Boating New Zealand – April 2018

94 Boating New Zealand

water passing through it to below 3PPM – well within the

international MARPOL regulation.

Available from General Marine in Auckland, the kits retail for

a very reasonable $230 ex GST for the 2.5-inch flter, and $330

ex GST for the 4.5-inch model. Replacement elements for the

two sizes are available at $90 and $150 respectively.

While every older vessel should have a flter installed, if

you operate your boat in particularly pristine waters such as

Lake Wanaka you may also fnd having a flter is now a legal

requirement under local bylaws.

A recent sump leak on my diesel-powered catamaran resulted

in the engine dumping a fair bit of oil into the bilge. Tis initially

looked worse than it was – with the oil foating on the surface

the bilge looked to be flled with oil. Careful use of a couple of

absorbent mats quickly mopped up the bulk of the oil, and the

remaining water looked like it could be safely pumped out via

the bilge pump.

But we quickly realised that this remaining water still

contained a fair amount of oil – which the mat could not absorb

• so we opted to ft a Bilge Kleen unit.
  Installation is dead simple – we bought the appropriate hose
  tails to match our bilge pump’s 19mm hose and screwed the
  mounting bracket against a suitable bulkhead. We cut the bilge
  pump hose and replumbed it so that the water passed through
  the flter on its way out.

Not only will this unit take care of any small amounts of oil

that get into the bilge, it will also provide a quick visual indicator

of a leak. Te flter housing is clear, and the bright yellow flter

element easily shows any oil contamination. No more digging

into the bilge with a torch and absorbent mat.

Which brings me to the last but important prevention

step when maintaining your boat: remember to completely

disconnect the bilge pump before lifting your boat out the water.

In normal operation a foat switch ensures an automatic bilge

pump always leaves a few centimetres of water behind.

Tis means much of the oil that lands up in a bilge will

remain there rather than get pumped out. Until you hoist your

boat for its annual maintenance – at which point it is often tilted

at a slight angle.

Tis often sees the bilge pump kicking in and pumping out a

year’s worth of oil leak, right in front of the marina for everyone

to see! Not only highly embarrassing and environmentally

unacceptable – it can also be costly if it results in a fne and a bill

for the clean-up. BNZ

ABOVE An in-line filter keeps the oil

from being discharged overboard.

BOATINGNZ.CO.NZ

WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THESE PRODUCTS?

Contact General Marine Services at 65 Gaunt St, Westhaven, Auckland.

Phone: 09-309 6317