Lately any time the head is flushed we get a terrible smell. I figured it was due to the raw water sitting in the hose since the last time we were at the boat so I give it quite a good flushing but still doesn't seem to help. Each time the head is used we get the smell. Any suggestions.
Head odor
- Thread starter spunky13
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If the effluent hose is the original one it most likely is permeated. Take a warm wet rag and wrap it around the hose for ten minutes. Then remove and smell it. If you smell the odor the hose is finished and needs to be replaced. Nothing will stop the odor without replacement.
Spunky, Alan is very correct. Hoses of all kinds, water
hoses, fuel lines, any of them, deteriorate from the inside out. They can look like new on the outside but be crumbling away on the inside. If it's been several years since they have been replaced or you don't know, I'd figure on replacing them without a second thought.
hoses, fuel lines, any of them, deteriorate from the inside out. They can look like new on the outside but be crumbling away on the inside. If it's been several years since they have been replaced or you don't know, I'd figure on replacing them without a second thought.
Not Too Clear ........................
................ on where the smell is coming from, your tank vents or the bowl. You mention the the smell appears only when the head is flushed so it's doubtful its your hoses. They stink all the time when permeated. :cry:
What you may be smelling is dead critters (or the hydrogen sulfide they produce) stuck in the sea water supply to the head pump. Not much you can do about it until they are flushed out each time you use the head and then there is no smell each time the head is used until it's put away again for several days. More dead critters and the cycle starts all over again.
I have considered piping the drain from the sink to the raw water inlet supplying the head pump and using this to rinse the hose of all dead critters before closing the head pump thru hull each time we leave the boat.
Figured its nor worth the effort particularly when we get to give any newbies a dirty look when they exit the head after the first flush after a few days without use.
................ on where the smell is coming from, your tank vents or the bowl. You mention the the smell appears only when the head is flushed so it's doubtful its your hoses. They stink all the time when permeated. :cry:
What you may be smelling is dead critters (or the hydrogen sulfide they produce) stuck in the sea water supply to the head pump. Not much you can do about it until they are flushed out each time you use the head and then there is no smell each time the head is used until it's put away again for several days. More dead critters and the cycle starts all over again.
I have considered piping the drain from the sink to the raw water inlet supplying the head pump and using this to rinse the hose of all dead critters before closing the head pump thru hull each time we leave the boat.
Figured its nor worth the effort particularly when we get to give any newbies a dirty look when they exit the head after the first flush after a few days without use.
The best way to eliminate most, if not all the head odors is to re-plumb the system to your fresh water system (but definitely use a check valve!). I did that on my old boat by "T"ing into the cold water supply to the head sink and it worked like a charm. That's one of my winter projects on our new (to us) boat this winter.
A side benefit is that you eliminate pumping in all the little critters coming from the seawater intake.
Steve
A side benefit is that you eliminate pumping in all the little critters coming from the seawater intake.
Steve
Before prescribing a cure it helps to know what needs curing
Is it only odor out the tank vent? Odor inside the boat? If inside the boat, is the odor confined to the head...or all over the boat? Is it only from the toilet when the toilet is flushed? If so, is it only when you first come aboard after the boat has been sitting, or all the time? Or is there odor in the head all the time?
Btw...what's the make/model/age of your toilet? When, if ever, was the last time the joker valve replaced?
Is it only odor out the tank vent? Odor inside the boat? If inside the boat, is the odor confined to the head...or all over the boat? Is it only from the toilet when the toilet is flushed? If so, is it only when you first come aboard after the boat has been sitting, or all the time? Or is there odor in the head all the time?
Btw...what's the make/model/age of your toilet? When, if ever, was the last time the joker valve replaced?
I did the "freshwater sink bowl drain to head intake" "cross over value system".
Bit of effort to plumb, but works good, rinse before leaving boat for the week, no smell when restating with sea water.
I Did not want to plumb to fresh water system, did not want any chance for backflow, nor give up any fresh water for flushing. Always plenty of seawater for flushing.
bill
Bit of effort to plumb, but works good, rinse before leaving boat for the week, no smell when restating with sea water.
I Did not want to plumb to fresh water system, did not want any chance for backflow, nor give up any fresh water for flushing. Always plenty of seawater for flushing.
bill
I use the sprayer in the sink to provide fresh flush water. It still ends up stinking when we are away from the boat for a while.
Peggy is it ok to pour bleach directly into the toilet? Or is there some kind of issue with the seals or joker valve?
Peggy is it ok to pour bleach directly into the toilet? Or is there some kind of issue with the seals or joker valve?
MAJOR no-no!
Sea water toilets are designed to PULL water in...when connected to the fresh water plumbing, the pressurized water PUSHES into the pump, misaligning and even damaging seals, o-rings etc. And no matter WHAT kind of "check valve" you install...if the o-rings on the piston rod become worn, bowl contents can start to recirculate through the intake.
Don't tell me that it's safe because you don't drink the water from your tanks, you only bathe and wash dishes in it....you "drink" a lot more of it than you realize. You wash your hands, then pick up a sandwich...you rinse out the cup or glass that you drink your bottled water from. You get it in your nose and eyes and mouth when you shower or even just wash your face.
You got lucky on your last boat...you may not on this one. If you want to eliminate intake sea water odors, tee your head intake into the head sink drain. For more details on how to do that, read the discussions in the Headmistress forum.
No toilet designed to use sea water should ever be connected to the potable water system...and every toilet mfr specifically warns against doing so in their installation instructions. 'Cuz it cannot be done without risk of e-coli contamination of the potable water supply or damage the toilet or both.
Sea water toilets are designed to PULL water in...when connected to the fresh water plumbing, the pressurized water PUSHES into the pump, misaligning and even damaging seals, o-rings etc. And no matter WHAT kind of "check valve" you install...if the o-rings on the piston rod become worn, bowl contents can start to recirculate through the intake.
Don't tell me that it's safe because you don't drink the water from your tanks, you only bathe and wash dishes in it....you "drink" a lot more of it than you realize. You wash your hands, then pick up a sandwich...you rinse out the cup or glass that you drink your bottled water from. You get it in your nose and eyes and mouth when you shower or even just wash your face.
You got lucky on your last boat...you may not on this one. If you want to eliminate intake sea water odors, tee your head intake into the head sink drain. For more details on how to do that, read the discussions in the Headmistress forum.
No...it's NOT ok!
It's not ok to use bleach at all--not diluted and certainly not full strength!--anywhere on the boat except to recommission the fresh water system. Bleach is highly corrosive and also damages rubber parts in the toilet...and it reduces hose resistance to odor permeation.
You're also damaging the toilet pump by always pouring water into the bowl instead of using it the way it was designed to be used. 'Cuz what's in the bowl only goes through the bottom third of the pump...the upper half of the pump remains dry, damaging the seals and 0-rings. And because you never flush out the whole system, you're prob'ly causing the odor problem...'cuz even fresh water will stink if it's allowed to sit in the heat and stagnate. Tee your head intake into the sink drain...use sea water to flush...rinse out the system with water from the sink.
It's not ok to use bleach at all--not diluted and certainly not full strength!--anywhere on the boat except to recommission the fresh water system. Bleach is highly corrosive and also damages rubber parts in the toilet...and it reduces hose resistance to odor permeation.
You're also damaging the toilet pump by always pouring water into the bowl instead of using it the way it was designed to be used. 'Cuz what's in the bowl only goes through the bottom third of the pump...the upper half of the pump remains dry, damaging the seals and 0-rings. And because you never flush out the whole system, you're prob'ly causing the odor problem...'cuz even fresh water will stink if it's allowed to sit in the heat and stagnate. Tee your head intake into the sink drain...use sea water to flush...rinse out the system with water from the sink.
The upper portion of the pump has sea water in it. The hose is full to the pump mech. Also every time I go to the boat I pour olive oil in the head to lube it. The rod connected to the piston is wet when it comes out of the top when the plunger is all the way up. If this one fails too quickly with this type of use, I will build a pump to bolt up to it that will last, that's made to have a fresh water supply.
thanks for the heads up on the bleach.
I'm always amazed by the amount of effort some people will put into making things more difficult for themselves.
Don't do that. You risk severe contamination of your fresh water system.
The check valve won't stop the critters.
I think you would be especially amazed at how difficult I make things on a daily basis.
The smell is coming from the head only when we flush usually after the boat has been sitting for a week or so. I believe the smell is coming from the critters in the raw intake hose. Before I leave the boat each time I pour in the bowl fresh water and aqua-chem and flush without bringing in raw water. I really believe my smell is not coming from the holding tank and/or vent. After pumping out we fill with fresh water and pump out again usually twice then add some aqua-chem to the tank. The boat smells fine until that first flush.
Spunky, you're not getting the intake hose to the head hand pump that way. You must T into the sink drain to get all the nasties.
Before I get around to making that change on my boat, I pump a few times and just live with it. It goes right away.
Before I get around to making that change on my boat, I pump a few times and just live with it. It goes right away.
Ok...now I know what your problem is
And I think you're right. But I DON'T think you're thinking at all! (Don't feel bad...you're not alone!)
Unless you have a means of rinsing all the sea water out of the WHOLE system, including the intake, the only solution for odor in the toilet caused by sea water left to sit and stagnate in the intake line and pump is to hold your nose and pump the toilet enough times to flush all the stagant sea water out every time you come aboard.
There's a simpler solution: reroute your head intake line to tee into your head sink drain line...you'll find lots of discussion in the Headmistress forum to guide you through how to do it. Then, each time before the boat will sit, after you've closed the seacock (you DO close ALL the thru-hulls before leaving the boat???), fill the sink with fresh water...flush the toilet. Because the seacock is closed, the toilet will pull the water out of the sink, rinsing all the sea water out of the system.
And I think you're right. But I DON'T think you're thinking at all! (Don't feel bad...you're not alone!)
Have you ever seen water/waste in the bowl recirculate through the intake???? So WHY would you think that anything your put in the bowl would do ANYthing for odor from the head INTAKE?
Unless you have a means of rinsing all the sea water out of the WHOLE system, including the intake, the only solution for odor in the toilet caused by sea water left to sit and stagnate in the intake line and pump is to hold your nose and pump the toilet enough times to flush all the stagant sea water out every time you come aboard.
There's a simpler solution: reroute your head intake line to tee into your head sink drain line...you'll find lots of discussion in the Headmistress forum to guide you through how to do it. Then, each time before the boat will sit, after you've closed the seacock (you DO close ALL the thru-hulls before leaving the boat???), fill the sink with fresh water...flush the toilet. Because the seacock is closed, the toilet will pull the water out of the sink, rinsing all the sea water out of the system.
I had the same problem - sewage smell every time somebody flushed the toilet. The smell was especially noticeable on deck. This means it must have been coming from the vent. I followed what somebody told me was the "toilet douche" system. I emptied, refilled with fresh water and emptied again the holding tank. Then I filled it with water to which I added baking soda. Then I took it out sailing so it could slosh around a bit and then let it sit for several days. Then I pumped it out and refilled the tank with water and vinegar and did the same thing. That was a couple of months ago and I haven't had the odor return yet. I assume this won't permanently cure the problem, but it has for now -- just maintenance as I figure it.
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