Troubleshooting Guides

Series 1.

Please use the + signs to navigate through the Troubleshooting Guide. They are intended to hide information that is not relevant to you.

Throughout this guide, we frequently suggest resetting power to the Arid Bilge System. In practice this may mean cutting power at the source by, e.g., going to the circuit breaker since the unit itself does not have an On/Off switch.

Note:

  • If you own a Series 2, 4, or 9, please navigate to the Troubleshooting Guide for Series 2-4-9.
  • If you purchased your Series 1 Arid Bilge System before March 2018 or it has a serial number of N0103 or below, this guide may not 100% apply to your system.

I Hear An Alarm

Disconnect the discharge hose and put a cup or small bucket under the discharge elbow fitting. Reset power to restart the system.

If water comes out when the system is running

This indicates a problem outside of the unit. You should check the external discharge ball valve (e.g., during winterization, the valve was closed, and then not reopened in the springtime).

If no water comes out when the system is running

This indicates a problem inside the unit. To verify, look at the two indicator lights on the left side of the unit. If the red light is lit while the alarm is sounding, then please send the unit in for service.

Your intake is likely clogged. This could be due to 1 of 2 scenarios: the pickup is clogged (most likely) or the tubing is blocked. Check the pickup first

Visually check the bilge to see if the pickup is sitting in water or another substance.

If the pickup is in water, then remove it from the intake tubing and clean it. Reattach the clean pickup to the intake tubing. Reset power to restart the system. Wait about a minute and a half to verify that the alarm is no longer being activated

Remove the pickup by depressing the ring around the brass fitting and pulling the tubing upwards. Clean the pickup by using degreaser on the sponge pad and back-flushing water through the brass fitting with a garden hose. You can also purchase a new pickup from us.

If any of the pickups are coated with another substance, e.g., slime or sawdust, clear the obstruction and clean the pickup

Remove the pickup by depressing the ring around the brass fitting and pulling the tubing upwards. Clean the pickup by using degreaser on the sponge pad and back-flushing water through the brass fitting with a garden hose. You can also purchase a new pickup from us.

If the system is still alarming intermittently after you checked and cleaned the pickup, then the intake tubing itself may have a problem

Remove the pickup from the intake tubing again, making sure the end of the intake tubing is not touching anything. Reset power to restart the system and listen for an alarm while the pickup is disconnected and the end of the tube is suspended in the air. If the system does not alarm and the green indicator light is solid, then the intake tube is good.

If the alarm is still sounding intermittently and the red indicator light is flashing, this means the system is working correctly but the Polyethylene intake tubing is crushed, kinked, or blocked. Replace that full length of tubing.To further verify that the tubing needs to be replaced, you can remove the end of the tubing from the left side of the unit by depressing the metal ring around the end of the tube. Reset power to restart the system and listen for an alarm. If the system does not alarm and the green indicator light becomes solid, this confirms that the tubing needs to be replaced.

I Do Not Hear An Alarm

As a first step, please confirm there is power to the unit.

To verify that there is power to the unit, first check the two indicator lights on the left side of the unit

If the green light is lit solid, then the unit may be in its 3-hour hibernation period. Reset power to restart the system. You should hear the pump starting up a few seconds after power was reapplied.

If no indicator lights are on, then remove the back cover/mounting plate to look at the light green terminal block

Locate the light green terminal block. It should have 2 large wires (red and black) feeding into it from the bottom. Using a multimeter DC voltage scale, place a probe on both screwheads of the terminal block while the unit is connected to its power source. If that combination shows no power, then you are not providing power to the Arid Bilge System from the boat and should check wiring, fuses, breakers, etc.

If the terminal block is live, then take out the fuse to check if it is blown

The cylindrical fuse holder is located directly above the terminal block. Using a flathead screwdriver, push in and rotate counterclockwise 1/10th of a turn to pop out the fuse. Check the fuse visually first to see if the filament has been broken. If you can’t tell, you can also check using the Ohm scale on your multimeter. If the multimeter shows full resistance, then the fuse is blown. Replace the fuse. We typically use an Eaton Bussman GMA- 1- R fuse. Grab the locking tab on the black inset and lift up and out to change the fuse.

Normally, your Arid Bilge System will run through every one of its zones and then shut off for 3 hours if the bilges are relatively dry. However, if you’re hearing the pump running for multiple cycles continuously for over an hour, then you could have a slow leak. Visually check all of your bilge pickups to see if there is a trail leading to the source of a slow leak. Consider fixing the leak ASAP.

Repair Request Form

If the troubleshooting guide instructed you to send your unit in for service, please click here.

Repair Request