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On my rib I installed one elephant trunk. There has a Rule pump in place but when I changed my console I was lazy and did not install a switch for the pump. Thus I took out my pump, my thoughts were I did not need one as I had a trunk which could shift water very quickly.
Some time later I was out near Clare Island (west coast of Ireland) and lost forward gear. I had reverse and neutral. So I set off home backwards at a rate of about 2-3 kn. The problem was that the flat stern of the boat caused water to slop into the rib. The boat filled with water to the top of the transom. No problem its a rib. But I was lucky I had my battery at a high level. My fuel tank had a high level breather and fill point so fuel contamination was not a problem. If I was using portable tanks that day I was in bother.
I subsequently remembered that I had a joint in my battery cable, this joint was underwater. luckily for me I had it well sealed but I was worried about it. If it had shorted out it meant I was without engine power. If I had a pump that day it would have easily kept the boat dry made the journey easier and safer. As you can guess I re-installed the pump after that adventure and installed complete cables. The problem with the shifter was caused by stretch in the throttle/ gear cables which I also changed.
I share this story to prevent others from making the same mistake.
Regards
TSM
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Clewless
