What is a good hand bilge pump?
Are these any good?
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Unified-Marine-36-x-36-Hose-Hand-Bilge-Pump/23919862?action=product_interest&action_type=title&placement_id=irs_top&strategy=PWVAV&visitor_id=67892638102&category=0%3A4125%3A111667%3A1079384%3A1079924&client_guid=b3cccadb-b145-4f09-b0a0-ad3b80f55abf&config_id=2&parent_item_id=16651477&guid=3a6b10c9-7dc7-4a7b-aabd-53402b0a83aa&bucket_id=irsbucketdefault&findingMethod=p13n
Is it any good?
Depends on what you're pumping out by hand.
If it's a dinghy that sits in the water and gets used once in a while when it rains- sure.
If it's a back up to your main bilge pump in your full size sail boat - probably not.
If it's the primary pump in your full size sail boat - definitely not.
I have a Whale Titan mounted in the cockpit.
It's a backup to the 1200gph Johnson electric pump.
There's also a 2000gph Johnson electric pump with rolled hose and 12v leads in a bag - just in case.
And, at the risk of overkill, there's a Whale Guzzler with rolled hose in a bag.
There's also the question of material and build quality.
Is it the cheapest plastic the factory could find?
Plastic that will deform or break when you need it most?
Is it made well enough so that it will last, not only for a few years, but also not break when you need it most.
Depends on what you intend it for. I have one sorta like that, except mine is made of bronze. I use it to pump rain water from the dinghy and melt water from the ice chest.
On Necessity, where there was zero bilge, I used a Whale mounted on a board (pictured)
On Tehani I have a Whale Gusher Ten mounted in a cockpit locker. That pump has 1 1/2 inch hoses and will MOVE some water. Also have an electric mounted in the bilge.
Skylark
I have one and it works well enough for what I would trust it for.
I use mine to pump the dinghy dry after a rain and I use it to pump out the remaining water in the bilge that the bilge pump misses.
I wouldn't use it for any thing else.
I am thinking I will just use a pail when I can kick through the ice.
I have a similar pump. Works well, and I think it is a good idea to have one on board. Works great for the dinghy, emptying out cockpit lockers, or sucking the water out of weird spaces where the water doesn't drain to a sump area suitable for a better pump. I would always keep one on board.
Today I use it primarily for the dinghy and to pump the water out of the little sump area behind the engine and under the stuffing box which tends to accumulate a gallon of water every couple days of sailing; but which doesn't manage to get to the sump where most of the pumping happens.
As others suggest, it might not be the best tool as a primary manual pump, though. In my mind, that is mostly due to ergonomics. It can be pretty tiring hovering over the sump, keeping the output hose in a useful direction to get rid of the water, holding the pipe down where it needs to be, and actually operating the dang thing. Not bad for a few minutes. Doing it in an emergency would be adding more stress to an already stressful situation.
As to durability, I've had mine for at least a decade (mine was likely purchased at West Marine, not Wal-Mart...I'm always a little skeptical of what Walmart sells), and the only thing that has gone wrong with it was the hose, easily replaced, eventually broke.