Arid Bilge System

[sandspur1966]

Ive been thinking about ways to keep my bilges dryer (I know... find the leaks) and just priced the Arid Bilge System http://www.aridbilge.com/ and was wondering if I could generate a dialog on the subject.

They are very pricey (2 zone system starting at 2,000) but the features seem valuable.

I have all Rule pumps and they leave 3" of water in the bilges so I want a better option.

Thoughts?

 

[rwetherington]

I installed a system for a boat that was simple and cost effective. Run you some PVC pipe to the bilge and install it low enough the the pick up will get all the water. then make your piping so that a wet/dry vac will attach to it and install the vac so that it is on a timer to come on every once and while to pull the last little bit of water out of the bilge. if you want to you can set it up with cut off valves.

 

[sandspur1966]

Hey Roger, thats a great idea, I can even put a drain and a p-trap to the sea chest so it is self emptying.

By the way, I have some pictures of the Jarrett Bay stickers for you in some funny locations.

The Empire State building in NYC, and Glacier National Park in Montana among them, should I email them to you?

 

[yachtsmanbill]

I would pipe it all to one or two diaphragm pumps... like holding tank pumps. They'll suck up the last drop. Just above the pick up install a check valve just like on a sump pump. Not including the pump, I'd venture to say that $30 will see you through.
http://www.westmarine.com/1/1/18767-pump-t-series-discharge-12-vdc-from-sealand.html#

WM is wayyy too high, but thats the idea... ws

 

[REBrueckner]

While it's always nice to have dry bilges, it's not always easy to achieve.
What's the priority for perfectly dry bilges?
If you are concerned about odors, for example, a little scented bleach once a month is an economical solution....

 

[rwetherington]

please email me the pictures of Jarrett Bay stickers.

 

[Skip]

I installed a four zone Arid Bilge system to eliminate the "Hatteras odor" which came from the bilges. The Admiral was reluctant to move aboard full time due because the odor would eventually perfume the clothes. As it turns out, it has really eliminated the traditional engine room odors, and my main bilge pump system has not been on in over a year. I frequently move the pick up unit under the master bed to the shower sump for a day, and it cleans it out really well.

The down side to the system are two fold: It is very expensive for what you get, and the system is very noisy. You can hear it throughout the boat.

Skip

Update 10-10-12

I installed arid bilge seven years ago and I would like to report it still works well. Al (the inventor) has designed a mounting system to eliminate the noise from the unit. I would recommend buying the mounting system with thearid bilge system. It is a good system.

It is expensive but you get what you pay for. It's still working like a champ seven years later. Some minor maintenance is required every couple of years and takes about 20 minutes (clean the interior workings).
Skip

 

[Fanfare]

If you check the Arid Bilge website listed in #1 above under "Hatteras" you will see my boat. The top photo accurately depicts my master cabin bilge, now bone dry. With the new 9 zone unit the entire boat is as dry. All of the half inch or so of water the bilge pumps leave is now gone. As to odor, this trip I was able to wear clothing I had stored in my cabin without washing it upon my return. In prior years I would be unable to wear these clothes. This year I could. Unfortunately, Fanfare suffered from "That Hatteras Smell" for 41 years, and it permeated the carpet, drapes, clothing, wood, etc. on board. Also, she is closed up in storage for 9 months per year. I did not want to change her normal storage routine so I could check on the odor problem with only one variable. I would estimate about an 80%-90% reduction in smell. I think that with additional "degassing" this should improve in the future, as I did not notice any smell when we were on board.

The advantage to me of the Arid Bilge System (ABS) is that it is totally automatic. I have 5 watertight compartments, and each engine room has inner and outer stringer pickups. Another services the aft shower bilge which only would drain aft when the boat planes. I have one spare zone. Each is checked automatically every 3 hours. If water is found during a cycle the system returns to that zone and pumps until it is dry. The total pumping time for each zone is added up and shown on the totalizer. If a zone has a leak it will show more run time than other zones. It already turned up a leak in the AC circulating pump before any damage could occur. The system's pump runs only on air pressure/vacuum, not on water, so this part of the ABS should have a long life. When other problems occur the system sounds an alarm.

It's a well thought out system, but it is complicated. That is why it is patented. It does seem to work! I will continue to report.

 

[MikeP]

But you can keep a bilge bone dry without such expense. The stuffing boxes are the only real contributer and, with gore packing and some adjustment time, they can be drip free. Anything else that puts water in the bilge in normal running is a leak and should be corrected anyway.

Our bilges are dry and the boat has never had the "hatt odor" (it's actually generic "boat odor" IMHO) that I smell on some other boats.

The only water we get in the bilges occurs when I change impellers or other maint tasks that actually releases water into the bilge. In that case I use the manual pumps which can pick up water to within about an inch of the bottom and then get the rest with a shop vac.

I'm pretty confident in saying that if you keep dry bilges, you will have no "boat odor."