I am done with rule pumps & switches

[David O]

You think I would have learned after the first couple of failures. I am speaking of the 1100 GPH nonauto pump and Rule Plus float switch. The switch fails closed and burns the pump up. Sometimes it takes 2 years and sometimes it takes 6 months. And I haven't even started talking about the shower sump that I replace the 800 GPH and Plus float switch annually or more. The replacement of both is an $85 repair plus miscellaneous butt connectors.

I went down to the boat yesterday and found the same thing again on a pump and switch that I replaced the last summer, a failed close switch and seized motor with a popped circuit breaker.

So, the point of this post, besides Rule pumps and switches suck, is what do you use? Because I'm going with something else.

I have 3 sets of 1100 GPH pumps and switches, 1 3700 GPH pump and switch for a crash pump and a Rule shower sump.

What works best for you?

 

[N4712]

I would look at Whale Gulpers.

 

[Boydski]

Ultraswitch Float switches are the cat's meow of float switches. They are pretty darn fool proof and last for decades. They are standard equipment on most Nordhavn's.

 

[BlueYonder]

I went through two of those crappy Rule shower sumps. I replaced it with an Attwood shower sump and have been happy so far.

The Rule automatic pump is so unreliable, it should have been recalled. I think it is the technology that is supposed to detect water vs oil.

I replaced a failed Rule automatic pump, with a Johnson Ultimate pump, After a year it still works properly.

I've heard that the "Water Witch" bilge pump switch is pretty good.

 

[caltexflanc]

Big believer in the Ultra PumpSwitch switches here, had six on my Hatteras, including all the sumps; flawless for 5+ years and counting. The mini is great for sumps. I found the larger Rule pumps to be quite dependable; I wouldn't damn the pumps just because the switch burned them out.

 

[Capt.Bill11]

UltraSwitches. As to pumps for small boats, they all a pretty mediocre. Rule's are no better or worse than anything else from what I've seen.

 

[Marlinmike]

Had decent luck with attwood, but as Capt.Bill said they are just average quality.

Had attwood shower sump switch failure and called factory since the unit was only a year old, the person sent me a new switch and said they had some issues earlier, so just goes to show you sometimes a bad manufacturing cycle can happen as well, new switch has lasted 6+ years so far.

 

[SCOTTEDAVIS]

Another plus for Johnson pumps, and they fit right into the Rule mounting bracket so easy swap.

I don't like submerged float switches they all leak and fail at some point.

 

[Deckape]

Get a warranty and trade it in before it goes bad or wait till it gets close to the end.

 

[hmason]

For the showers, there is nothing I have found to be better than a Whale Gulper.

 

[twistedtree]

I too have had good luck with Whale pumps, and have a Johnson pump to try out as well.

My luck with Rule pumps has been similar to yours. They are complete junk and will certainly fail leaving you with either a flooded boat or a dead battery.

 

[BruceK]

No matter which brand of hinged switch I used, I tried 3, they were unreliable. I switched to a Johnson Ultra, totally reliable for 2 years. Got mine from Amazon.

 

[HenryD]

Removed my shower sump entirely. Glassed the floor flat, put in a house drain plumbed into the IC control of the Whale Greywater IC. Been three years, no sump to clean.


For the bilge - Ultraswitches and Rule pumps have worked fine.

 

[CPseudonym]

Just installed a 750 GPH Rule-Mate. Fingers crossed for it to last a while.

 

[O C Diver]

Guess I'm lucky. Seem to have good luck with rule pumps and switches. Had two of the automatic pumps go bad do to a defect in a production run of the wire sealing boot. Rule replaced no questions asked. My bilges are otherwise dry so the only use is routine testing.

Use a Whale Gulper for the sink and shower drains. So far it has worked flawlessly.

Ted

 

[David O]

I'll try the ultraswitch on a bilge pump and give Johnson pumps a try. I like that they will snap into a Rule base. Let's see, the ultra with an alarm is $174, an ultra mini for the shower sump is $145 and a $145 ultra jr for the mid bilge pump.......wow, that's sinking some change into it, pun intended. It appears that the ultras are priced the same no matter where you buy them, Amazon or tefgel.

In looking at the Whale products, the Gulper pump only does 300 GPH. For the bilge, I would prefer something around 1000 GPH because of the 3' rise. What about the Whale Orca auto pumps? Anyone try them.

Thanks.

 

[FF]

Looking at pricing I find about $165 for JUST the switch , WOW!

 

[Brooksie]

Groco or Jabsco DIAPHRAGM type switch. Mine are both decades old and never a problem. No wires anywhere near the bilge water either.
High tech, floatless switches malfunction as well. They stick on if they get hair on them or off if they get oil on them. Some won't work on fresh (rain) water. I wouldn't have one if it were given to me. I find nothing wrong with Rule pumps but the switches are junk for sure.

http://www.defender.com/product3.jsp?path=-1|51|2234242&id=675377

http://www.defender.com/product3.jsp?path=-1|51|2234242&id=211405

 

[waddenkruiser]

We're running a Seaworld 400 for the shower sump and a Seaworld 1250 for the bilge, both with a Whale float switch. In parallel to the 1250 we have installed a Johnson L2200 with an electronic switch to get a reasonable capacity for the automatic bilge pump(s).
All working fine so far ...


best regards / med venlig hilsen
wadden

 

[BruceK]

Maybe we are talking different products but 2 Johnson Ultra switches cost just over $80 AUD shipped to Aus by Amazon. Admittedly about 2 years ago when the AUD exceeded yours, unlike now. One is installed no probs, the other is a back up spare. I kept the high mounted second bilge pump with a Rule type hinged switch in place, it`s up out of any bilge debris etc which seem to affect that kind of switch.

 

[Capt.Bill11]

Looking at pricing I find about $165 for JUST the switch , WOW!

Well if you own your boat for 10 years that is less than $20.00 per year to have a switch that most likey never fail.

 

[HopCar]

You guys are killing me!

 

[Benchmark]

You guys are killing me!

Had exactly same problems...installed Shurflo 2000 pump and their switch. Very well made. Pump weighs 50% more than the rule I took out. Switch much more substantial. Marine supply and oil in St. Augustine sells mostly
to shrimp fleets and that is what's on their shelves. Must be a reason. Great pricing as well....

 

[caltexflanc]

Hamilton Marine is the best place I have found for the Ultra Pumpswitches (non-alarm). I have bought them for as little as $99 on sale there, and price right now is $119.

It's just one of those things I feel that buying the best is the way to go. In addition to being extremely well built and wired, and easy to install, they don't short cycle, they deal with shower and sink sludge well, they have a lamp that indicates whether the system has electricity. So they take good care of the pump in a few ways while they are at it.

As for sump pumps, since we lived aboard full time, I just used, as did the PO, standard Rule 2000 bilge pumps. Sounds like overkill, and it is for most boat designs, but on our Hatteras, the 3 sumps were designed in such a way as to act as high water backups to 3 of the bilges. If not for that i would likely have used something in the 1000gph range, but dang those things drained in a jiffy. Strainers over the shower drains, and a regular dose of distilled vinegar kept things running smoothly with very heavy use.

 

[Ski in NC]

I have not had a problem with the Rule 360, 500, 1500 and 2000gph non-computer pumps. Their switches are complete POS's. The computer controlled automatic pumps are battery eaters and unreliable.

On my boat I use "Sure Bail" caged switches with mercury floats on a pivot. I can't really vouch for them as my bilges stay dry except if bad or stupid happens, and in those cases they were reliable.

The rule paddle switches flex the wires with each cycle, and if insulation hardens, it sticks. Or sometimes the pivot hinge sticks. Or the constantly submerged leads have insulation breakdown and now you have 12V live in the bilge water. None of these are good things.

 

[Rkarran]

I have a question about Ultra Pumpswitches. One of my bilge pumps would continue running if I turned it on manually, until I jiggled the Ultra (senior). I pulled the switch away from the pump and turned it over each way a few times and it works fine, on and off. It's a little discolored inside, so I'm thinking I should just clean it rather than replace. Has anyone taken one apart? Can they be cleaned?