[sbw1]

My 32 Open was new in 2004 and I have never cleaned the sump. I learned early on (first year) there is a way to avoid the issue altogether. The shower drain cover screws out of the shower pan with the spanner wrench used for your sea strainers in the engine room. You buy fiberglass window screen from the hardware store and cut a bunch of circular screens that fit into the drain under the cover. Unscrew the cover, install a screen and reinstalled the cover. Use a concentrated bilge cleaner once a month to keep things in the sump clean. When the shower starts to drain more slowly (in about 3-4 weeks) throw away the old screen and replace with a new one. ) I keep a baggy full of them in the medicine cabinet. I pour bilge cleaner down the drain when I replace the screen. We live on our boat much of the summer and take two showers a day on it and have never had a problem with the sump pump.