Every year we hear of boats sinking, most of them at the dock. The usual method of dealing with ingress of water is to install a bilge pump, driven by a float switch that is activated when water in the bilge reaches a certain level. While this sounds sufficient, there are many factors that may prevent the bilge pump from operating correctly, such as loss of power due to corroded wiring, or debris which blocks the pump or prevents the float switch from operating. Because of the catastrophic results of this kind of failure a simple system to monitor the operation of the bilge pump should be installed in every boat, no matter what size.
This basic bilge monitoring system, costing less than $1,500 will monitor the voltages at all points, displaying their status on a small sunlight viewable display, and sounding a buzzer in the display if there is a problem. This type of monitoring is ideal when you are on the boat; if you leave the boat for a significant length of time, you should consider installing the intermediate system, which can text message your phone if there is a problem.
The following table shows the products included within this example system plus a list of the information or data available for display.
| Product | Description | Available Data List |
| DSM410 | Helm Pod Display | 4.1” display shows data in this list, monitors the data and sounds an internal buzzer if there is a problem |
| RIM100 | Run Indicator | Monitors pump breaker status, pump run status, counts and times pump run, detects high water alarm |
| GPS200 | Cabin top GPS | Position, speed over ground, course over ground, time, date, magnetic variation and more |
This file requires Maretron’s free NMEA 2000® network design tool N2KBuilder® to be installed on your PC.
The following screenshots are examples of how the bilge status will be displayed on the DSM410.
Bilge Pump Not Powered
Bilge Pump Powered
Bilge Pump Running
High Bilge Water
Pump Powered Running with Count and Time
Run Counter Timer
In addition to the bilge monitoring screenshots shown above, you also have the ability to display these example screenshots.
COG Course Up Rose
GPS Status
Lat Lon
Local Time and Date
Moon
SOG and COG
SOG Gauge
Sunrise and Sunset
UTC Date and Time
Variation
You can set an alert for any monitored parameter in this example system, which will flash on the display and sound the internal buzzer. Shown below are few examples of the alerts that can be set for this system.
Primary
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Secondary
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