Why is my head backing up with nasty/smelly water about 50% of the time even though the switch is in the dry position? Is that the Joker Valve I hear about? Chandler
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Bill O'Donovan
Could be
Or the tank could be full. Or the boat could be rocking on the high seas. Peggy the Headmistresss will clarify.
Or the tank could be full. Or the boat could be rocking on the high seas. Peggy the Headmistresss will clarify.
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BarryN
Are you full of ...
The best answer to your problem is that the holding tank is full. All the other answers are more unpleasant. The joker valve, a lip shaped piece of rubber, is supposed to be a one-way value. It allows you to flush by allowing the pump to only insert water into the line. It's not meant to keep back flow from the holding tank out of the bowl. When it happened to me, the problem was a clogged hose from the head to the holding tank. I used a snake to clean it out. Flushing boiling water through helped to soften the offensive matter. An unforgettable experience, not to be repeated.
The best answer to your problem is that the holding tank is full. All the other answers are more unpleasant. The joker valve, a lip shaped piece of rubber, is supposed to be a one-way value. It allows you to flush by allowing the pump to only insert water into the line. It's not meant to keep back flow from the holding tank out of the bowl. When it happened to me, the problem was a clogged hose from the head to the holding tank. I used a snake to clean it out. Flushing boiling water through helped to soften the offensive matter. An unforgettable experience, not to be repeated.
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Peggie Hall/HeadMistress
I'm betting that your tank vent is blocked
Pressurizing the tank. It's allowing just enough air to escape to relieve the pressure overnight and/or while you're away from the boat...using the head repressurizes it again, preventing waste from going into it. Or...if you leave the tank overboard discharge thru-hull open all the time, sea water may be filling up your tank...no room for more waste in it, so your flushes are backing up. Some of it may be seeping out through the macerator, creating more room. If the joker valve hasn't been replaced in at least two years, it should be replaced whether your head is backing up or not. But even a new one won't allow waste to go into a tank that doesn't have any space left in it. If you don't know what a joker valve is, or where it is, refer to the exploded drawing for your toilet. You can get that off the mfr's website.
Pressurizing the tank. It's allowing just enough air to escape to relieve the pressure overnight and/or while you're away from the boat...using the head repressurizes it again, preventing waste from going into it. Or...if you leave the tank overboard discharge thru-hull open all the time, sea water may be filling up your tank...no room for more waste in it, so your flushes are backing up. Some of it may be seeping out through the macerator, creating more room. If the joker valve hasn't been replaced in at least two years, it should be replaced whether your head is backing up or not. But even a new one won't allow waste to go into a tank that doesn't have any space left in it. If you don't know what a joker valve is, or where it is, refer to the exploded drawing for your toilet. You can get that off the mfr's website.
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Peggie Hall/HeadMistress
I just noticed something you said in your post...
"...even though the switch is in the dry position..." The wet.dry valve only controls incoming flush water...it has nothing whatever to do with whether anything goes out of the bowl. Your current problem aside, I think it would be a VERY good idea if you learned how a manual marine toilet works. Taking one apart without knowing what all the parts do, and where things like the joker valve are, is likely to create problems you didn't have to start with without fixing the one you did have.
"...even though the switch is in the dry position..." The wet.dry valve only controls incoming flush water...it has nothing whatever to do with whether anything goes out of the bowl. Your current problem aside, I think it would be a VERY good idea if you learned how a manual marine toilet works. Taking one apart without knowing what all the parts do, and where things like the joker valve are, is likely to create problems you didn't have to start with without fixing the one you did have.
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Chandler Clark
Thanks, let me clarify
Peggy This is occuring in the slip. The bowl seems get more full when the holding tank is closer to the top, but usually it fills up to the same level (just a couple of inches). My thought is it's the water left in the hose leading up to the tank. I'm sure the vent isn't blocked because I squirted a hose in there and it pressurized the tank (judging by the bubbles coming out of the pumpout. I installed the head about 11 months ago but it has been used fairly extensivly. It started after I pumped out (I don't have to normally). I included the switch position to eliminate outside water as a possible source. Chandler
Peggy This is occuring in the slip. The bowl seems get more full when the holding tank is closer to the top, but usually it fills up to the same level (just a couple of inches). My thought is it's the water left in the hose leading up to the tank. I'm sure the vent isn't blocked because I squirted a hose in there and it pressurized the tank (judging by the bubbles coming out of the pumpout. I installed the head about 11 months ago but it has been used fairly extensivly. It started after I pumped out (I don't have to normally). I included the switch position to eliminate outside water as a possible source. Chandler
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Bill
second Peggie's motion
Recommend you get Peggie's book, read it, then get intimate with your head. Just did this myself, with great result.
Recommend you get Peggie's book, read it, then get intimate with your head. Just did this myself, with great result.
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Peggie Hall/HeadMistress
Open thru-hulls, incomplete flushing...or both
Water outside the boat will seek its own level inside the boat through any hole in the boat that's open. So if you leave the intake and tank overboard discharge thru-hulls open all the time, one of them is likely to be the source of your water. That it's waste, not clean water, indicates that your tank may be filling up with water. The overboard discharge thru-hull should always be kept closed except when actually dumping the tank...the macerator will not prevent water from seeping past it into the tank. It could be water/waste left in the hose between the toilet and the tank...which should tell you that you aren't flushing long enough in the dry mode to move the bowl contents all the way to the tank. Any marine toilet that's working even close to original specs will move bowl contents at least 6' in the dry mode. If you suspect that water left in the head discharge hose is running back into the toilet, did it never occur to you to see what happens if you do flush longer in the dry mode? Are you even using the dry mode at all? If you aren't, you're filling up your tank about 3x as fast as you would if you flushed the toilet correctly: Pump only a couple of times ahead of use in the wet mode to wet the bowl. Switch to dry to move the bowl contents all the way to the tank. Switch to wet only long enough to rinse the bowl...switch back to dry to move the remaining water all the way to the tank. Whether the intake is the source of your problem or not, relying on the wet/dry valve to keep water out of the bowl--and your boat--instead of closing the seacocks is a very dangerous practice...wet/dry valves fail. People have an even higher failure rate when it comes to remembering to leave the switch in the dry mode.
Water outside the boat will seek its own level inside the boat through any hole in the boat that's open. So if you leave the intake and tank overboard discharge thru-hulls open all the time, one of them is likely to be the source of your water. That it's waste, not clean water, indicates that your tank may be filling up with water. The overboard discharge thru-hull should always be kept closed except when actually dumping the tank...the macerator will not prevent water from seeping past it into the tank. It could be water/waste left in the hose between the toilet and the tank...which should tell you that you aren't flushing long enough in the dry mode to move the bowl contents all the way to the tank. Any marine toilet that's working even close to original specs will move bowl contents at least 6' in the dry mode. If you suspect that water left in the head discharge hose is running back into the toilet, did it never occur to you to see what happens if you do flush longer in the dry mode? Are you even using the dry mode at all? If you aren't, you're filling up your tank about 3x as fast as you would if you flushed the toilet correctly: Pump only a couple of times ahead of use in the wet mode to wet the bowl. Switch to dry to move the bowl contents all the way to the tank. Switch to wet only long enough to rinse the bowl...switch back to dry to move the remaining water all the way to the tank. Whether the intake is the source of your problem or not, relying on the wet/dry valve to keep water out of the bowl--and your boat--instead of closing the seacocks is a very dangerous practice...wet/dry valves fail. People have an even higher failure rate when it comes to remembering to leave the switch in the dry mode.
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