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My bilge pump died at 3 AM in a Louisiana swamp

Last summer I was anchored near Houma when my bilge pump gave up around 3 in the morning. Rain started pouring and the water was creeping up past the floorboards before I woke up. Had to bail with a cut-up milk jug for two hours until dawn. Anyone else had a pump fail at the worst possible time?
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2 Comments
thea246
thea24617h ago
A manual bailer is good but a spare electric pump is way more useful since you can wire it up fast in the dark. A milk jug works better than nothing, but having a cheap submersible pump in a duffel bag would've saved you hours of arm pain. That's the real lesson here, not just carrying a backup but carrying one you can swap in without tools.
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the_vera
the_vera23h ago
Oh man, been there. Always keep a manual backup pump onboard for exactly this.
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