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2008 Chalenger 180 Bilge pump
- Thread starter yardawg
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seatys501
New Member
I have a 2008 Challenger 180. It does have an automatic bilge pump. My first year i would notice it kick on when I would wach ot or it would rain a lot. However, this year i am noticeing it not working. I took it out for the first time the otehr day and when i got back I hit the manual switch and must have pumped out 3-4 gallons of water. I have the mechanic looking into it.
Craigmri
New Member
Guys,
I recommend every month during your boating season to take a garden hose and fill the bilge to test the automatic switch. I do this with the drain plug installed obviously. It should not matter if your battery switch is on or off as it should work even with switch in off position as that circuit to the bilge pump should be always hot.
Craig
I recommend every month during your boating season to take a garden hose and fill the bilge to test the automatic switch. I do this with the drain plug installed obviously. It should not matter if your battery switch is on or off as it should work even with switch in off position as that circuit to the bilge pump should be always hot.
Craig
The dealer did some work when I first got my boat. The bilge quit working and they ended up replacing the whole wiring harness. I'm afraid they might had bypassed the auto feature. I need to take it in, I just don't want to go without it for a weekend.
I need the stereo looked at too. It seems to be working, but it will loose most of its output for a few seconds. You can still hear it, but not as loud (doesn't matter if it the ipod, radio or CD). I thought it might be a bad connection, but everything looks good. I can't find anything loose. I think it may be a ground issue or the stereo itself.
Any thoughts?
I need the stereo looked at too. It seems to be working, but it will loose most of its output for a few seconds. You can still hear it, but not as loud (doesn't matter if it the ipod, radio or CD). I thought it might be a bad connection, but everything looks good. I can't find anything loose. I think it may be a ground issue or the stereo itself.
Any thoughts?
seatys501
New Member
Yardawg
We have similar issues. I have a 2008 Challenger 180. I also had issues with my radio after the very first time taking it out. It would cut out and make cracking noises. Dealer insisted it was an antenna issue but decided to replace it anyway. Seems to be ok now. But it definently sounds better when the engine isnt on. I wonder if the engine causes a lot of static or issues with the radio itself. Maybe somethign in the wiring backfeeding loss in power.
I also have issues with my bilge pump. Last year worked fine. This year it doesnt seem to kick on Auto. Still waiting for tech to look at it.
We have similar issues. I have a 2008 Challenger 180. I also had issues with my radio after the very first time taking it out. It would cut out and make cracking noises. Dealer insisted it was an antenna issue but decided to replace it anyway. Seems to be ok now. But it definently sounds better when the engine isnt on. I wonder if the engine causes a lot of static or issues with the radio itself. Maybe somethign in the wiring backfeeding loss in power.
I also have issues with my bilge pump. Last year worked fine. This year it doesnt seem to kick on Auto. Still waiting for tech to look at it.
LogicAl2008
Member
Dealing with a similar issue with my 2008 Challenger 180.
Bilge came on with manual switch and then stayed on due to the water level. So, now it's being checked as to why it didn't come on by itself, as it should have.
Also, looking for anyone who's replaced their SeaDoo bilge pump with another, more reliable brand. I'm thinking what we have is a modified Johnson Pumps Cartridge Bilge Pump ... which we can get for over $100 less than BRP's.
Cross posting to this thread.
Bilge came on with manual switch and then stayed on due to the water level. So, now it's being checked as to why it didn't come on by itself, as it should have.
Also, looking for anyone who's replaced their SeaDoo bilge pump with another, more reliable brand. I'm thinking what we have is a modified Johnson Pumps Cartridge Bilge Pump ... which we can get for over $100 less than BRP's.
Cross posting to this thread.
Last edited by a moderator:
seatys501
New Member
Just herd back from my technician about my automatic bilge pump deal. Seems the fuse for the automatic feature blew over the winter. The manual one was working fine so there must be (2) seperate fuses. Its now all good. If anyone read my other postings about what happen to my boat last year can understand why my fuse blew. I never got a chance to disconnect the battery so I am assuming the pump froze up with the cold weather and when it tried to kick on blew the fuse.
markconfer
New Member
Bilge Pump Lessons
My son who just turned 15 is for the most part an excellent driver-has his Florida Boating license etc. He however loves to drench people in the front with their approval of course. He did this for 5 friends and to his dismay the auto bilge pump didn't work and the manual switch didn't either. They rowed the bathtub back to the shore with about 1 foot of water still in the passenger compartment-water almost covering the engine.
Tried a new fuse in the fuse box and blew it immediately. Took the bilge pump out and found a piece of cloth sucked up in the pump that caused the jam. The pump is a cartridge type that is really easy to remove. We were how ever very flustered with trying to get the auto switch to work. Replaced with new pump, replaced switch, rewired no luck.
After tracing the power line back to the battery we realized there was a 2nd fuse also connected to the pump to run it with the battery off. This of course was the easy fix that we missed.
We added a 2nd pump to the ski locker and added a second set of fuses so we no more will have a boat masquerading as a bath tub.
My son who just turned 15 is for the most part an excellent driver-has his Florida Boating license etc. He however loves to drench people in the front with their approval of course. He did this for 5 friends and to his dismay the auto bilge pump didn't work and the manual switch didn't either. They rowed the bathtub back to the shore with about 1 foot of water still in the passenger compartment-water almost covering the engine.
Tried a new fuse in the fuse box and blew it immediately. Took the bilge pump out and found a piece of cloth sucked up in the pump that caused the jam. The pump is a cartridge type that is really easy to remove. We were how ever very flustered with trying to get the auto switch to work. Replaced with new pump, replaced switch, rewired no luck.
After tracing the power line back to the battery we realized there was a 2nd fuse also connected to the pump to run it with the battery off. This of course was the easy fix that we missed.
We added a 2nd pump to the ski locker and added a second set of fuses so we no more will have a boat masquerading as a bath tub.
LogicAl2008
Member
Glad I'm not boating with Captain SwampsAlot 
Just a note to you and anyone else who reads this post ... I recently replace all of my ATO and mini fuses with "smart fuses" that glow when they've blown. These are more easily seen as blown fuses, especially if you're trying to diagnose an issue out in the open water, wet, tired, etc.
I took all the original fuses and put them in a box, on-board, as my spares. They'll work great as replacements, while the "smart fuses" will work great to see, in short order, if/when there's a blown fuse.
Just a note to you and anyone else who reads this post ... I recently replace all of my ATO and mini fuses with "smart fuses" that glow when they've blown. These are more easily seen as blown fuses, especially if you're trying to diagnose an issue out in the open water, wet, tired, etc.
I took all the original fuses and put them in a box, on-board, as my spares. They'll work great as replacements, while the "smart fuses" will work great to see, in short order, if/when there's a blown fuse.
markconfer
New Member
Thanks for the recommendation
We weren't even smart enough to look for a second fuse. The manual I have doesn't have a very good wiring diagram so we didn't even see there was a second connect although there had to be one to work with the master switch off.
We weren't even smart enough to look for a second fuse. The manual I have doesn't have a very good wiring diagram so we didn't even see there was a second connect although there had to be one to work with the master switch off.
JThomasLambert
New Member
Sorry, just so I'm clear, if I get back to dock and can get water out of the bilge manually then does that mean my auto-bilge pump does not work properly? Could it be that I'm manually pumping out water that just hasn't hit the float switch limit yet?
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