So the other night my livewell wasnt working.  Tonight, I have concluded it must be the pump.  I unhooked the wiring from the switch, connected it directly to the battery and got nothing.  Now I'm trying to removeit, but cant figure out how.  It's a Rule 500 GPH 12V pump.  It almost seems like it is mounted toa aluminum plate in my boat.  How do I get this dang thing out?

There should be a (for the lack of a better term) nut on the bottom side of the plate.  You've got to spin that off and the pump should come right out.

Before spending too much time trying to get the pump out beat on it with something like a leatherman. My livewell pump wasn't coming on when I was checking everything before our last tournament. I was checking the wiring and running it straight to the battery and nothing worked. Finally I beat on it a couple of times and it started to hum. I think they get dried up and need to be broken loose or at the very least they need to have water coming through the pump. The boat had sat for about two months but was probably longer since we didn't catch any fish at the previous tournament. The pump did the same thing when I bought the boat and it had sat for about a year when I bought it.

On the back of your transom, next to your motor you will see a plastic nut, about 1 1/2" in diameter. It may or may not have a wire screen over it. This nut is what holds your pump in, that and the hose it's connected to. If you change it take close note of the position of the hose going to your livewell. If it's not just right when you install your new pump it may air-lock.Tapping on your pump may get it to work for awhile. Usually once they begin to stick they don't last too much longer. I've changed a few. If you have anymore questions feel free to message me. Good luck.