Customer Reviews

Rule 25S Marine Rule 500 Automatic Marine Bilge Pump (500-GPH, 12-Volt)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a compact pump - very small and I am sure like all Rule pumps it's fine quality. However, i purchased the pump for automatic operation (drain my 14ft Dory during the summer so that I don't have to bail the thing after a rain storm).

Here's the rub.... The item description on Amazon for this item is incorrect. It says it has a float switch. It DOES NOT. The way it senses water is: it turns on every 2.5 minutes, and based on the resistance it "feels" on the impeller, it knows if it's pumping water or not. If it's pumping air (i.e. no water is present), it shuts down. The bad thing is - this means that every 150 seconds, it's turning on for a few secongs. The proble witht hat is, you are steadily draining your boat batteries, having this thing hooked up.

Rule does make a automatic 500 GPH pump with a float switch - THIS IS NOT IT. if you care about battery drain, I would stay clear of this.

I have informed Amazon of the error in their description and I am returning mine.

Amazon should correct the inaccurate description of this item which states "......STARTS WORKING WHEN THE WATER LEVEL PUSHES THE FLOAT UP." As several other posters have noted, this pump DOES NOT have, or utilize, a FLOAT switch. Instead, it starts up every few minutes and it automatically measures resistance on the impeller shaft for a few seconds to determine whether it should continue to run. If there is water in the bilge, the shaft resistance causes the pump to continue to run until the bilge water is removed and no resistance is noted. The electrical drain during the resistance testing phase is minimal. This is an good product and will last 1-2 years in continuous operation. The only down side is that as the pump gets older, it could malfunction and run continuously in the absence of any water in the bilge. Two batteries -wired independently- are a must in any boat that has a working automatic bilge pump installed.

The automatic feature works as described. I installed it in my basement dehumidifier such that the water gets pumped up 5 ft. and then outside the house. Saves the hastle of emptying the container every couple of days. The pump has no problem handling the head loss and the flow is strong.Rule 25S Marine Rule 500 Automatic Marine Bilge Pump (500-GPH, 12-Volt)

When I bought this to replace my old RULE, I looked at the word, "Automatic", and figured that meant it automatically turned off! I read it didn't have a float switch, but I never saw the word "manual" shut off! Well, I stood there as it ran on and on for a minute in my now-empty boat. That's no good for a boat that spends its life at the dock and takes on water with storms. So, I called the company, spoke to a person, emailed a copy of my receipt and they sent me a new one. They didn't ask for the old one back... I just got the replacement, and now I'm worried that they are ALL like that - pumping like there is no tomorrow forever! AT least, now I know that Amazon will take it back if this one is not automatic, too!

My bilge is dry all the time and it was very easy to install. It snapped right into the old Rule 500 base. Also it was a reasonable price from Amazon

Thanks to RULE AUTO BILGE PUMPS, our boats stay dry and ready to each morniing after an evening rain. This saves us much need time to get our guests on there way fishing in the early morning.

THANK YOU RULE

I have only had this about a month, but so far it seems to work as advertised. The installation instructions were clear and accurate, the shipping was good, and the product seems to work fine. For some strange reason, at initial installation, I could not get the unit to stop running, then I unplugged all the wires and plugged them in again (maybe in a different order??) and it worked and has continued to work well. When working on the boat, I hear is cycle for 1 second every 2-3 minutes. No complaints, but I've only had it installed for a month.

I have been using these pumps for several years in small boats. They are automatic so you don't have to think about bailing every time it rains. They are worth the price.

I've used these automatic Rule pumps aprox 25 years, originally it was known as the Platinum Series. They have proven to be reliable & long lasting. On my boat the pump was installed in the low spot of the bilge (at rest). You could hear it cycle every few minutes. The boat had twin batteries & always had a trickle charger to keep the batteries topped-off.

My commerical building had a sump built into the lowest corner of the concrete slab. Due to large amounts of salt water the metal (110vac) sump pumps lasted approx 3 years, after several expensive pumps I decided to try the same automatic Rule bilge pump used in the boat. The Rule pump was powered by a 12v battery charger & worked fine manually, but never automatically (long lasting never had to be replaced). A spare pump was kept as a back-up & I took it with me when I retired.

The house has a low spot at the edge of the driveway just in front of the garage door & the garage would flood with enough rain. I constructed a drain sump & used the spare auto Rule bilge pump (powered with a 12v battery charger). Again the pump worked manually, but not automatically so I decided to try a 12vdc power supply (thinking maybe the automatic circuit needed a cleaner constant 12vdc). Problem solved, the pump cycles & pumps the sump & returns to sensing mode automatically. This set-up has proven so reliable & necessary a back-up pump was ordered from Amazon.

I've tried them all and keep coming back to Rule. I bought a Whale Supersub pump and almost lost my boat!
This pump is idiot proof if you don't hear it cycle every 2 to 3 minutes something is wrong. Very reassuring, buy with confidence. Amazon as always is amazing for price AND delivery.