[C320-list] Bilge Float Pump Switch

[Chris Burti]

I don't recall the switch model, but they sell them at WM, Overton's and
Defender and I just got the correct amperage for best price since they all
seemed to spec out about the same. I looked up the pump amperage in a
catalogue.

I believe you are correct that they are threaded into a plate. The galvanic
response from stray current may easily have lead to the threads stripping
out.

I know this is going to be heresy in some quarters, but I would use J.B.Weld
for aluminum. It is simply epoxy filled with aluminum powder, but I've been
working with epoxies for decades and am impressed with their performance
when prep work is thorough. The existing threads in the hole should provide
ample purchase for a good bond if you first rinse well with white vinegar to
dissolve and remove the oxidation. Most stress vectors will be lateral on
the stanchion bolts, so a long as the old hole is not wallowed out to much
the epoxy ought to hold up pretty well.

A second suitable repair would be to drill the hole out oversize and install
a helicoil thread repair insert sized for your machine screws. Be sure
you have the correct size bit for that size helicoil.

On Mon, Jul 21, 2008 at 10:03 PM, Chris Willems <inquire at snet.net> wrote:

> This thread is right on time!  We came back to the
> boat after being away for a week and our latest
> failure is the bilge pump switch... great timing, eh?
> I don't even have my (repaired, hopefully) autopilot
> back from Raymarine and another electronic device has
> crapped the bed!
>
> Chris - can you give us specifics on the replacement
> switches you used ?  I'd like to do this right... the
> first time.
>
> (BTW:  I intend to find where that last 0.19 V of
> electricity in the rail is coming from, and will use
> some plastic to isolate the (assumed) chafed wire
> below the amidships port stanchion.  Does Catalina
> thread the stanchion bolts into a tapped plate?  If
> so, what do I do when it appears the plate has
> stripped?)
>
> Thanks again - this list is invaluable - and see you
> in Annapolis next week!
>
> Chris Willems, Chrysalis #828
>
> *****
>
> There is definitely no in-line fuse on #867 (nor will
> there be).
>
> The OEM float switches are generally considered to be
> inferior to
>  electronic
> switches and prone to failure by those working with
> them regularly. The
> consensus seems to be that it is best to replace them
> with an
>  electronic
> switch and add an old-style float switch a few inches
> higher up in
>  normally
> dry territory of the bilge on a bypass circuit as a
> fail safe.
>
> I did replace mine with an electronic switch when it
> failed, but have
>  yet to
> add the bypass switch. I slid clear tubing up the
> wiring, made my
> connections with Ancor heat shrink crimps and covered
> with heat shrink
> tubing. I then slid the clear tubing over the
> connections and pumped
>  the
> ends full of silicone sealant. As the connections are
> in the bilge, an
> environmental equivalent of a urinal...I don't think
> that is overkill.
>
> I intend to add a second switch higher up connected to
> a second pump in
>  the
> future as I don't care to trust this important safety
> feature to one
>  system.
>
>


-- 
Chris Burti
Farmville, NC