The one pump that has to work when nobody is on the boat.
A bilge pump that quits on a boat that sits in Florida rain is how boats sink at the dock. Most of the time it is not the pump: it is the float, the fuse on the automatic circuit, or a wire that has gone green in the wettest spot on the boat. Here is what it usually is, what you can check safely, and when to call.
Works from the helm switch, not by itself: the automatic side. The float switch is stuck, fouled or dead, or the fuse on the auto circuit has gone. That circuit is usually wired straight to the battery with its own small fuse, so the battery switch being off does not explain it.
Does nothing at all: the fuse or its holder, a corroded connection at the pump, a bad ground, or a pump motor that burned out dry. A fuse that blows the instant the pump tries to run is a short to ground between the float and the pump.
Runs all the time: a float stuck up or fouled with oil and sludge, a leaking or missing check valve letting the discharge hose drain back into the bilge so the pump chases the same water forever, or a real leak. The last one gets found first.
Kills the battery: an automatic pump cycling on a stuck float, or a shorted pump, is the most common parasitic draw we find. The pump works perfectly; the battery is flat on Saturday morning.
Do not wire the pump straight to the battery without the float to get through the weekend, and do not bypass the fuse. One sinks the battery, the other burns the boat.
If the fuse blows every time, the pump hums without pumping, or there is water coming in faster than the pump moves it, stop there. A fuse that blows repeatedly is a short in the wettest wiring on the boat. A pump that hums is jammed or burned and will take the fuse or the wiring with it. Water coming in is a leak, and a bilge pump is not the fix for a leak; it is what buys time to find one.
We fill the bilge and watch the float and the pump work, test the manual and automatic circuits separately, read voltage at the pump with it running, test the fuse and the float switch, and check the ground and every connection between them. Then the check valve and the hose run. Floats, pumps, fuse holders, check valves and the wiring are replaced at the dock with marine parts and sealed connectors, on the same visit in most cases.
Regular hours (6am–4pm): a $250 diagnostic visit. We come to the boat, find the actual cause, and quote parts and labor before any work starts. After hours, Sundays and holidays: a $295 call-out. Parts, labor and sales tax always show as separate lines on the invoice, so you can see exactly what you paid for.
Want the whole engine looked after, not only this fault? See the Premium Full Service — the complete outboard service, whatever your hour meter says, parts included and one price per engine, and Dock Care for boats that sit between trips.
Service guides: Yamaha oil change · Mercury & Verado oil change · Lower unit service · Fuel filters · The 100 / 300 / 500-hour service explained · Electrical & electronics problems.
Why does my bilge pump work manually but not automatically?
The automatic side has its own float switch, its own fuse and often its own feed straight from the battery. One of those three is the fault, and it is found in minutes with the bilge filled.
Why does my bilge pump keep running?
A float stuck up or fouled, a leaking or missing check valve letting the hose drain back, or a real leak. The leak is ruled out first.
Why is my bilge pump draining the battery?
A pump cycling on a stuck float, or a shorted pump or float switch, is the most common hidden draw on a boat that sits. The battery is the symptom.
Should I replace the float or the pump?
Whichever failed, and the connection that killed it. A new pump on a corroded wire fails the same way. We replace the part and rebuild the joint.
Dock, lift, marina, driveway or storage lot — we come to the boat across Southwest Florida:
Text us what the pump does, the year and make of the boat, and where it sits. You will hear back fast. A boat at the dock with a dead bilge pump moves to the front of the line.
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