Holding Tank Odor

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Nick C

Peggie: I have experienced a waste odor in my 1996 Catalina 28 MkII since I bought it two years ago. I didn't call it a "head odor" because it does not come from the head; it is not overwhelming, but persistent. I have replaced all waste hoses (including the vent hose), and even replaced the head itself for another reason. The odor continues, and seems to be coming from the Ronco holding tank. There is no evidence of a leak that I can find. Do plastic tanks themselves allow odor to pass through their walls at some point? Should I replace my holding tank?
 
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Peggie Hall/HeadMistress

NOT holding tank odor

There's no way that a Ronco tank would have permeated, so unless it's leaking at a fitting, it can't be the culprit...'cuz odor from inside a holding tank has nowhere to go but out the tank vent. A few possibilities: If the odor were in the head, I'd ask you when the joker valve in the toilet was changed last...'cuz joker valves wear out in about a year, and when the slit becomes stretched enough to become a hole, odor from inside the head discharge hose can escape through the toilet. When was the last time you cleaned your bilge--I don't mean just dumped in some bilge cleaner and/or bleach, but really CLEANED it...including flushing ALL the dirty water out? 'Cuz a wet bilge in desperate need of a real cleaning is full of bacteria and other critters that can make a boat smell like a swamp or sewer. If your ice box drains into the bilge, that would accelerate the conditions that create odor. A sump in need of a serious cleaning can also smell like a sewer. So can the chain locker if it hasn't been cleaned in a while. If neither of those are the culprits, look for trapped water somewher under the cabin sole...start where the odor is strongest.
 
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