I just have to ask....

[Rick Johnson]

OK, at the risk of showing my ignorance I just have to ask a question or two.  On my Catalina 30 the icebox drained into the bilge.  As the ice melted the bilge pump would pump the water out and all was right with the world.  Now I have a Catalina 34 which has a foot pump to pump the water out of the icebox.  Since my foot pump doesn't work for ####e, it has made using ice an ordeal.

My question is, why can't the icebox just drain into the bilge?  If that's not possible for some reason, can I replace the foot pump with an electric one?

[Mark Wey]

Rick

You have travelled the same path as many of us including me.
Just extend the hose from the cooler to the bilge bypassing the foot pump. The cooler/fridge will easily drain and the beverages will be ice cold. Nothing to it.

mark

[tstrand]

The disadvantage is that, depending what you keep in your icebox, you may create a unique smell in the bilge. If it's just ice melting it's not a problem but our fridge bottom always has a colorful cocktail by the end of a trip. We like to keep the bilge clean and dry, so we kept the fridge foot pump but routed the line to the sink drain hose. We don't use the pump much anyway; we just sponge out the fridge.

The main reason we rerouted to the sink drain is so that we can get rid of one through-hull next haulout. I can't understand the logic behind having a hole in the hull just for a fridge drain.

Tim

[sail4dale]

simple soluton I used when I  haad my Cat 30.  I put a plastic tub to catch the drainage and made sure the drain hose was at the bottom so when the water started to fill the tub, the hose end was under water.  Therefore I didn't drain the "cold" air our of the ice box.

Ever so often I would dump the tub overboard.   Easy!

[Jim Price]

Another thought is to place a "Home Depot Marine Store" plastic ball valve at end of hose and that way you do not loose any cold air or ingest hot air and you can drain as necessary into jug or bilge or bucket.  I have a cold plate but use this set up to drain  / clean at my leisure.   

[Ron Hill]

Rick : If you happen to have a "salt water" spigot in your galley you can "T" into that outlet and pump the fridge water into the sink.  Don't think I drain into the bilge, but rather get a rebuild kit for that foot pump.  I've seen that rebuild kit in Boat US for a Whale foot pump.