When I turn on the macerator pump, which is working, and I have the sea cock valve open the holding tank doesn't pump out. Someone told me that I need to either replace some parts inside the holding tank. Can anyone let me know if they have this problem on a Beneteau 361
holding tank
- Thread starter Serendipity
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Holding Tank Blues
S, I had this problem last summer. You may have a blockage in one your lines. Try shoving a long snake-type wire up the outlet pipe from the outside of the boat up to the macerator. Check that someone has not closed the gate valve on the bottom of the holding tank. Maybe your macerator is burned out but still sounds like it is working. Maybe your holding tank air vents are blocked. Check they are clear. If this does not work, rip out and replace all the hoses with white sani-hose. I had to do this. It was amazing how 10 years of use had plugged the lines. They were totally permeated and stunk badly. Pete
S, I had this problem last summer. You may have a blockage in one your lines. Try shoving a long snake-type wire up the outlet pipe from the outside of the boat up to the macerator. Check that someone has not closed the gate valve on the bottom of the holding tank. Maybe your macerator is burned out but still sounds like it is working. Maybe your holding tank air vents are blocked. Check they are clear. If this does not work, rip out and replace all the hoses with white sani-hose. I had to do this. It was amazing how 10 years of use had plugged the lines. They were totally permeated and stunk badly. Pete
Thanks for the input.
Since my boat is out of the water for winter storage, I will try your suggestion of using a snake to try and unclog any stopage that may have occured.
Since my boat is out of the water for winter storage, I will try your suggestion of using a snake to try and unclog any stopage that may have occured.
We had this problem too
Though we do not have a macerator in our head, I noticed pressure building in the tank and it made the toilet hard to flush. I opened the pump out outlet and let the pressure out (luckily it was liquid from the "no smell" stuff I put in after last pump out). I then immediately pumped out the tank and it got fixed. Mike and others suggested the vent being blocked and I think they were right though using a hanger to poke thru didn’t immediately reviel anything. I think the pump out and the pressure it makes cleared my plumping. Might be hard out of the water but it fixed ours Gaute
Though we do not have a macerator in our head, I noticed pressure building in the tank and it made the toilet hard to flush. I opened the pump out outlet and let the pressure out (luckily it was liquid from the "no smell" stuff I put in after last pump out). I then immediately pumped out the tank and it got fixed. Mike and others suggested the vent being blocked and I think they were right though using a hanger to poke thru didn’t immediately reviel anything. I think the pump out and the pressure it makes cleared my plumping. Might be hard out of the water but it fixed ours Gaute
Blocked vent
This is from Peggy the Head Mistress, from another issue. Once I read it I realized this could be your problem. Good luck. Mike Blocked tank vent. The blockage may be in the vent thru-hull, or--especially if the tank is repeatedly overfilled--in the vent line connection to the tank, both the fitting and that end of the hose. A tank vent has two functions: 1. to provide an escape for air in the tank displaced by incoming tank contents, and 2. to provide a source of air to replace tank contents as they're pulled out. If the vent becomes blocked, flushing the toilet pressurizes it, creating back pressure that sends the waste back to the toilet. It also causes a pumpout or macerator pump to pull a vacuum after the small amount of air in the tank is exhausted, preventing anything more from being pulled out of the tank. If the deck pumpout fitting were opened while she's aboard and attempting to use the toilet against a blocked tank vent, there'd be a geyser out the deck fitting. But enough time is apparently elapsing between the time she leaves the boat and you come to pump it out for the pressure to escape via the toilet...lucky for you! Terry's article--except for the part about using a plunger (NEVER use a plunger in a marine toilet...the down-stroke won't hurt anything, but the up-stroke will mess up the seals, o-rings and valves in the pump)--provides all the instruction needed to clear the vent and then maintain it to keep it clear. Continuing to flush a toilet against a blocked vent can result in an eruption in the toilet or even a cracked tank. Strong suction against a blocked vent can implode the tank. So don't try to pump out the tank again until the vent has been cleared, and also instruct your client NOT to use the toilet again until it has been cleared. You might also want to check out the link below and suggest that she get a copy to learn how to operate and maintain her toilet tank properly. Related link
This is from Peggy the Head Mistress, from another issue. Once I read it I realized this could be your problem. Good luck. Mike Blocked tank vent. The blockage may be in the vent thru-hull, or--especially if the tank is repeatedly overfilled--in the vent line connection to the tank, both the fitting and that end of the hose. A tank vent has two functions: 1. to provide an escape for air in the tank displaced by incoming tank contents, and 2. to provide a source of air to replace tank contents as they're pulled out. If the vent becomes blocked, flushing the toilet pressurizes it, creating back pressure that sends the waste back to the toilet. It also causes a pumpout or macerator pump to pull a vacuum after the small amount of air in the tank is exhausted, preventing anything more from being pulled out of the tank. If the deck pumpout fitting were opened while she's aboard and attempting to use the toilet against a blocked tank vent, there'd be a geyser out the deck fitting. But enough time is apparently elapsing between the time she leaves the boat and you come to pump it out for the pressure to escape via the toilet...lucky for you! Terry's article--except for the part about using a plunger (NEVER use a plunger in a marine toilet...the down-stroke won't hurt anything, but the up-stroke will mess up the seals, o-rings and valves in the pump)--provides all the instruction needed to clear the vent and then maintain it to keep it clear. Continuing to flush a toilet against a blocked vent can result in an eruption in the toilet or even a cracked tank. Strong suction against a blocked vent can implode the tank. So don't try to pump out the tank again until the vent has been cleared, and also instruct your client NOT to use the toilet again until it has been cleared. You might also want to check out the link below and suggest that she get a copy to learn how to operate and maintain her toilet tank properly. Related link
thanks mike !- Status