Head Mate problem

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D

Dick

I have a Cat22 that had a leak in the hoses from the head. In the process of fixing it I needed to remove the hand pump assembly. In this process the rubber gasket fell out and I don't know which way it goes back. The gasket is rectangular. It has a weighted flap to the center. I don't know if the flap should be in the rear or the front (as looking at the toilet.) I also need to know if the weight goes up or down. Has anyone else had this problem? See the photo. It gives a very rough idea of what the gasket looks like. This is a Wilcox Crittenden "Head Mate"
 
Dec 2, 1997
8,966
- - LIttle Rock
That's not a gasket, it's a flapper valve...

Go here: http://www.wilcoxcrittenden.com/displayproductline.asp?bid=&plid=1# and then click on the link to the exploded drawing to see how it should be oriented. However, if you had to remove the pump from the base to fix a leak--but since that's not where any hoses are connected, WHY would you have to remove the pump from the base to fix a leaking hose connection???--I'd say it's way PAST time to put a whole rebuild kit (all new rubber parts, gaskets etc) in the toilet...toilets should be rebuilt about every 5 years...joker valve in the discharge, every year--at most every 2 years.
 
D

Dick

Exploded drawing

Thanks for the help. The exploded drawings tell me just what I need. I needed to move the pump because the outlet hose was about 1 foot long and pretty inflexible. The connector to the next part of the hose was at the wall between the head and the holding compartment. I needed just a little more play in the hose to move it away from the hole in the wall so that I could shove the two parts together and hose clamp it. How can you tell if you need a new joker valve. What does it do? *o The head was working fine before I took it apart. Dick
 
Dec 2, 1997
8,966
- - LIttle Rock
Joker valve is part #23 on the drawing

It's a one-way valve that prevents a backflow from flooding the bowl. It has a slit in the bottom...over time waste going through it stretches the slit till it becomes a hole that no longer closes. "The head was working fine..." Marine toilets, unlike household toilets, have moving rubber parts that wear out...they wear out even faster if they're not kept well lubricated--which I'd bet real money you didn't do while you had it apart...but you can when you put the flapper valve back in or rebuild it (lubricating instructions at the end of this). The rubber parts in a toilet typically last about 5 years...a joker valve 2 years at most. If you replace 'em as preventive maintenance when the toilet is clean and dry, you'll reduce the odds of ever having to repair it when the bowl is full and won't go down by 99%. About your leak...a hose that doesn't come straight off a fitting--one that's forced to go at an angle--is just about guaranteed to leak. It usually is caused by using a straight discharge fitting on the toilet where a 90 is called for or vice versa...by just using whatever came with the toilet, whatever it takes to make it work, instead of getting the other one from the mfr...and boat builders are just as guilty of doing that as owners. From your description, it sounds like that's what you're dealing with. Using just one hose clamp can also allow it to leak. ALL sanitation system hoses--and all below-waterline connections too--should be double clamped, with the screws on opposite sides of the hose. Overheating a hose to make it bend tighter than it wants to bend willingly also creates problems...anything from leaks to a collapsed hose. To lubricate the toilet...buy a tube of thick synthetic (not petroleum based--petroleum is destructive to rubber) teflon grease...put a HEALTHY squirt of it in the pump...pump a few times after you put it back on the base to spread it all over the inside of the cylinder...your toilet should pump smoothly all season without any need for any further lubrication. This should be done annually, but unless you have another reason to remove the pump from the base, you should be able to do it by just removing the top of the pump. For more way to prevent problems, check out the link below.
 
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