'90 Hunter 30G Blackwater Tank Replacement

[Famos_Amos]

Hey all- trying to find a replacement tank for my H30G. After doing some research, it appears Hunter located this tank in two different locations in the '88-'94 H30s. In some, the tank is located aft of the aft berth, and others (mine included) is located along the port sidewall in the head. Mine is original (I believe), has become permeated over the years, and is woefully undersized for the way we normally use the boat on our freshwater lake. I inquired about tank diagrams from Hunter, but only could come up with the rectangular tank that is aft of the berth. Has anyone else replaced this tank? Is there a way to diagram one up (bigger possibly) and have it made without being overly cost prohibitive?
Spring is rapidly approaching, and we are going to need a place to.. "go"..

 

[kappykaplan]

Check with Ronco Plastics. Peggie Hall, Head Mistress, has made this recommendation to many.

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

I would not put a tank there! Nor would I put a tank way aft of the head either. Just 'cuz those were the only place Hunter put a tank in your boat model doesn't mean those are the only places it can go...in fact, they'd have had to work at it to pick worse locations! If you want to brainstorm the best place to put one, send me a PM and I'll reply with my email address.

And yes, Ronco Plastics Ronco Plastics Marine Catalog is the best source for a tank..they make TOP quality water and waste tanks for a very reasonable price and has more than 400 shapes and sizes, over 100 of which are non-rectangular, and they install fittings in the sizes and locations specified by the customer when they make the tank.

 

[Ken Cross]

I would not put a tank there! Nor would I put a tank way aft of the head either. Just 'cuz those were the only place Hunter put a tank in your boat model doesn't mean those are the only places it can go...in fact, they'd have had to work at it to pick worse locations!.

If you locate a good place for the H30 in that year range, I'm sure some of us would like to hear it. The tank is too small and plumbing access is awful. I was thinking forward under the setee, but that is somewhat difficult as the plumbing needs to get past the nav station.

Ken

 

[Famos_Amos]

Well, I'm thinking this is the way we need to go.. There is nowhere else to logistically put a tank. Behind the aft berth and under the port settee would both require a long run of sanitation hose and the tank would replace extremely valuable storage space. Some have put a tank on the battery shelf below the aft berth and moved the battery to below the sink.. I've got a pair of T-111's, so that's not an option. While the original placement of the tank is not optimal, it is unfortunately the only logistical place to put the replacement.. plus it keeps all "head related" stuff in one spot, without piping it all over the boat. Anyhow, here's the draft thats going out for bid.. basically the same footprint, just a bit taller for added capacity. Hopefully I don't need to sell a kidney.

 

[Ken Cross]

I'd love to know how this works out.
Ken

 

[Famos_Amos]

Well, just got a prelim quote on having this built.. considering a comparable pre-molded tank would be around $300, the quote of $475 for this custom job isn't too far off the radar, I guess. Looking at it another way, we're gaining almost double the capacity meaning half the number of pump outs, a head system totally contained in the head, and most importantly a tank that isn't permeated.

 

[whatfiero]

Now I think the best place for sewage tank would be where the diesel tank is now maybe install under diesel and move that tank up or one port and one starboard

 

[stevevoyce]

I bought this exact tank from RONCO. They already have the mold. I talked to the guy that ran the shop and he found the mold. It was labeled as "Hunter 30G".

 

[Famos_Amos]

I bought this exact tank from RONCO. They already have the mold. I talked to the guy that ran the shop and he found the mold. It was labeled as "Hunter 30G".

Huh.. they needed the drawings from Hunter.. of course the only drawing I could get was for the rectangular tank located aft of the aft berth in some of the later H30's. I ended up ordering a custom tank that will fit the original footprint and adds about 10 gal of volume. I'll post pics of the install when the tank shows up mid April or so.

 

[Ken Cross]

I noticed your original installation is the same as ours (no loop in the toilet discharge hose) It seems that there would be slightly more tank capacity if a loop were installed, but I can't figure out how to get the room to install one. (My thoughts here are that one would gain the volume from the bottom of the fill hose to the roof of the tank with a loop installed.

Am I right?

I'm also thinking of installing a level sensor:
http://www.ferriellosales.com/Order_Page.php
The one installed now simply tells me when it's almost full. The problem I see installing a sensor is no room between the cabinet wall and the tank for the wiring block. This assumes the tape sensors go on the inboard wall. I'm thinking of notching the wall.

Ken

 

[Famos_Amos]

Hey Ken- When considering where to put the discharge tube into the tank, I originally was under the presumption "the higher the better, for capacity". However, after contemplating for a while, having a tube enter from the top is only going to ensure that much more pressure on the joker valve at any given point. I opted to put the fitting in the upper corner of the tank wall facing aft on the boat. This way, the fluid level in the tube is approximately 5-6in lower than if I elbowed over the top. Once the tank level is up to the (intake?) fitting, it is time to get pumped anyway. I'm putting a Scad Solo ( http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1|51|2234299|2234305|2234306&id=1249539 ) sensor on the tank, with the sensor elements on the vertical wall of the tank facing the center of the boat. This will only allow a reasonable level reading when the boat is not heeled, but the narrow portion of the tank is not wide enough for the required sensor tape spacing. If I find that this triggers a tank full alarm while heeled, I'll just add a switch to keep the unit off while sailing.

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

When considering where to put the discharge tube into the tank, I originally was under the presumption "the higher the better, for capacity". However, after contemplating for a while, having a tube enter from the top is only going to ensure that much more pressure on the joker valve at any given point.

Your original presumption was the correct one, if for no other reason than putting ALL hoses on the top of the tank (with a pickup tube inside the tank on the discharge fitting) eliminates standing waste in any hose. In a line that runs uphill to the tank, there would be no no noticeable difference in the amount of "pressure on the joker valve" between a hose entering the tank AT the top vs entering an inch or two higher ON the top. There doesn't have to be any, because any manual toilet--even a Jabsco--that's working anywhere close to factory specs (which among other things, requires replacing the joker valve annually because blocking backflow isn't its primary function) can move bowl contents up to 6 linear or 4 vertical feet in the dry mode...which, as close as your tank is, would be very easy.

If you want to learn a joker valve's REAL function in manual toilets, find the article "joker valve 101" in the archives of the plumbing and sanitation forum.

 

[Famos_Amos]

Here's the update, folks:
The fresh new tank:
...Installed:
And new cabinetry to finish:
Now, just need to calibrate the tank monitor and, well.. break it in!

 

[Ken Cross]

Thanks Famos_Amos
The installation looks great. Was it difficult to get the plumbing to fit with the taller tank? Did you plumb an overboard dump system or simply a pumpout?

Ken

 

[Famos_Amos]

Ken- The install went smoothly because all the tank fittings were placed in the same relative location as the factory install. It is a tight fit, but you'll have that on a 30-foot boat with just about everything! I keep this boat on a freshwater lake, so no overboard dump was installed. The original tank had been installed with a macerator option, with the tank plumbing and thru-hull in place, but never plumbed with a pump. I think the original tank was shorter to accommodate the macerator pump on top of the tank itself, judging by the way the plumbing was and the access panel from above.

 

[Ken Cross]

Thanks. I had re-plumbed ours to eliminate the overboard dump when I replaced hoses. Our macerator was just connected to the tank with a "T" fitting (no Y valve.) Now it's much simpler but I couldn't empty the tank without a pump out if I wanted to. We went to Canada last summer and found few places to pump out. That's one reason I was thinking about the bigger tank.
Ken

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

We went to Canada last summer and found few places to pump out. That's one reason I was thinking about the bigger tank.

That's because Canada's laws as they apply to BC aren't nearly as strict as ours. British Columbia Boating and Marine Activities If you plan to spend much time up there, you may want to reconsider replacing your ability to dump the tank or flush the toilet directly overboard.

 

[Ken Cross]

I did find a list of BC pumpouts before we left home, but it turns out they aren't nearly as common as in Puget Sound. The one we did use was 5 or 6 loonies (coin operated.) at Ganges. It makes me wonder what we actually pay for pumpouts down here, because we know they aren't free.

Ken

 

[james19903]

What's the capacity with the new tank ? How much $ if you don't mind me asking. And how long did it take to get it. I just tore my whole bathroom out this morning , going to replace everything. Thanks, Jim