Another odor factor — your sump

JULY 2010 • SOUTH SHORE HARBOUR MARINA NEWSLETTER
Another odor factor — your sump
by Captain Jean Baikie
Last month we took a trip through your
bilge, a possible source of “boat smell.” If
you cleaned it and have been boring your
dock neighbors with tours, and you still
detect an odor, there is another culprit —
your sump. Didn’t know you had one?
Maybe you have two or three. And if
you didn’t know it existed, chances are
they are filthy, dirty, greasy, hairy, soapscummy messes. And like your bilge, they
are an efficient source of odors. You know
you have them but have never had the
courage to dive in and clean them up. I’m
suggesting you put on another pair of rubber gloves, just like the ones you used in
your bilge and go in.
Your sump is a plastic box under the
flooring of your main cabin that collects
water from your sinks and showers, sometimes referred to as gray-water tanks.
Some boats drain directly overboard, so
don’t be alarmed if you can’t find a sump
and see the drain hoses going directly to a
thru-hull fitting. These plastic boxes collect the water and a float switch activates
a pump to evacuate the water overboard
on demand.
Think about all the things that go down
your sink and shower drains. At this point,
let’s all just think it to ourselves as not to
gross out any innocent souls who may be
reading this. But suffice it to say, there is
a lot of “stuff” in addition to water going
in there. And like your bilge pumps, the
sump pump is designed to pump water,
not solids. The solids that slip down your
drains will fall to the bottom of the tank
and stay there until you can sell them to
the neighborhood kid for his science fair
project. Even if you manage to market
this wonderfully marvelous idea, you still
have to get it out of the sump. “How do I
do that?” you ask? Keep reading.
Step 1: Locate your sumps. You may
have to move your prized Persian rugs,
but there may be a hatch in the floor you
can pick up. Or, it may be in the engine
room somewhere. Look around, it’s your
boat, don’t be shy.
Step 2: There is an access cover on the
top of the box. Open it up, look at the
water, and take a sniff. Happy? If the
water and the box are clean, good for you.
You have obviously been cleaning and
disinfecting this area all along. Either that
or you never use your sinks and shower. If
however, you see black mold on the
inside of the tank, greasy water and lots of
scum, you’re ready to move on.
Step 3: Using either a shop vac or a
pump of some kind (hand held manual or
electric) get all the water out of there. If
the solids are small enough, you will also
be sucking those up. If the solids are bigger than you can vacuum out, you’ll have
to reach in with that rubber-gloved hand
and pull the items out.
Step 4: Using a marina safe cleaning
agent like bleach, Tide®, Dawn® or your
favorite detergent, use a brush and/or
sponge and clean the place up. While you
need to concentrate on the walls and floor
of tank, also make sure the float switch to
the pump is clean. Take care around the
electrical connections and hoses so as to
not break or loosen them. You can rinse
the tank with a water hose you’ve brought
inside, or start running water in one of the
sinks that drains into the tank.
When you’re finished, you can pour a
little bleach in to disinfect and freshen the
tank. Close the access cover and you’re
all done. A regular addition of bleach or
cleaner will prolong this cleaning job.
Taking care in watching what goes down
your drains helps also. Using a strainer in
the kitchen sink will catch those stray
popcorn kernels and shrimp shells you
More Sump, page 3
SSH’s flea market upcoming
by Keith Emmons
We’re going to have our second annual nautical
flea market in the parking lot on Saturday, August 21.
It will be from 0800-1200 (8 a.m. to noon for you
landlubber types) in between the office and pier 14.
Everyone is welcome to come by and buy, sell or
trade. This includes the public as well as marina ten-
ants this year, so pass the invitation on.
You’ll need to bring your own table and chairs and
canopies if you feel the need for shade. This will be
the time to get rid of those items you no longer use,
and pick up some stuff at a great bargain for next
boating season!
Small boats such as dinghies, kayaks, etc. are
allowed, as are outboard motors, household items, etc.
AUGU
ST 21
Check your dryer hoses
by Keith Emmons
Even if you don’t have a washer/dryer
on your boat, this applies to your home
appliance too. I have a Splendide combination washer/dryer on board and love it.
You throw everything in, hit the button
and it washes and then drys. The thing is
constantly monitoring itself, and if it gets
an error code, the cycle selector switch
will click round and round for awhile. I
thought it was broken until I called the
factory. They explained this is an error
signal. The red status / door lock light
will flash in sequence a certain number
of times. You wait for it to stop for a bit,
and count the number of flashes. Mine
was flashing a lucky 13 times, which
indicated an overheat condition during
the drying cycle.
My flexible vent hose drops down and
makes a “U” then up and out of the boat.
You guessed it; it was really full down at
the bottom of the U. I cleaned it out and
it hasn’t been a problem since.
Not only will a clogged vent hose
make your dryer much less efficient and
cost you more in energy costs, it can be a
fire hazard. You should clean these out at
least once a year. They even make special brushes to do that, but I find that just
removing it and shaking it out followed
by a good blast with a hose works just
fine.
What’s wrong with
this picture?
by Keith Emmons
Please tell me yours doesn’t look like this!
Send comments to me at keith@anastasia
3.com and I’ll post them in the next newsletter.
OJ’s
MARINE
• Complete Boat Repair
• Bottom Jobs • Props
and Shafts • Zincs
• Woodwork, Mechanical
Yacht Consulting
and Repairs
OJ Young
713.828.1449
ojyoung2@aol.com
Repairs and more
H Coast Guard Certified Fiberglass Repair H
Located at Seabrook Ship Yard
1900 Ship Yard Dr. • Seabrook, TX
Page 2
A Monthly publication of South Shore
Harbour Marina.
MARINA
2551 South Shore Blvd. Suite B
League City, TX 77573
(281) 334-0515 • Fax (281) 334-0288
MARINA STAFF
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Marina Manager
Donna.Rogers@sshmarina.com
Taylor Ihlefeld
Harbormaster
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Keith Emmons
Newsletter Editor
keith@anastasia3.com
Virginia Zelenka
Accounting Coordinator
Virginia.Zelenka@sshmarina.com
Jeremy Dyer
Fuel Pier/Maintenance Supervisor
Jeremy.Dyer@sshmarina.com
Tyler Hawthorn
Chase Cobbel
Fuel Pier/Maintenance
Tim Moore
Part-time Staff
OFFICE HOURS:
Mon.-Fri. 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Sat. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. & Sun. Noon-5 p.m.
FUEL PIER HOURS:
Mon.-Fri. 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Sat. 9 a.m.-6 p.m. & Sun. 9 a.m.- 5 p.m.
The Lighthouse is a publication of South Shore
Harbour Marina. Reproduction in whole or in
part is prohibited without permission.
Published by
A Division of Waterfront Publishing Inc.
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Kemah, Texas 77565
South Shore Harbour Marina and Waterfront
Publishing Inc. are not responsible for claims
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any items published.
For advertising information, contact
Mike DuBois at (281) 334-2202.
South Shore Harbour Marina Newsletter
July 2010
Sump
continued from page 1
Other sump alternatives
by Keith Emmons
rinse from your dishes.
That’s it — you’re done, at least until
the next time you schedule to peer into
your sumps for their regularly scheduled
maintenance. You do have a regular maintenance schedule, don’t you?
Let’s back up a little for those of you
who located the sump, pulled the access
cover and noticed that the sump was full
and overflowing from the top relief hole.
This is a bad deal. Your pump is not working, and it may be for a number of reasons: the pump is out, float switch is inoperable or the electrical connections are not
sound. This needs to be fixed and means
the “gray” water (probably closer to a
speckled shade of brown/black) is flowing
into your bilge. And it stinks! If you
decide to do this yourself, the first thing
you have to do is get the water out of
there, and then move on to troubleshooting
the problem.
Visit www.nextlevelyachtservice.com
for more information or to contact us for
this and other regularly scheduled maintenance items with which you may want
help.
July 2010
As an addition to Captain Jean’s
excellent article on sumps, I wanted to
write about another alternative. When I
purchased my current boat, its shower
sump was a big, open top plastic box
with a float switch and bilge pump
inside. You can imagine how nasty this
was, so I replaced it with an Attwood
shower sump. I picked Attwood since I
had lots of problems with the Rule version. Well, this one wasn’t much better.
It seems to work good for maybe nine
months to a year, and then it fails for
one reason or another. The three year
warranted float switch goes out at
maybe a year or two, and I have to pull
the entire assembly out to replace it.
When I put something on a boat, I want
it to work for years, not months.
The weak spot in these sump systems is the float switches. Since mercury was banned, the cheapest ones use a
steel ball rolling back and forth inside
to activate. Guess how reliable these
are in the marine environment? Both
South Shore Harbour Marina Newsletter
the Rule and Attwood sumps use these
cheap switches, and there is no room
for a better model. I just discovered
Whale makes a shower sump that uses
a diaphragm pump, but still uses a float
switch. I have no experience with that
one, but would have to recommend it
over the other two.
So last week guess what? I don’t
hear the well-known sound of the
shower sump running, and sure enough,
it had quit once again. Water all in the
bilge. I clean the thing out very well,
test it out and it works. For one day. By
the time you read this, I will have
removed it and possible taken it on a
trip to the country with my 12 gage
shotgun for some target practice. What
to replace it with?
My new installation is a Whale
Gulper diaphragm pump. Luckily, my
boat was designed with switches for the
sump pump next to each shower. I’ll
have to remember to turn it on when I
start, and off when I’m finished, but
More Alternatives, page 4
Page 3
Unique handcrafted pens
by Keith Emmons
Now here’s something interesting!
Looking for a unique gift or a great pen for
yourself? Jenifer hand makes pens and
mechanical pencils out of various woods. She
keeps a variety in stock, and will custom
make them for you.
I have one she made for me out of a piece
of teak from my boat. I believe the other
Alternatives
continued from page 3
that’s a minor inconvenience to get rid of
that *%&$#^ float switch. The two drain
hoses meet at a manifold made from PVC
pipe that goes into the intake side of the
pump. These pumps will run dry with no
damage, and pump darned near anything
overboard, including hair, soap scum, etc. I
don’t expect to touch it again for years, and
that’s the kind of reliability I like.
There is a great new pump that wasn’t
available when I wrote this, but should be
by the time you read this. It’s a new line
from Whale called Whale Gulper IC (for
intelligent control). This is an amazing line
of pumps for onboard use, including fresh
water, sumps and bilge pumps. Their sump
pumps have various controllers including a
manifold that activates the pump when it
senses water but does not use a float
switch. This will be the cat’s meow when
it’s out. The sensors are all solid state, with
no moving parts like float switches. They
allow for soft starts / stops of all pumps,
extending their life. If you need a pump of
any kind on your boat from now on, I’d
recommend taking a hard look at these. I
have an advance brochure on these in .pdf
format if you’re interested, just email me at
keith@anastasia3.com for a copy or you
can see some reviews at
http://tiny.cc/wp0yf.
Page 4
ones she has made out of teak came from that
same piece of wood.
They are also made from cedar, spalted
pecan, maple, coco bola and even olive wood
which came from Bethlehem. This picture
shows a pair made from teak. She also makes
a line of wine bottle stoppers for those so
inclined. They are all beautiful!
Her web site is at: http://tiny.cc/0unjz.
proudly announces
Dan Hughes has joined Texas Coast Yachts
The right market
The right time
The right association
With Millions of dollars in sales and an
extensive background in the Yacht Sales
and Brokerage business, call Dan to find out why you
should list your boat with him and why you should
buy your next boat from him.
Call Dan today 281.220.7777 or 832.385.8469
You’ll be glad you did!
CURRENT LISTINGS
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45’ Carver 450 Voyager Pilothouse ’99 .......................... 219,000
42’ Carver 405 Motoryacht ’97 ...................................... $155,900
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36’ Carver Mariner ’07 ..................................................... $175,000
57’ Carver Voyager 570 Pilothouse ’02 ..........................
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w w w. t e x a s c o a s t y a c h t s . c o m
NEW OFFICES: Watergate Yachting Center, 1500 Marina Bay Dr.
Bldg. 122, Ste A, Clear Lake Shores, Texas
South Shore Harbour Marina Newsletter
July 2010
Boating education offered in July
by Keith Emmons
Water Activity Day Events (W.A.D.E.)
is a nationally recognized, award winning
three day hands on training program
developed by the Houston Safe Boating
Council. Developed as a way to promote
safe boating through education, W.A.D.E.
has become a highly successful sought
after program.
The program runs from 8 a.m. to 5
p.m. for participants ages 13 and over and
costs $125. Please call (281) 488-7676 for
more information or website www.hous
tonsafeboatingcouncil.org/wade.htm
Held twice a year in Clear Lake, Texas
during June and July, the program offers
36 participants per session the opportunity
to attain the Texas Boater Education
Certificate while gaining hands on experience in:
• Kayaks
• PFDs (personal flotation device)
• PWCs (personal watercraft)
• Knot applications
• Sail boats
• Power boats
The dates for July are: Monday, July
12 and Wednesday, July 14.
Download the WADE registration
forms at: http://tiny.cc/6uxzw.
W.A.D.E. is a proud recipient of the
National Youth Program of Excellence
Award OMC “Take ’Em Boating” Grant.
Now Offering
Fuel Tanks Cleaned & Replaced
Gary Brumenschenkel
Yacht Service
Serving the Clear Lake Area since 1985.
Certified in AC Systems, engines, outdrives,
transmission, generator, and electrical.
(281) 559-3300
July 2010
South Shore Harbour Marina Newsletter
Chuck Ruhl
25 years experience
For All Your Canvas Needs
281-538-4717
703A Clear Lake Rd., Clear Lake Shores, TX 77565
Page 5
Volunteer and thank a veteran
The City of Kemah is proud to
announce the Wounded Warrior &
Veteran’s Appreciation Celebration
November 11-14.
Plans are underway to honor and
thank our veterans in a very special and unique way. With the help
of Houston’s Bay Area communities and our patriotic and generous
donors, the Wounded Warriors &
Veteran’s Appreciation Celebration
will bring some of our heroes and
their families to Kemah. These
four days promise to be filled with
an array of military and land activities. Static displays, fishing tournament, appreciation ceremony,
barbeque feasts and live music are
some of the highlights of the fun
and exciting patriotic weekend.
The Wounded Warrior Kemah
Project is a family oriented event
not just for Kemah and the Bay
Area, but for the whole state of
Texas. This celebration is designed
to help our soldiers and their families participate in activities that
take their minds off their grueling
rehabilitations and the struggles of
their daily lives. For our wounded
soldiers, a relaxing and fun weekend away from the hospital is
needed and a chance for everyone
to say thank you and show our
appreciation to those who volunteer to protect our country.
Sponsors are needed now for the
November event and sponsors are
needed for the pre-event fundraisers. Come aboard and join the
group. Steering the committee are
members from the 82nd, 101st and
173rd Airborne, Elks Lodge and
the VFW Post 8566 along with the
City of Kemah.
Pre-event fundraisers scheduled
are a live and silent auction with
the ‘Kemah Kasual’ Style Show, a
golf tournament and more.
With your help, we can touch
Page 6
City of Kemah celebration November 11-14
the lives of those who have given
so much to us and our country. We
want to make it a weekend they
will never forget.
Donations may be mailed
directly to the: Wounded
Warriors c/o VFW
Post 8566, P.O. Box
8268, Bacliff, Texas
77518.
Also donation
boxes are placed at
the Kemah merchants in the Kemah
Lighthouse District
and the Kemah Visitor
Center, 604 Bradford.
Raffle tickets for several items
are for sale for $10 at the Kemah
Visitor Center.
For sponsorship information
email sponsorship@wiredin.cc. If
you wish to volunteer for this
heart warming and fun
event email volunteer@wiredin.cc.
For more information contact
Domino Taylor
at (281) 3343181. To view
the Wounded
Warrior Kemah
Project brochure,
log on to the city of
Kemah website,
www.Kemah-Tx.gov. Be a
hero and help our heroes.
Do You Want to Sell Your Boat?
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Located at 1115 Marina Bay Dr., Kemah, TX
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South Shore Harbour Marina Newsletter
July 2010
Are your charts old?
Nautical charts, whether paper or
electronic, can become quickly outdated as storms and currents alter
waterway topography or aids to
navigation change with little warning. Boat Owners Association of
The United States (BoatU.S.), the
United States Power Squadrons,
and several other organizations
have teamed up with NOAA to create www.Allianceforsafenavigation.org. The goal is to help ensure
boaters have the most current chart
data available every time they head
out.
The Alliance is asking boaters
and anglers to take a short, threeminute online survey that inquires
about the navigation products used
aboard their boats. The survey,
located at www.surveymon
key.com/s/PDGX3MK, is completely anonymous and the group
will use the results to improve
awareness and availability of chart
updates for recreational boaters.
In addition, boaters can go to the
website and enter the numbers of
their most commonly used charts
and instantly see a list of all the
changes for that chart since the last
print date. “I think some boaters
and anglers will be surprised at the
number of updates posted for their
home waters,” said Elaine
Dickinson of BoatU.S.
“Many skippers don’t realize that
even though they have a GPS and a
chartplotter, the electronic charts in
their receiver may be just as out-ofdate as their paper charts,” continued Dickinson. “Fortunately, updating is easier than ever with printon-demand charts and free NOAA
downloads available. Manufacturers
of chart products also have update
subscriptions to alert their customers when a new edition is
released,” she added.
To see the full selection of
NOAA navigation products, go to
www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/staff/c
hartspubs.html. Founding members
of the Alliance for Safe Navigation
include BoatU.S., U.S. Power
Squadrons, OceanGrafix, Jeppesen
Marine and Sea Tow Foundation.
Oil spill info
for rec boaters
Boat Owners Association
of The United States
(BoatU.S.) has launched a
new online website for recreational boaters affected by the
Gulf oil spill which can help
them stay informed, safeguard their boats and assist
with recovery efforts.
The website, www.Boat
US.com/oilspill, brings
together a range of public and
private resources and information for boaters, including
how to protect your boat and
the environment as well as
boat cleanup tips. A unique
live “observation map”
allows boaters to email
updates of local conditions,
which are then posted for
public viewing. The map also
includes reports from
TowBoatU.S. towing ports
and BoatU.S. Cooperating
Marinas along the Gulf
Coast.
Visit Armand Bayou
Nature Center
Armand Bayou Nature Center’s
Second Saturday is Out of This
World!
Saturday, July 10, from 10 a.m. to
noon “Meet the Stars” inside the
portable star lab planetarium from
the Lunar and Planetary Institute.
Hike a scale model of the solar system along one of ABNC’s trails.
Make the spaciest crafts around in
the children’s activity room.
For more information visit their
website at www.abnc.org.
July 2010
South Shore Harbour Marina Newsletter
Page 7
South Shore Harbour Marina
2551 SOUTH SHORE BLVD. SUITE B
LEAGUE CITY, TEXAS 77573
PRSRT STD
US POSTAGE
PAID
KEMAH, TX
PERMIT NO 59
“He is a selfmade man and
worships his
creator.”
— John Bright
my
m
o
T ton’s
Tip
“THE GULF COAST PREMIER POWER YACHT SPECIALIST”
Lauderdale Yacht Sales
Pier 14 — South Shore Harbour Marina
80+ Yachts Available • $17 Million in Inventory
Lauderdale Yacht Sales salutes
all the men and women that have paid the
ultimate sacrifice so we may live in freedom!
281-535-0900
www.lauderdaleyachtsales@gmail.com