Hi there.

I like Guzzlers also, as they are lightweight, non-corroding plastic, relatively inexpensive, and available at many retail boating suppliers as well as through West Marine. I've heard of Henderson pumps (the Chimp?) and Whalers also, but I just haven't seen them. Assuming the same general dimensions, I would think they would be adequete for a kayak as well.

The normal factory spring Guzzler supplies with their foot-operated models is, as Val says, much too strong for our modest suction-side lifting needs. It is capable of a suction-side lift of up to 11 feet, where we need only inches. I contend this makes the total pumping effort much greater than we need. If the lighter spring available is only half of the original, that's an improvement, but it's still more than we need, but the installation will be slightly simpler.

I still like the Guzzler hand-operated models. No spring, and you have to cut off the excess length of the hand lever and adapt a foot or toe plate to it. For the suction stroke, I install a bungee to the toe plate, with the other end running along the underside of the deck peak to a fairlead jam cleat mounted near the front end of the cockpit.

With this arrangement, I can leave the bungee untensioned. This allows the toe plate to rest in the far forward position (as if at the end of the discharge stroke) and gives me a bit more footroom. Or, I can jam the bungee with just enough tension to actually allow it to work. You'll be surprised how little tension is needed, making the overall pumping effort as low as can be.

The bodies of the Guzzler 400- and 500-series pumps are identical; only the inlet and outlet ports are different. The 1" outlet of the 400 models makes a relatively smaller hole in your deck, while the 1.5" outlet of the 500 looks much bigger. I've had success installing a 500 to replace a 400, but instead of making the outlet hole bigger, I adapted the 500 outlet to the smaller nipple outlet that was already there. I'm sure the restriction lowered the overall pumping rate, but it was a small, undetectable tradeoff. I'd do it the same way for the next boat, i.e., install a 500, but use a small deck outlet (to keep the hole small, so that it is not an eye magnet).

As Val pointed out, attaching blocks to the BOW side of the bulkhead makes installation easier for one person. I've also made "U"-shaped wood pieces, each long enough to straddle 2 screws, to create a pair of tie-down anchor points inside the front compartment.

Position the pump on the bulkhead so that the inlet is something like 1/4" above the keel. Install a screen or strainer if you like. At the top, epoxy and fillet a short nipple of your choice into the deck outlet hole, cutting it to length to leave about a 1/2" to 1" gap between the top of the pump outlet fitting and the deck outlet nipple. This gap is then bridged with a short length of flexible tubing jam-fitted onto the two ends. Hose clamps won't be needed as this is a very low-pressure system.

The flexible tubing allows the pump to be easilly installed and removed for maintenance. You just have to kind of twist it on and off when you remove or install the pump.

I agree with Val that a foam bulkhead probably won't be stiff enough to rigidly hold the pump in place. In any event, I would think one would be wasting effort flexing the bulkhead with every stroke, so some kind of stiffener or brace would probably be appropriate for that. But, as long as the foam bulkhead is securely mounted to the boat (and not just a tight jam-fit), I think it could be adapted to work well.