The still-intact aft bilge pump of the Swedish 17th century warship Vasa as seen from the upper gun deck.
A bilge pump is a water pump used to remove bilge water. Since fuel can be present in the bilge, electric bilge pumps are designed to not cause sparks. Electric bilge pumps are often fitted with float switches which turn on the pump when the bilge fills to a set level. Since bilge pumps can fail, use of a backup pump is often advised. The primary pump is normally located at the lowest point of the bilge, while the secondary pump would be located somewhat higher. This ensures that the secondary pump activates only when the primary pump is overwhelmed or fails, and keeps the secondary pump free of the debris in the bilge that tends to clog the primary pump.[1]
Ancient bilge force pumps had a number of common uses. Depending on where the pump was located in the hull of the ship, it could be used to suck in sea water into a live fish tank to preserve fish until the ship was docked and the fish ready to be sold. Another use of the force pump was to combat fires. Water would again be sucked in through the bottom of the hull, and then pumped onto the blaze. Yet another suggested use for a force pump was to dispel water from a ship. The pump would be placed near the bottom of the hull so as to suck water out of the ship. Force pumps were used on land as well. They could be used to bring water up from a well or to fill high placed tanks so that water could be pressure pumped from these tanks. These tanks were for household use and/or small-scale irrigation. The force pump was portable and could therefore, as on ships, be used to fight fire.
Force pumps could be made of either wood or bronze. Based on ancient texts, it seems that bronze was the preferred material since it lasted longer and was more easily transported. Wood was easier to build, put together, and repair but was not as durable as bronze. Because these were high-value objects, few are found in shipwrecks; they were often recovered after the ship sank. Force pumps were fairly simple in their construction consisting of a cylinder, a piston, and a few valves. Water would fill the cylinder after which the piston would descend into the cylinder, causing the water to move to a higher placed pipe. The valve would close, locking the water into the higher pipe, and then propelling it in a jet stream.
^"Crystal MU 20 Unit". Genoil Inc. Archived from the original on 2007-10-14.
A bilgepump is a water pump used to remove bilge water. Since fuel can be present in the bilge, electric bilgepumps are designed to not cause sparks...
the bilge. This water may be from rough seas, rain, leaks in the hull or stuffing box, or other interior spillage. The collected water must be pumped out...
should be tested regularly. Bilgepump Chopper pump Sewage pump "How Much Power Does My Submersible Well Pump Use?". Oakville Pump Service. 2021-03-18. Retrieved...
the lowest part of the bilge so that it can be pumped out by a single bilgepump (or more usually, one electric and one manual pump). The term is also commonly...
master finger". The "two shafts" characterize the suction-impeller type pump. In an inventory of the shipyards of Barcelona in 1467 you can read: "a sgotar...
the cogs, crank, and discs, of a Bilgepump, from a 1st Century Roman barge, were unearthed at Lake Nemi. Chain pumps were used in European mines during...
electrical cable color coding, size and construction. Some standards, such as bilgepump requirements, are legally binding. Calder, Nigel (1995). Boatowner's Mechanical...
his wife Angel, and diver Rick Gage died after their boat sank due to bilgepump failure. Fisher spent decades treasure hunting in the Florida Keys. Fisher...
hand-operated bilgepumps that worked like a modern bucket dredge, the oldest example of this type of bilgepump ever found. The pumps were operated by...
ship's hull (Oleson 1984). The bilgepump was an improvement on the first hydraulic pumps used in antiquity: force pumps. Invented around the early 3rd...
signal mirror, drinking water, first aid kit, jack knife with can opener, bilgepump, and other emergency provisions. On modern warships, a relatively light...
cap due to filling/venting problems. - 2018 Ranger has a recall on the bilgepump wiring as the wrong kind may have been used. -2018 Ranger has a recall...
accessible cloth sides around the hull, cover the hatches, turn on the bilgepump and shift the transmission to water operations. Often, a fold down trim...
of a pirate still holding onto his beloved treasure. BilgePumps: Bilgepumps allow guests to pump out some of the water from the flooded ship, revealing...
bailing may be carried out – removal of water aboard such as with a bilgepump, self or hand bailer or buckets. At the stage of sinking where its buoyancy...
tilt the boat away from the hole. He patches the hole and uses a manual bilgepump to remove the water from the cabin. The boat's navigational and communications...
and 1⁄8 inch (1.6 and 3.2 mm) thick to minimize weight. A high-capacity bilgepump system kept it afloat if the thin hull was breached by holes up to 2 inches...
All ships leak and require the regular operation of bilgepumps to stay afloat. If their bilgepumps could not be operated, the target ships would eventually...
additional water-water-cooler (without a radiator), a snorkel, and a bilgepump. The two water jet propulsion units are installed in the Pandur II's back;...
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