SV Panopevideo
Rule 4000 Bilge Pump Test - Part 1
27 July 2024 · 4 min · 3K views
What this video covers
Steve Goodwin fills Panope's bilge with fresh water to measure the real-world output of her Rule 4000 emergency bilge pump — a pump rated at 4,000 gallons per hour under ideal, zero-head conditions.Watch The installation uses 10-gauge wire on a 28-foot round trip to a 12-volt panel, fed by two Group 31 lead-acid batteries totalling 230 amp-hours, fully charged to 14.3 volts via solar before the test.1:29 Plumbing is two-inch smooth-bore pipe with no elbows or 90-degree fittings, only gentle sweeps to a ball valve and a welded standpipe through the hull; total lift height is 4.5 feet.2:11 With the engine and alternator off, the pump fills a five-gallon bucket in eight seconds, yielding 1,800 gallons per hour — just under half the rated capacity.3:33 Panel voltage holds above 13 volts throughout.4:16 Goodwin notes that pump inlet clogging from floating debris is a serious risk in a real flooding emergency.4:03 Real-world output at 4.5 feet of head and modest wire resistance runs roughly 45 per cent of a pump's nameplate rating.4:23
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