I recently wanted to fit a small Whale electric water pump into my water container to supply the galley spout of my boat here in Taupo, New Zealand.

But to screw down the lid of the container would mean the cap had to rotate around the hose and power cable.

To do this, I poked the electric cable into the pump discharge pipe just above the pump outlet connection and ran it up inside the pipe to a point well above the cap, where I drilled a hole for the cable to emerge again.

I drilled a hole in the container cap just big enough to push through a double-ended hose joiner barbed fitting (from a garden irrigation system).

By pushing the hose onto the joiner from either side, the joiner was held captive through the cap.

There was sufficient clearance between the joiner fitting and the cap to allow the cap to rotate and for the container to breathe, but not big enough to allow it to leak as the water sloshed about. (I used 32mm nylon plumbing fittings but the water pump will fit through the original filling hole of the 25lt container).

As my galley water spout has no valve there’s very little back pressure in the system, and a few cable ties and a blob of silicone sealant were sufficient to stop leaks around the cable where it emerged from the hose. Leaks back into the tank where the cable goes into the pipe are negligible.

A simple push button switch in the 12V supply to the water pump and it’s all working fine!

Fitting a water pump, step by step

Step 1: Water pipe fits snugly through the screw-down container lid.

Photo: Philip Kidson.

Step 2: Pump power cable goes up inside the water pipe.

Photo: Philip Kidson.

Step 3: The water pump just fits down through the opening of the 25lt water container.

Photo: Philip Kidson.

Step 4: Cable ties and silicone sealant secure the power cable where it emerges from the water pipe.

Photo: Philip Kidson.

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