2001 Utopia Bilge Pump

[CantComplain]

Hi All-

Went to install my "new" engine panel (so much quieter!) and noticed the bilge was full. Basically about an inch over the top of the pump which, not surprisingly, wasn't working. I bailed out about 20 gallons, which is more than I would have guessed it held, and pulled out the Rule-Mate 500GPH pump. It was cracked through the spinny bit and is irreparable. Probably hasn't worked for 10 years. Replacements are cheap but I'd love to use the same model so I wouldn't need to pull out the cage that's riveted to the bilge floor. But I can't find that model which I assume is original. 200 Optimax if it makes a difference.

So does anyone know if that's still made, and if not, it's it's OK to drill out the rivets and screw down a new one? Is the 3 wire harness standard or will I need to splice it in? I assume that would be the solution but want to check before drilling holes....

TIA

(also, not sure if the syphon is working as I would have expected that to drain the bilge. Guess I need to look into that as well.)

 

[cymertony]

Glad mine was working good last time I tested it... that thing is way down there. Gotta be pretty hard to get to it.

 

[CantComplain]

Picked up a modern Rule 500GPH and spliced it in. It comes on with the helm switch but not automatically when submerged or tipped upside down. Fuse at the helm is good (else it wouldn’t turn on with the switch). Anyone know of another fuse or similar with the original wiring? I’d prefer not to wire directly to the battery.

Here’s what I’ve done to get around drilling holes in the bilge floor:


Basically just mounted it to a 3/4” run of PVC using a large hose clamp, and I’ll mount the PVC to the wall foreword of the engine. Should make it easy to pull it out to clean/replace plus it gives me a direct route to the bottom of the bilge if I ever need to manually pump it. I’ll leave the original mount intact so as not to leave holes where it was riveted through the floor.