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Sea Kayaks Techniques Bulletin Board
Re: 'lectric pumps
Posted By: Todd Bradshaw In Response To: Re: 'lectric pumps (Jo Lefler)
Date: Sunday, 3 December 2000, at 1:11 p.m.
: What kind of batteries are you folks using on the 'lectric pumps?
If you use a standard 12 volt marine pump, you will want a 12 volt gell-cell. They are blocky little buggers and fairly heavy, but fit in a pelican box and have a lot of power. I've got one that's 6"x2.5"x3.75" and rated at 7 amp hours. It probably weighs two pounds, but there are smaller ones available. I got mine at one of those battery stores that cater to electronic stuff. Things that need to be considered are securing it well enough that it can't fall out and fire! It would be kind of embarassing to burn down your kayak! Having shorted out the terminals once (not kayaking) I can vouch for the fact that they have enough power to weld metal and burn a hole in the case. You also need to be sure that you can turn the pump off easily when it's done so that it doesn't burn out the motor.
We also have a couple of boats with Attwood "Water Buster", battery operated pumps (West Marine sells them at about $40) installed in them. They run off of three D-cells and are rated at 200 gph. They claim that the pump will run up to five hours on a set of batteries. We plumbed them through the deck behind the cockpit and tied them in. Though 200 gph isn't great, the fact that you can start the pump as soon as your head comes out of the water and it will be working, with no help from you, all the time that you are getting back in the boat etc. is nice. If conditions are bad, you can seal your skirt, paddle, brace or whatever and just let the pump work. If you aren't able to turn it off because you're busy elsewhere, it doesn't matter. It will waste battery power, but it won't burn-up the motor or the boat. If conditions are calm, you can use your hand pump to help it out.
The Water Buster is fairly light (it has a steel plate on the bottom for optional ballast, that you'll want to remove) but it's fairly bulky. There is a lot of empty space inside the cylindrical housing (about 5" dia.). I have every intention of drawing-up a "kayaker's configuration" and sending it to Attwood this winter, but who knows if they will be open to the idea. Since a kayaker's needs don't require lifting the water a long distance, they might even be able to boost the flow a bit.
On a related subject. I think I'm going to try adding a small "chimney" to a spray skirt, in front of the paddler. Something just big enough to stick the shaft of a hand pump through and maybe 4" tall. The top will have a roll-top closure, like a Cascade Bag to seal it when not in use. That way, I can put the skirt on, snug it up and still pump. If I need to let go of the pump to do a little bracing or paddle, it should stay in place pretty well. I haven't had the pleasure of being dumped out of a kayak in about 25 years, but I'm getting old and stiff and sooner or later, it'll probably happen again.
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