I bet you know this feeling – you arrive at the marina and your anxiety kicks in.
You’re thinking: Did I accidentally leave my batteries turned on? Did my shore power get disconnected? Will my engine turn over?
Perhaps it’s extreme, but I’ve always had the fear that someone accidentally unplugs my shore power cable, heavy rainfall begins to fill the bilge, the pump runs frequently and eventually drains the batteries… As a result, my boat slowly fills with water only to be dragged under by “Davey Jones”.
As I have been visiting more and more marinas I have heard horror stories of boats silently taking on water after their bilge pumps have failed due to various reasons. As a result, we have compiled four of the most common suggestions from marina operators on how to keep your boat afloat at the dock!
1. Ensure Batteries are Charging Properly
A great way to ruin a day of boating is to show up at the dock only to discover that your batteries are dead. Whether you forgot to connect your shore power, left the radio on, or lights on, or simply have an old battery that’s reached the end of its usable life, you typically don’t find out until you go to start your boat and it doesn’t respond.
It may sound simple, but it’s often forgotten: After each use, you should run through a checklist to ensure that your batteries are charging properly and that there are no errant sources of draining (radio, lights, etc.).
If you do encounter a dead battery on your boat be sure to exercise caution while troubleshooting. Some basic troubleshooting includes:
- Check the voltage coming directly off of the battery. If it is below the rated voltage then charge the battery using either another battery or an external battery charger.
- If your battery’s voltage is within its rated range then trace your power and ground wires in an attempt to find corrosion or broken wires.
2. Make Sure the Bilge Area is Clean of Debris
The bilge pump on your boat serves a critical purpose by pumping out excess water from bilges in your boat’s hull. That water comes from varying sources, such as leaky weather stripping and even spray from errant waves.
Where it comes from isn’t as important as how you get rid of it.
The bilge pump’s primary job is to clear that water out and keep your boat buoyant. If you want to keep your boat afloat while it’s docked, make sure you routinely check the bilge area to ensure there is no debris present that can clog or block the bilge pump from doing its job.
Also, ensure that no debris is interfering with the motion of your float switch. If your float switch is unable to trigger the bilge pump then you shouldn’t be surprised when you eventually find a bilge area full of water.
3. Get a Good Shore Power Plug
A good shore power plug solves a variety of problems that your boat could face while tied up at the dock. In addition to a secure connection between the plug and outlet, a SmartPlug offers weatherproof seals and strong electrical connectivity.
Shore power failure and potential fires onboard docked boats don’t arise from overheating in most cases. Typically, the issue is that the electrical plug designs are subpar. Poorly designed electrical plugs have pins that provide little contact area and leave the burden of the physical connection between the plug and outlet on the pins themselves.
Smart plugs have better locking mechanisms to ensure a steady, consistent stream of shore power to your boat. More importantly, the lack of loose connections means there’s no space for moisture to seep in and corrode pins, which can eventually result in fires as well.
4. Use BRNKL to Remotely Monitor it All
If you would prefer to simply check-in on your boat from anywhere in the world. then we have the perfect solution to help you keep your boat afloat. BRNKL is a remote monitoring system that can help monitor:
- Shore power – ensures not only that you’re connected to power but also that your batteries are charging. The system will send a notification to your smartphone if your shore power is disconnected.
- Battery voltage – understand the voltage of your battery banks before you get on board. Receive an alert if the batteries dip below a specified voltage.
- Bilge activity – informing you if it’s been running too frequently or for too long a period of time.
- High water – a float switch connected to your BRNKL system alerts you to high water in the bilge, which can indicate the bilge is blocked, too much water is coming in, or both.
- Pitch and heel – if your boat is really in trouble you will be notified if your vessel is listing to one side or the other.
With BRNKL installed on your boat, you’ll be able to check in on your vessel anytime and from anywhere. Peace of mind is at your fingertips!
Ready for peace of mind? Schedule a demo!
We would be happy to walk you through the BRNKL app, the installation process, and help build a system suited for your boat. Fill out the contact form below and we’ll reach out to you to schedule a 15-minute video call or phone call.
