Water finds its way into all marine vessels some way or another. Whether the water is covering the dock, inside a cabin, or collecting in a bilge, there are certainly many reasons why you want to keep plenty of that water out and sent right back where it came from. You might be wondering whether a bilge pump is right for you jon boat especially how to find one that works for you.
So, do you need a bilge pump for your jon boat? A jon boat should have either a manual or automatic bilge pump that can quickly and effectively remove excess water in your jon boat’s bilge. Without a bilge pump, your jon boat’s bilge will collect more water than it can take causing structural and safety issues.
Making sure you jon boat has a bilge is certainly a good idea for any jon boater and is a recommended piece of equipment for any boat that doesn’t have a bilge. Having the ability to remove excess water from wherever it may be located inside your boat is of the utmost importance, which is why a bilge pump can come in handy.
Finding the Right Bilge Pump for Your Jon Boat
Most boats out there of decent size and value, including jon boats, have bilges, which is the primary piece on your boat that collects excess water that’s found its way inside your boat. Whether it came from splashes on the deck, leaky seams, melted ice, or anywhere else, there’s no doubt you’ll have some amount of water built up over time.
Without properly removing the water from your bilge, you’re risking your boat as well as the physical safety of you and your crew. Apart from causing it to sink, it can cause destabilization, can hold spilled fuel causing potential corrosion, and can cause water damage to any and all equipment the overflowing water touches.
Needless to say, you definitely want to make sure you can get your jon boat equipped with a good, dependable bilge pump. As an essential safety accessory to a jon boat, I wholeheartedly suggest getting a good bilge pump as soon as you get the chance.
Some of the considerations you’ll have to take into account when getting a bilge pump for your jon boat include:
- Installed vs portable
- Electric vs manual
- Size
- Wire gauge
Depending on the level of effort you want to put into getting using a bilge pump on your jon boat comes down to whether you want it to be portable or fully installed. This is really up to you and should be carefully considered before jumping into a decision, especially if you want to install one.
Installing a jon boat bilge pump is a great option if you want to go the full distance with getting the excess water out of your bilge. Once you have it installed, all you’ll need is to flip a switch and the bilge pump on your jon boat will get to work. It can also be fully automatic. This is really nice if you want a “set it and forget it” feeling.
Using a portable bilge pump is a common type of bilge pump for jon boaters because they’re extremely easy to use without the need to install them. On top of that, they’re extremely affordable and can be used all throughout your boat if you find water in other places apart from the bilge. Personally, I use a portable electric bilge pump and it works perfectly.
I don’t think it makes too much sense to waste your time using a manual bilge pump, especially if your bilge is relatively large. The problem is the last thing you want to do when getting water out of your bilge is a waste of time, especially if the water is building up faster than you can handle. That’s why I suggest getting yourself an electric bilge pump, which is extremely affordable and handy.
Depending on the size of your jon boat you’ll need to get a bilge pump that can handle your bilge’s capacity. The length of most jon boats lies between 8 and 24 feet, which means your bilge pump should be able to handle a range of specific gallons per hour when pumping out water.
Examples of how many gallons per hour your jon boat bilge pump should be able to handle include:
- 8-18 feet: 300-500 gallons per hour
- 18-24 feet: 450-750 gallons per hour
These are just estimates of how much water your bilge pump should be able to run through, but it’s a great starting point when looking for a bilge pump for your jon boat.
If you decide to install a bilge pump into your jon boat, you’ll need to consider using a specific gauge for the wire that connects to your jon boat’s battery. Bilge pumps require a certain amount of current (amps) to be able to flow through them and a major bottleneck can be the wires used. For the standard 8-24 feet jon boat, you won’t need anything bigger than 16 gauge copper wire.
Popular Bilge Pumps for Jon Boats
Shoreline Marine Bilge Pump
One of the most important aspects of a bilge pump is its durability and effectiveness, which is exactly what you’ll get with a Shoreline Marine Bilge Pump (link to read reviews on Amazon). At a highly affordable price, you’ll be sure to keep all that excess water out of your jon boat for good.
I’m a huge fan of this bilge pump not only because it works like a charm, but it has a 600 gallons per hour output, a stainless steel mounting bracket, and marine-grade wiring. It even comes with an instruction video on how to properly install it on your jon boat, so you’ll be able to get it installed in no time.
Maxzone Automatic Submersible Boat Bilge Water Pump
You never know whether you’ll need a bilge pump with a lot of power to get the water out of your bilge fast. Well, your best option under these circumstances is finding yourself a Maxzone Automatic Submersible Boat Bilge Water Pump (link to read reviews on Amazon). This bilge pump will surely get the water out of your bilge fast.
This bilge pump by Maxzone is heavy duty and capable of a water output of 1,100 gallons per hour, which can be a lifesaver if your bilge is taking in too much water. It’s one of the more popular bilge pumps because it’s fully automatic, so when the water reaches a certain limit the pump kicks into gear. This is a great option if you’re wanting to install a highly effective, automatic bilge pump on your jon boat.
Tips on Installing a Bilge Pump on Your Jon Boat
Installing a bilge pump on your jon boat does take a bit of handy work, but it’s not too difficult if you have some general guidelines. As I mentioned before, portable bilge pumps are far easier than installed ones. However, installed bilge pumps can be more user-friendly over time and even have the feature of turning on automatically when needed.
First things first, you want to make sure the discharge hoses aren’t very long with the goal of making them as short as possible. The reason for this is you don’t want the water you’re pumping out to go through a long, windy journey to get out of your bilge. Also, shorter hoses add less resistance to the flow process than long hoses, which helps performance in getting the water out fast.
The second tip to keep in mind is the type of hose you ultimately decide on installing. In my opinion, you want to create as little friction as possible for getting the water built up in your bilge back out of your boat, which is why it’s wise to use smooth bore hoses. It’s not uncommon to see jon boats used ribbed bores due to the reduction in cost, but that’ll definitely affect performance.
An important consideration for when installing a bilge pump is to ensure the discharged water comes out from above the waterline. If the water is being sent at the waterline or below, your bilge pump will never get all the water out resulting in either an overflow or a total depletion of your jon boat’s battery. Simply put, make sure the water is being discharged from above the waterline.
We previously discussed choosing the right wire gauge, but it’s important to double-check the requirements laid out by the manufacturer of your bilge pump. This will avoid any issues operating your bilge pump when the moment is required to use it, so be sure what wires work best for you.
Being on a jon boat means you’re going to get wet and that certainly includes all the wiring connected to your bilge pump. That’s why I suggest putting on waterproof connectors to all the wires connected throughout your bilge pump. There’s no question over time these wires and connectors are going to get spoiled, so might as well slow down the process dramatically by investing in some waterproof equipment.
