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British boat owner Barrie Stubbs escaped a pollution incident and possible fine after he installed a bilge filter system from Wavestream. Mr Stubbs’ Defever 45 Spirit of Conbar was moored in Elizabeth Marina, St Helier, when a fuel leak occurred in an engine pipe. The boat was unattended at the time and on his return, Barrie was faced with a thick layer of diesel floating on the bilge water.
Barrie had previously read a magazine article about French marinas incurring fines on boats that leaked oil or diesel. As a frequent visitor to France, he had installed a Wavestream bilge filter into his boat.
During the period of the diesel leak, Barrie estimated that the Wavestream filter had collected around a litre of diesel in the cylindrical cartridge filter that fits into the line between the bilge pump and the through hull outlet. The actual cartridge material binds the hydrocarbon to the filter element, allowing the cartridge to hold up to three times its own weight in oil.
Barrie said "I asked the marina if they had seen any leaked diesel in the marina and they said no. The filter had spare capacity despite the time that had passed and the sheer amount of diesel washing about in the bilges. I was delighted that the filter had been in place and had prevented such a major diesel leak from ruining the water in the marine and marking other boats."
Rating: 7/10
Name: Barrie Stubbs
Occupation: Enjoys motor cruising in free time
Reason for test: Real life emergency
Desired result: Clean diesel and oil out of bilge water to legal limit to 15mg/l
Product: Wavestrem bilge filter
Description: Filter containing absorbents that bond all hydrocarbons passing through
How to use: Fit in the pipe between bilge pump and outlet
Manufacturer: Wavestream are the manufacturer, although Halyard are the UK supplier
Where to buy: www.halyard.eu.uk or 01722 710922
This was a real life test. Barrie had left his boat unattended in the Channel Islands for some time. His bilge filter kept up with his automatic bilge pump and ensured that only clean water was discharged.
