial alternative, is anyone making magnetic slide switches a la Gnarly Dgo that will work for kayak installation?
Other 2014 current suggestions...
Thanks in advance...
salt water useage?
It is interesting that sea kayakers seem to have favored magnetic slide switches. Electric bilge pumps in whitewater canoes are very common now and I have never known a whitewater boater to use a magnetic slide switch. Most either use a waterproof toggle, slide, or rocker switch, or take a cheap switch and caulk the hell out of it with silicone.
Of course, whitewater open boaters are typically on fresh water (although fresh water can and will short a non-waterproofed switch) and quite a few whitewater canoeists carry a spare switch.
Low profile, water proof rocker and slide switches are available that will handle sufficient current draw so as not to require an additional relay. Of course, these will require drilling a hole in your deck, but aren’t you going to make a big hole for a through hull fitting, John?
mag switch
I used the magnetic reed switch http://www.digikey.com/product-search/en?lang=en&site=us&KeyWords=DRR-129+67-73&x=19&y=20
Here is a link to what I did on my NDK kayak I have also installed one on my Valley Avocet kayak but did not take pictures .
my setup: http://www.pbase.com/dc9mm/kayak_bilge_pump
Note there is a link to a youtube video of the pump in action on the page above. I put a loop in the hose BUT the Rule pump says not to do this but it hasn’t been a problem for me. The loop was to keep water coming back into the kayak, works pretty well. The pump will not completely empty the kayak but its close enough were a sponge will take care of the rest. I had to offset the pump on my NDK because of the back rest I installed so I need to lean the kayak to get it the most empty. Not a big deal.
no relay needed
quote: "as not to require an additional relay. "
I have now found reed switches that can handle 3A and no relay is needed for the electric bilge pump.
Toggle switches have always failed on me. While replacing them is inexpensive, finding out that the pump did not work when I needed was inconvenient and sometimes dangerous (open water). Installing a reed switch is less work than a toggle. Making the magnet slider with Fimo (plastic clay) is very easy.
depends
Of course, an open boat and a kayak are two different things, but most of the boaters I paddle with use an Atwood Tsunami 1200 (1200 gph) which will draw up to 4 amps, and quite a few guys (and gals) use two of them.
mixed results with loop
the reed switch that you use for your pump set up is the one I now favor: no need for relay!
I had a couple of pump set ups with the loop: sometimes it worked but other times it was creating an air lock where the pump was not strong enough to pump air initially and push the water out the loop and start drawing water out of the cockpit.
These days I have a little cork on a string plugging the outlet that I remove when I need to empty the cockpit: pretty simple.
parts ?
The electric pump 2014 !
http://goo.gl/j2hWb4
Here’s an air relay supply
http://www.spadepot.com/shop/Spa-Parts-C630.aspx
http://www.allelectronics.com/ sells magnets.
I’m using nylon fittings found at McMaster Carr 3m 5200 glued thru Pelican box sides with empty space in wire feed thru use filled with Locktite adhesive from Walmart et al.
Pelicans are velcroed to hull then cam strapped down
Attwood pump with Curt 5aH trailer deep charge battery.
Where is the Lithium battery from ? Cost ? what’s inside ? 1.5 tubular cells wired together ?
Thanks
Thanks All–very helpful…
One additional note
If you want to keep it light weight use a Lithium Polymer battery. Mine is under 10 ounces yet its 2.4 amps. They do require a special charger that monitors each cell voltage as it chargers but there way lighter than any other battery out there. A led acid would weigh in more than my whole setup.
Battery is used is this one http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=33199
the charger needed is this one but I see its backordered now but they usually get stock in fairly quickly. http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=11060
The charger needs a 12 volt DC power source.
Hobbyking is a well known international store that caters to Radio controlled flyers which is a hobby I do.
But if you don’t care about weight any battery will do. It is well above the 12 volts but my Rule pump has had no problem handling the higher voltage.
Lithium
right. a solderer soldered 1.5 lithium cells together…probably destroying the chemistry. Placed the gang in a plastic box with a charger then charged you $250 ?
The batt I bought was a total zero. Wouldn’t power a grain of wheat bulb.
Depends on what you kayak. I had planned to lightness for a trip to Alaska. But what is the percentage weight of a Curt deep charge 5aH vs your poly ion relative to the total camping kayak weight ?
Is this difference relevant tp your progression ?
Thank You
after looking online for some time (eBay has almost nothing in 12V LiPo) you finally gave me the right solution.
I knew of Hobby King but initially I did a bad search with no results (I looked for 12V, while LiPo comes in 14.8!).
Going to buy some 14.8V LiPo for my bilge pump and some for re-charging camera batteries on remote trip of 5 weeks.
Thank you so much for the links; solved a huge problem of mine
Lead acid batteries and salt water
– Last Updated: May-29-14 9:29 PM EST –
They react to create very poisonous chlorine gas. That's why PWC use sealed gel cells.
Most marine stores sell a self contained 4 D-cell battery powered pump, that may be salt tolerant (?). But you have to turn it on and off, no float valve.
I think a foot pump would be great, because they have no battery to run out or wires to short.
BTW, I've not tried either.