Have a 1991 35.5 Legend Hunter with a 13-14 gal. aluminum holding tank. Bad odor everytime one opens the two aft small lazarettes, or under the boards in the aft cabin, and in the head, at times. Given how old is the boat and how small the capacity of the tank, (1) is it advisable to go to those inflatable ones to get increased capacity; (2) should I only replace the hoses and not the tank, assuming the problem lies with the hoses; (3) would you recomment the best name in inflatable holding tanks and where I may contact them. By the way, I have tried the test of rubbing cloth against hoses, and at minimum I would replace them, but don't know if the problem is with the tank itself. many thanks
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When in doubt, throw them out.
Richard: If you are in doubt about any part of the system, just replace everything (hoses, tank, clamps etc.). If these are original, you are on borrowed time anyway. On your boat you should be able to increase the capacity without much problem. Stay away from bladder tanks or you may be going through this exercise again in a couple of years.
Richard: If you are in doubt about any part of the system, just replace everything (hoses, tank, clamps etc.). If these are original, you are on borrowed time anyway. On your boat you should be able to increase the capacity without much problem. Stay away from bladder tanks or you may be going through this exercise again in a couple of years.
P
Peggie Hall/HeadMistress
First, remove the hoses
Once they're out, thoroughly clean the areas they pass through with detergent and water--no bleach!--and when they're fairly dry, follow that by liberally spraying down all the surfaces with Raritan K.O. (live bacteria holding tank treatment that also "eats" odor-causing bacteria and spores left behind after pet accidents etc). Don't rinse after applying K.O....Leave everythng open so that plenty of fresh air can circulate for at least 24 hours. If you still have localized odor anywhere, that means the source of the odor is still there...so if you still have odor around the tank, it's a good bet that your tank is leaking. If you don't, it's prob'ly not...but since the average lifespan of any metal tank rarely exceeds 10 years, as long as you're doing this much, you can't go too far wrong by going ahead and replacing it now anyway. Why tear the whole system apart once, only to have to do it again in only a year or two at most? However, you do not want a bladder for waste holding. You'll find the reasons why in the "Odor Control" section of my article at the link below. Your best source for a rigid tank is Ronco Plastics...their catalog is at http://www.ronco-plastics.com. They make TOP quality thick-walled plastic tanks for a very reasonable price, and have more than 400 shapes and sizes to choose from, including more than 100 that are non-rectangular. Odor in the head is most likely caused by one of three things: stagnant sea water in the head intake and/or odor from inside the head discharge hose escaping back up into the toilet through a joker valve that's worn out. Or, it could be a dirty shower sump. The most common cause of odor that's all-pervasive throughout the boat is a wet dirty bilge. Many an owner has replaced his entire sanitation system trying to get rid of what he thought was "head" odor, when all he really needed to do was clean his bilges and sumps--really CLEAN 'em and thoroughly flush out all the dirty water, not just dump in some more bilge cleaner and/or bleach. Bilge and sump odor is a different odor from permeated hoses--it's a soft odor that's a combination sewer/swamp. Odor from permeated hoses, otoh, is usually sharp/sweet/sour/not-quite-sewer-but-yucky.
Once they're out, thoroughly clean the areas they pass through with detergent and water--no bleach!--and when they're fairly dry, follow that by liberally spraying down all the surfaces with Raritan K.O. (live bacteria holding tank treatment that also "eats" odor-causing bacteria and spores left behind after pet accidents etc). Don't rinse after applying K.O....Leave everythng open so that plenty of fresh air can circulate for at least 24 hours. If you still have localized odor anywhere, that means the source of the odor is still there...so if you still have odor around the tank, it's a good bet that your tank is leaking. If you don't, it's prob'ly not...but since the average lifespan of any metal tank rarely exceeds 10 years, as long as you're doing this much, you can't go too far wrong by going ahead and replacing it now anyway. Why tear the whole system apart once, only to have to do it again in only a year or two at most? However, you do not want a bladder for waste holding. You'll find the reasons why in the "Odor Control" section of my article at the link below. Your best source for a rigid tank is Ronco Plastics...their catalog is at http://www.ronco-plastics.com. They make TOP quality thick-walled plastic tanks for a very reasonable price, and have more than 400 shapes and sizes to choose from, including more than 100 that are non-rectangular. Odor in the head is most likely caused by one of three things: stagnant sea water in the head intake and/or odor from inside the head discharge hose escaping back up into the toilet through a joker valve that's worn out. Or, it could be a dirty shower sump. The most common cause of odor that's all-pervasive throughout the boat is a wet dirty bilge. Many an owner has replaced his entire sanitation system trying to get rid of what he thought was "head" odor, when all he really needed to do was clean his bilges and sumps--really CLEAN 'em and thoroughly flush out all the dirty water, not just dump in some more bilge cleaner and/or bleach. Bilge and sump odor is a different odor from permeated hoses--it's a soft odor that's a combination sewer/swamp. Odor from permeated hoses, otoh, is usually sharp/sweet/sour/not-quite-sewer-but-yucky.
B
Brian Leney
Time to replace...
Richard, I would suspect the tank, or even the hose right where it couples at the tank. The tank on my 1995 H37.5 had leaks in both (the hose had a very sharp bend over a flange which caused some fractures in that area). Mirroring Steve's and Peggie's advice, you need to consider replacing it all. It's not an expensive project but time consuming to do well. I just completed mine. By the way, if you search in the Hunter/photo forum, there's an excellent article with photos from someone else who replaced a tank on a 35.5.
Richard, I would suspect the tank, or even the hose right where it couples at the tank. The tank on my 1995 H37.5 had leaks in both (the hose had a very sharp bend over a flange which caused some fractures in that area). Mirroring Steve's and Peggie's advice, you need to consider replacing it all. It's not an expensive project but time consuming to do well. I just completed mine. By the way, if you search in the Hunter/photo forum, there's an excellent article with photos from someone else who replaced a tank on a 35.5.
T
Terry
Hi Peggie, I think the sewer system on our boat ..
is working okay after unplugging the holding tank vent last year, and following your recommended procedures. But just in case, what I normally do after a cruise is to pump out the holding tank, followed by fresh water, then pump out again and repeat until the water is clear. On the last pump out I pour a gallon of fresh water into each head and pump out the system which empties each head, the sewer line and the tank. I then add Odorloss mix to each electric head and flush. This seems to have cured the problems we were having before; mostly stink and of course the plugged vent scupper. This summer I plan on taking a much closer look at the SS holding tank and pressure testing it as suggested in an earlier article. It is eleven years old and, I'm sure, reaching the end of its life. So far so good. Steve has a mushroom vent fitting, whereas ours is the clam scupper. I need to find a water hose fitting that will cover the scupper so that I can flush the vent line, too. Terry
is working okay after unplugging the holding tank vent last year, and following your recommended procedures. But just in case, what I normally do after a cruise is to pump out the holding tank, followed by fresh water, then pump out again and repeat until the water is clear. On the last pump out I pour a gallon of fresh water into each head and pump out the system which empties each head, the sewer line and the tank. I then add Odorloss mix to each electric head and flush. This seems to have cured the problems we were having before; mostly stink and of course the plugged vent scupper. This summer I plan on taking a much closer look at the SS holding tank and pressure testing it as suggested in an earlier article. It is eleven years old and, I'm sure, reaching the end of its life. So far so good. Steve has a mushroom vent fitting, whereas ours is the clam scupper. I need to find a water hose fitting that will cover the scupper so that I can flush the vent line, too. Terry
R
Richard Planas
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