Pew----It's gone at last

[Nelsonhow]

Well, I couldn't stand it any longer. In the hot Long Island summer the smell of the head made even me want to be off the boat and there was no chance that the first mate would ever come out for a sail. I got tierd of offering my guests a bucket. It was OK fro my brother by my sister-in-law drew the line.

So last Sunday which was kind of cool, low humidity and a gentle offshore breeze I did it. I put on gloves, put some vicks vapor rub under my nose and pulled the head out of my old Hunter 30. Thankfully the holding tank was empty and dry. I turned off the thru hulls and had rubber and wood plugs near by but I forgot the big plastic bags. The head unbolted with no problem and little mess. I then proceeded to remove all of the hoses. I though they were empty but you would not believe what was still in them: crud, scale, and yuck and boy did it stink. Lucky I had enough rags and paper towels to keep the mess down.

As I removed each hose I drained it into a bucket and then dumped it into the front of the dingy for the trip home. All of the hoses came off with only a little persusaion and a minimum of busted knuckes. But it was pretty tight in there. I have aches where I didn't even know I has muscles. Anyway when I was done removing the stuff I washed it out area with cleaner and I think the smell is gone. I'll know more next week when I install the new head.

I'm taking Peggy's advice on the hoses purchased from the Hunters web store and her simple set up... Simple is best becasue I'l not leaving costal waters. But I think I'm going to set up the new head with it's own dedicated fresh water tank for flush water. I think I'll put the tank under the port lazerette in the main cabin. If that doesn't work I can always go back to sea water.

Well, with all the old parts in the front of the dingy I was motoring back to the beach/dingy rack heading into the wind on the way home and the smell was so bad my eyes were tearing. I unloaded on the beach and near the dingy rack and the other beach goers didn't seem thrilled. I dumped the stuff in the trunk and even with the windows open gaged all the way home. :Liar:

Everything went into the trash bin at the end of the driveway. Good thing the trash man comes on Monday or my neighbors would have had a fit.
Well I orderrf all the new hoses from the Hunters Web and will install the new set up this weekend.

Wish me luck and thank you Peggy for your advice.
l

 

[Alan]

Nelson, the only thing I can add is that I would have used rigid PVC pipe in place of any hoses. I replace my entire head system from toilet to holding tank and used rigid PVC throughout. It's actually cheaper to buy and PVC is totally impervious to ANY smelly stuff.

 

[wufibugs]

Is Alan's idea of using rigid pvc completely, or at least as much as possible, generally accepted? I want to replace my toilet and all lines. I am sure the archives have a step by step, but I am not finding it. Can anyone supply a link?

 

[Alan]

Since switching to PVC pipe we have had absolutely no smells whatsoever. It is one of the easiest and best upgrades you can do for the sake of everyone onboard. I highly recommend it.

 

[wufibugs]

Alan, did you use rigid for the vented loops as well? To the deck pumpout?

 

[wufibugs]

Oh, sorry. I also wanted to ask if you use a mascerator and an in-line strainer after the intake in your system.

 

[Alan]

No the vented loop is still the original stuff. Because access to it was so difficult I decided I would only do that if needed. Turned out it wasn't needed. I did replace the vent line to the holding tank. I increased the size of the vent to 1". This makes it easy to add dock water to the holding tank while I pump out. I like to keep the tank flushed out as much as possible. I do have a macerator but it is illegal to pump overboard and I refuse to be part of the pollution problem if at all possible. As a result my macerator sits idle.

 

[wufibugs]

Couldn't the macerator be plumbed to feed the holding tank. I thought it was just a device for grinding things down to managable size/consistency, like a garbage disposal.

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

Only when it's built into the toilet...

Couldn't the macerator be plumbed to feed the holding tank. I thought it was just a device for grinding things down to managable size/consistency, like a garbage disposal.

You're correct that a macerator is essentially just a "blender blade," but it needs pump (impeller type) and a motor to power it. And although it is a macerating pump that's used to dump holding tanks, most people just call it a macerator.

Putting one inline between a manual toilet and the tank would be a disaster...'cuz macerator pumps move waste at a rate of 12 gal/min...much faster than anyone could pump a toilet....you'd be replacing fried impellers once a week! rying to time it in bursts is more likely to result in backups than successful flushes. Most electric toilets have built in macerators...but solid waste is 75% water anyway and it gets broken up in the pump so it dissolves in water very quickly in the tank...so maceration really isn't necessary, it's just a bit less aesthetically offensive when flushing directly overboard in a Caribbean anchorage.

Btw...did you realize you were resurrecting a thread that no one had posted to in nearly a year? Prob'ly best to start a new thread if one that old triggers questions you'd like to ask.

 

[wufibugs]

Thanks for the clarification, Peggie. Makes perfect sense. I did realize this was an old dead thread I found via the search function, but thought that since my questions followed what had been written, it would be logical to revive it. I will do as you suggest in the future.