Bilge pump/high water alarm

[Bodick93]

I just finished a simple project that serves as a bilge pumping indicator, including when kicked on automatically. The automatic actuation is THE most important, as it will serve as a high water alarm. I chose to install mine to alarm intermittently, and enclosed in the console. It's plenty loud to hear even underway, and the intermittent alarm is less likely to drown into other noises than the solid alarm. You just wire it into the large switch wire headed to the bilge pump, and give it a ground. You will need a few feet of red and black wire, 3 ring terminals, and an alarm. All in, about 10 bucks.

My first trip with my new '19 2320, after about a 10-20 minute run, I sat it down. I heard water flowing, and noticed the bilge pump flow running out the side. Upon further inspection, the wash down pump screen had popped off. That high speed pickup can flow an insane amount of water with no restrictions. If I had run for an hour instead of 10-20 minutes, there would have been a ton more water in there.

View attachment VID_20250209_140357126.mp4

 

[Aheider]

Does the alarm sound when you manually turn on the bilge pump?

 

[warthog5]

I did this a LONG time ago in my Custom Mako. [X-Shark}

It had a 1500gph pump as it's main. A 2000gph as the back up. The back up's float switch was mounted 1in higher in the bilge than the main. If that switch engaged it would set the High Water alarm which was a Pizo alarm in the helm area. BUT I also had a separate switch to turn the Pizo alarm OFF.

A Pizzo alarm will drive you Crazy. When your in the middle of a Chinese Fire drill turning the annoying sound OFF helps you think better.

 

[Aheider]

I did this a LONG time ago in my Custom Mako. [X-Shark}

It had a 1500gph pump as it's main. A 2000gph as the back up. The back up's float switch was mounted 1in higher in the bilge than the main. If that switch engaged it would set the High Water alarm which was a Pizo alarm in the helm area. BUT I also had a separate switch to turn the Pizo alarm OFF.

A Pizzo alarm will drive you Crazy. When your in the middle of a Chinese Fire drill turning the annoying sound OFF helps you think better.

Exactly.

Water witch alarm has a mute button that lasts for 5 min (I think) before it turns back on. It will continue to sound until the situation is resolved. My preference is to have the alarm separate from the pump, as I don't want the alarm to sound every time I turn it on. In this case I can mute the alarm while I figure out what is going on without it screaming in my ear. If the pump kicks on from the float, the switch illuminates on the dash, serves as another indicator the pump is running.

Just one of many ways to set it up. Your preference may vary.