another bait pump question

[Honeygirl]

Is anybody sold on there bait pumps? I had the Jabsco Centri-Puppy bait pump that came with the boat and they only last 2 years. Then I switched to the sur-flow pump (what a piece's of shit) there only about 9 months old and I want to change them, they draw way to many amps and are noisy. I have a 110 gallon bait tank and most of the time need to run both pumps.

[NoSlack]

I get about 500 hours out of the Shur-flo 1100 before the top bearing gives out. If you're in an area with a lot of eel grass you need to pull the top off and clear the pump impeller. I think the strain of the grass in the impeller adds to the failure of the bearing.

Mike

[DOGHOUSE26]

Are you on a trailer or in a slip? I get 3-4 years (900-1200 Hrs.) out of each of my Centipuppys but I'm in water all the time and rarely does the pump go 2 weeks without running. Centipuppys have been discontinued; their Stainless replacement is the Cyclone and they pump about 25% more volume. I couldn't get a replacement Cyclone the last time so I bought and temporarily installed the Groco equivilent and I hate it; it makes more noise and the plumbing configuration makes the pump housing higher on the bulkhead causing the pump to loose prime more often. I now have the Cyclone and just need to set aside some time for installation; this year my Blaster Washdown pump finally took a dump( 3 years old) and my transom bait bag / bow bait tank Water Puppy took a dump as well (4 years). I can't complain about either one; but I think being in the water all the time is better than drying out on the trailer. I'll have a busy off season with 3 new pumps, a back up GPS Plotter, AM/FM/CD player, and a 2 meter radio to install along with tilt ram and outdrive yolk replacement to contend with before the water warms up next season. Just don't tell my wife!

[Honeygirl]

Doghouse, Looks like you have a good amount off work ahead off you. We blew up our outdrive at the end of last season and did all the work your talking about then. (New am/fm, speakers, F/F, bait pumps, washdown pump, ECT.)The boat was on the trailer at the time so the wife was on to us. We keep the boat in the water. It has its pros and cons. Mostly the electrical connections need to be really cared for and a good antirust spray on everything. I run 3 D31 optima’s for the house system and even with those big batteries the Shurflo pumps eat up the amps and they are super nosey. I more the likely will switch pumps ASAP and use the ones I have as backups.

P.S. There’s no off season when it comes to fishing. Joe

[Professor]

Jeff, What model Cyclone did you get and where did you get it? Oh and by the way the water temp down south should be perfect in March and April so get busy on the boat.

[Professor]

Joe, because I do a lot of multiday trips so nighttime/ anchorage amperage draw is a big item for me. To cut down on the draw I changed all my cabin lights, one of my deck lights and my anchor light to led. The look is a bit strange but I don’t want a good look at most of the people I fish with anyhow. My backup bait pump which has its own through hull is a low amp model. It needs to be mounted low in the bilge and its not much good when you’re running but it keeps the bait fine at night and if I had to stop and change out the primary pump.

[yellowfin1]

Had a JABSCO water-puppy which lasted me 2 1/2 years and never had a problem with it. I knew it was old and decided to replace it for my last big trip. The last day of the trip my new water-puppy took a dump after only 12 days of use. Got a warranty replacement from West Marine and it didn't work (right out of the box too). Got a second warranty replacement and it's worked well for 2 outings. Got my fingers crossed. Lesson learned (again)...."Don't fix it if it aint broken"!

Scott

[Honeygirl]

Yale, Most of my trips are also over night trips on the hook making squid till gray light so amp draw is a big deal for me to. I turn the pumps off while under way with no problem. While on the hook I leave a flash light in the cabin and have the guys use it to find there needed items. I also turn the frig. Off during the night to conserve power. I never had a problem with power until I installed the shur-flo pumps. I am going to replace those ASAP. What pump are you using for a back up? What are you using as a primary? Also do you have any idea when the planning meeting is going to be for the reef trip? I have a crew ready and asking Thanks Joe

[Professor]

I would suggest any one of the following meeting dates.
Sun 1/14
Sat 1/20
Sun 2/4

We can meet at my house and I’ll cook some pizzas and get some beer and sodas. I live just west of Balboa Park in San Diego.

I’m looking at departure dates of Saturday 3/17 and Saturday 4/14 with returns on the following Saturday.

I’m not sure what the pump brand is but I’ll take a look tomorrow and get back to you.

Re power usage, I leave the reefer and freezer on as well as the aux bait pump and can now get through the night without running the generator.

[DOGHOUSE26]

Yale,

I'm not sure of the model #, I bought it at SD Marine Exchange, 12 volt model I think $200+. I f your serious about the model # I can get it off the box tomorrow when I stop by the boat.

I'm not sure how warm the water gets down there in April/May, but when I've brought yachts up from Cabo back up here the first 2 weeks of May all I remember was cold, dirty water all the way up past Cedros until up off San Quintin where it would warm up to 62 degrees and somewhat clean green. We would typically hide behind Cedros on the way up to escape the NW winds of 15-25 nts so we could eat our dinner at a Blistering 8.5 nts of speed.
I wonder if Terrafin would have an archive available for the dates you propose.

[Honeygirl]

Yale 1/14 is good for my work schedule. I know I’m not the only party involved, so what ever you guys come with I can will work around. Thanks To all for the bait pump help. Joe

[scuttlebutt]

Any Sunday would be better for me. I am fishing the SD bay bass tournament on the 20th.

[Professor]

I’ve probably hijacked this thread enough. I’m sending an email regarding a planning meeting to those that have expressed some level of interest. That would be Honeygirl, Scuttlebutt, Tenacious and Knot Know. If you didn’t get the email let me know.