HX Bilge Pump Retrofit - JPX's DIY with lots of pics

[JPX]

A guy I used to ride with had a bilge pump installed on his 95 HX. At the time, I didn't really think I needed it and fortunately most of my adventures actually never called for it. Now I've become more paranoid about taking on water and also more brave about taking apart my own 96 HX.

XPs and GTXs have wider and longer hulls to mount hardware in. But the HX has a particularly difficult configuration to work with - a tiny rear hatch rather than a fully removeable seat like the larger Seadoos. And I regret not looking more closely at my friend's bilge pump setup to see exactly what was going on in there.

So this is a look into how I went about it - right or wrong.

Parts and tools:
Rule 500 automatic pump
3/4" reinforced hose + hose clamps + water outlet fitting
sealed switch and fuse holder
wiring, liquid electrical tape and heat shrink tubing + soldering iron/solder
drill with hole saw

First I put masking tape to protect the surfaces - also so I could mark where I was going to drill at Seadoo's recommended location.


The measurements weren't perfect and I had to file the hole "downward" so I could turn the hose fitting nut on the backside. There is something very unnerving about cutting a big hole in a perfectly good hull!




To mount the pump in the hull, I had to tie back all the tubing and figure out the angle to mount it. I also had to cut away a portion of the styrofoam to make room for the tubing. Seadoo's dealer option had a bracket that mounted to an existing mounting bolt. I decided to secure it with 3M 5200 adhesive. I used Oil Eater and acetone to remove the grease and dirt before gluing the base of the bilge pump to the hull.



For all wiring, I soldered them together, applied liquid electrical tape and then covered the section with heat shrink tubing. I employed the wire wrapping solder/splice technique on this website for low profile splices so the heat shrink tubing slides over it easily. I also used heat shrink tubing for reinforcement on the terminals to the battery. And yes, I did do a direct wire to the battery. Seadoo's original option had a relay that connected to the MPEM so the pump was on with the lanyard on the switch. This meant the pump could work the engine off. I may eventually engineer an automotive relay with sealant to accomplish the same thing, but I wanted something simple for now even if it means being mindful of turning the pump on or off.

Zipties to make everything neat and secure. Finished results:

 

[tomcat&family]

Nice how-to, JPX. How much water are you getting in the hull to make you want to do a modification such as this one? How much does a bilge pump install like this one cost?

 

[JPX]

Not as cheap as I had hoped - pretty much $100.
$60 pump
$17 switch
$3 fuse holder
$2 hull fitting
$8 hose
$8 primary wire

I don't have an ongoing water leak during normal riding - and any that does get in is usually taken care of by the stock venturi bilge pickups. But there have been occassions when doing HX stunts that I bring a lot of water into the hull (submarining, tailstands, and my personal favorite, the jump-rotate like a humpback whale breach). Also may buy some time in the event other riders fill up the hull while they try to do sideboarding to get back on the boat- a common problem while practicing sideboarding(powerboarding) is that the hull lies on it's left side while the rider tries to get on.

I'll probably put a second drain plug on the port side of the hull to assist with final draining. Seadoo only put one drain plug on the starboard side.....kind of a pain when water on the left side of the pump area doesn't drain.

 

[ILLNESS]

that looks pretty sweet.. nice mod

 

[JJLee138]

Interesting location for the hole. Operation with the seat on doesn't interfere at all? I'm thinking of putting a pump in my 96 XP as well.

 

[JPX]

The area the pump in located in is under the rear hatch. Due to the HX's suspension seat configuration, the seat is not what covers this area like the XP or GTX seat.

The location is the Seadoo authorized spot for the bilge pump option for dealers. The outlet port does kind of splash the latch on the way out, but it wouldn't be that significant in the end.

Because it would be hidden by the hatch when closed, I used a cheap plastic port. If I was putting it on the side or somewhere more obvious, then I might have sprung for the more expensive stainless steel port.

Another update: 8/7/2008
Due to the angle of the pump relative to a level water line, the impeller will not feel the resistance of the water in automatic mode (2min) until it is a bit higher than I prefer. :toetap05: If it was mounted flat, it would most likely work fine. So this is a bit of a compromise I will have to live with. It will happily move a lot of water in manual-on mode.

My three way switch allows the pump to be used in either automatic or manual modes. Unfortunately I haven't exactly figured out where I want to put the switch just yet. So it looks a little *ahem* cheesy ziptied in the engine compartment. I DON'T want to mount it up top because it looks too much like a lanyard post - and all it takes is a new rider and a little misunderstanding......