Should the bilge pump be turned on when the boat is stored in a boat slip in the water for the summer?

Question

Should the bilge pump be turned on when the boat is stored in a boat slip in the water for the summer?

Answer 1

If you have a float switch on the pump, then yes. A boat will always make water from somewhere even if it is totally sound. If you have shore power and an automatic bilge pump, then you have one less worry.

Answer 2

Yes, even if the boat's not leaking at all, because you never know what might bump it and create a leak.

And at that, you should probably go down and check that the float switch is working every week or so. Years ago, a friend of mine got a call from the marina -- his sailboat had sunk at the dock, there it was, hanging by the ropes about three feet down. When they got it refloated and checked, it turned out the relay controlling the pump had rusted out.