AdvancedElements.com

[ztbishop]

Has anyone ever purchased a bildge pump for the advanced frame, or would they be too difficult to use with the water going under the floorboard?

Also, has anyone ever attempted to make a drain-plug for these? It would be VERY nice to be able to drain the water...I find it nearly impossible to drain after going through minor rapids...perhaps the best route would be to run a tube from a bildge pump underneat the floorboard?

[Daddy-O]

A manual pump works when you are sitting in the kayak, but goes under the floor when you get out. Personally, I don't think an electric bilge pump is the answer for these kayaks (not that it couldn't be done). If you are getting water in the kayak, why not just get a spray skirt to cover the hole. You will still get some water in through the zippers, but it should be minimal. If you are going down rivers with rapids, you might want to look at something that has a self-draining capability. If you do install an electric pump, please report back on how it works out for you, and post pictures so that we can see how you did it.
Daddy-O

[ztbishop]

Thanks for the reply. I was actually thinking about a manual pump. I've always been used to having water in the bottom of this thing. I just assumed that 3 hours of paddling splashed it inside or seeped through the zipper...until I realized that my friend's identical model kept them bone-dry! I filled the bare shell of this thing with water to see if it was leaking and sure enough, I had scraped many (small) openings into the black rubber material on the very front of the kayak. I'm not sure if I should just put some of the included glue over these small openings, or put some of the PVC material over them as patches....either way, I'm glad to know I will stay dry from now on. Now I remember crashing thing thing in between a couple trees last summer in a current.

[JCOOLEY]

If the holes are real small (pinhole size) you can apply some glue to it and that should help. As an extra added measure, you can place some Type-B Tear Aid over the area as well.

Jeremy