Compatible with RV Pump-out?

[Tedd]

I'm upgrading to a trailer sailor with a marine toilet. Since I rarely go to a marina (as in, so far not even once), I'm wondering if marine systems are compatible with the sewage pump-out systems for RVs, found at campgrounds and trailer parks? I drive right past one every time I go sailing, so that would be a pretty handy option, for me.

 

[sail sfbay]

RV campground black/gray tank waste disposal systems are gravity fed into through a 3 inch hose from the rv. To dump into those systems you would need a pump connected to a portable tank like the Todd Waste Caddy in the link below then dump the tank into the rv waste disposal system OF find a portable pump-out facility near the marina that can pump your holding tank out into their honey dew tank.

Waste Caddies - Wheeled Caddies - Fuel and Oil Tanks

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[Tedd]

@sail sfbay :

Thanks! Would it not be possible to make an adapter to connect the seacock to the campground hose? After all, my holding tank sits at least as high as the black water tank in an RV.

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

You might be able to do it via an overboard discharge thru-hull using a macerator or diaphragm discharge pump. The only real problem may be the difference in the size of the dump station connection and the size of the thru-hull. A short piece of hose with adapters at each end maybe?

There's one other thing to consider... Campgrounds and RV parks usually provide free access to their dump stations for their paying guests, but prob'ly not to a boat that just stops by to use their facilities...pumper truck service for their tanks is one their highest overhead costs. So best check with the one you want to use to find out what they'd have to charge you--if they'll even let you.

--Peggie

 

[Tedd]

@Peggie Hall HeadMistress :

Yeah, good point. I've been operating on the assumption that you could simply pay for it as a service without staying at the campground or RV park, but I should probably check into that!

 

[sail sfbay]

You need to gravity flow into the rv waste disposal system..............so thinking out of the box you could install a gravity drain from your holding tank, of a suitable diameter for gravity flowing the tank's contents (ideally liquid only) through a new thru hull that you can fasten a "leaf-free" adapter to a 3 inch rv hose with elbow (like shown below) to connect into the rv waste disposal system. So that just becomes a pumping project. You will also want to provide a way to flush the system with water so you could install an additional part below to enable back flushing OR insert a hose into the boat's waste tank pump-out nozzle on the deck.

 

[sail sfbay]

Another location to pump-out is at a local municipal rv dump station, which may or may not charge you. Also some rv parks allow waste disposal for a fee. In either case, the hose connections need to be leak-free.

 

[Tedd]

In either case, the hose connections need to be leak-free.

Perhaps the most important comment, so far!

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

You need to gravity flow into the rv waste disposal system......

Sail sfbay, there's now no doubt in my mind that you have to be an engineer! 'Cuz only an engineer could come up with anything THAT far "out of the box!" Why wouldn't pumping it through a hose connected to the outside of a thru-hull into the RV dump intake as I suggested above work? Water could be added the tank via the deck pumpout fitting..although that might require doing it as a second step if a y-valve in the tank discharge line has to be re-directed from the macerator pump.

--Peggie

 

[sail sfbay]

I agree a "low" head pump would work. I was proposing a simple system with minimal additional components. If Tedd's boat has a macerator pump on the holding tank discharge connected to an existing thru hull then he is good to go OR install a new pump, as Peggie suggests, and hose lined to a new thru hull. Then connect leak proof fittings to the thru hull to an rv waste disposal hose to rv dump would work. This would be a simple plumbing project that can be tested with water. Just do not want excessive velocity on the RV hose, which is designed for atmospheric pressure and gravity flow.

 

[rgranger]

@Peggie Hall HeadMistress :

Yeah, good point. I've been operating on the assumption that you could simply pay for it as a service without staying at the campground or RV park, but I should probably check into that!

Funny that this came up this week for I was pondering this same question. Friday of this past week, I hauled my Hunter 26 a total of 460 miles from Montgomery AL to Charleston SC. On the way, I pulled into a rest stop in both Georgia and in South Carolina. I don't normally go into the lot that semi-trucks use but this time I did since it also said to use that lot if you are hauling an RV, or trailer.

Anyway... in both Georgia and in South Carolina, the rest stops had RV waste tank pump out stations. FREE!!!

So that might also be another option for you. Next time you pass a rest stop in your area, pull into the truck lot and see if there is a pump out station near the exit of the lot.



P.S. I was leaning in the direction that Peggy suggested. But I have a portapotty with the pump-out connections so ... I'd have to figure out how to put a hand pump or such onto that set up.

 

[sail sfbay]

You will need your own pump out system that can the gravity flow into their waste disposal system........then it's easy. Low cost and convenient. This is one engineered alternative discussed above.

 

[rgranger]

You will need your own pump out system that can the gravity flow into their waste disposal system........then it's easy. Low cost and convenient. This is one engineered alternative discussed above.

An added complexity I would have is that I have a water ballast tank so the through hull would have to be above the water line... I'd have to be able to pump up before gravity could take over.

 

[sail sfbay]

I cannot imagine a thru hull gravity drain OR pumped connection to an RV sewer hose without aignificant cost. Simpler and cheaper is to purchase a fit-for-purpose is a Todd waste caddy.

 

[Tedd]

@sail sfbay :

Aren't we just talking about an adapter to mate the RV hose to a through hull? I was planning on making that myself, for a couple of bucks in aluminum and an hour on the lathe.

 

[sail sfbay]

Let us know how that works out and leak tightness for no loss of containment after a test.

 

[Tedd]

@sail sfbay :

Will do. I have to buy the boat first, though!

Tedd

 

[Tally Ho]

You may also want to check local rules about having an operable waste discharge on a boat on inland lakes. It has to be disabled I think...maybe that means pinned shut. But you cannot have an operable discharge on inland lakes.

Greg

 

[Tedd]

@Tally Ho :

The regs in Canada are slightly different: You can only have a pump-out-compatible discharge on a boat in fresh water.

As a practical matter, though, you're unlikely to ever get checked when you're on fresh water, in Canada. Maybe on the Great Lakes, but I'll never go there. So, as long as you don't use the discharge in prohibited areas, you're probably fine with anything.

Tedd

 

[jssailem]

The regs in Canada are slightly different: You can only have a pump-out-compatible discharge on a boat in fresh water.

Tedd
I was a little surprised by this statement. It would make my cruising even more difficult in the BC waters. So I found this discussion on Canadian Yachting. Granted it is a magazine article and not "official Ottawa Government language". It seems more logical.
1388-guide-to-sewage-discharge-regs