plumbing problems... again

[Syversens]

Hey all, had a great weekend on the water until saturday night... the holding tank again had the vent blocked and pressure building until it had to be released manually. this is starting to bug me now since its twice in as many years. We been trying to go to pump out regularly but will make it more often now.

I took the vent hos off and will get it replaced, no obviuous bloackages but I dont think it would hurt. Now... on the tank side there is a adapter from the 1.5 inch outlet to the tiny vent host that looks solid as a rock and easy to unclog, on the outside there is a 90degree elbow join going up from fiber and out to a scupper on the outside. Anyone have any good tips to keeping this clear of clogs ?

I was thinking of upgrading the size of this tubing but that would be replacing the adapter and thruhull fitting but if this happens again the mrs might trade the boat for a new livingroom and bathroom :/

 

[Peggie Hall-HeadMistress]

The simple solution to your problem: maintain the vent!

Keep the vent line open by backflushing it EVERY time you pump out and/or wash your boat. If the vent thru-hull is one that doesn't let you do this, replace the thru-hull with one that does.

Several things create vent line blockages...mud daubers and spiders love to build nests in 'em...waste in the tank spills into the vent line when the boat is heeled...overfilling the tank. If you don't maintain the vent, you're very lucky that it only gets blocked once a year!

You might want to check out the link below to learn how to maintain your system to prevent 99% of problems...'cuz--as you've learned--prevention is a lot easier and less aggravating than cure.

 

[Syversens]

sounds like a good idea

But not sure what you mean by backwashing it... shooting water up from the outside or filling the tank up with water when its empty so it flushes out the vent ?

I have tried spraying water in from the outside but the angles for the outlet I'm sure makes very little actually make it any distance into the pipe.

thanks for the quick reply !

 

[Ken Palmer]

Venting hose bend

I had a similar problem. It turned out to be that a part of the vent hose was drooping lower then the tank attaching point. My theory is that water can get into the hose and seek the lowest level, causing a water blockage of the hose. I fixed the problem with a clamp to keep the hose in a straighter line to the vent. I wish I could follow Peggie's advice in the book on the size hose, angle, and length, but I would have to move the tank to a different spot on the boat, mount a new thru-hull, and use a larger hose. Too much for this guy. :{

 

[Peggie Hall-HeadMistress]

Let me see if I understand your tank venting... Also a suggestion for Ken

You're saying that the vent fitting on the the tank is 1.5", but someone used a reducing adapter to connect a "tiny" (no smaller than 5/8" I hope!) vent line to it...and that there's an elbow either at the vent thru-hull or between the tank the thru-hull?

If that's the case, the fix it relatively simple: replace the vent line with a 1.5" line, and the thru-hull with a 1.5" bulkhead fitting. If ANY elbow is needed, it should be the tank fitting, not at the thru-hull. Replacing the thru-hull with a larger one isn't that hard to do...cuz you aren't drilling any more holes, you're just making the existing one larger. There are two benefits from this: it will allow you to backflush the vent line (shoot water through it from the outside of the boat) and it will provide a lot more oxygen to the tank, making it easier to keep odor-free.

Ken, I dunno why you think you'd have to move the tank to improve the venting/ventilation...or why you didn't just cut enough off the vent line to eliminate the sag in it instead of using a hose clamp to lift the sag in it. And as I said above, it's not that hard to enlarge the vent or replace the thru-hull. I'm an old woman and that job isn't even too much for me to do! You might not end up with the ideal installation prescribed in my book, but any improvement is better than none.

 

[Syversens]

I like that idea

I like the idea of having this be 1.5 inch and I was thinking I could do that but then that is a big step up and perhaps it had some unforseen consequence. I have replummed the whole system and this wouldnt be much trouble and hose leftover would be long enough. I dont think I'd need a elbow on top or at the end since the hose already there works....

thanks again for all advice and I'll look for the bulkhead fitting for a 1.5 inch, that should be an interesting piece of hardware on a sailboat

thanks !

 

[Steve Dion]

are you sure that there is no screen in there?

Syversens

Are you sure that there is NOT a screen inside the clam shell? I found one in mine to my suprise. I removed it and have not had any problems since then.

 

[Ken Palmer]

Peggie...

I apologize for stealing this thread. That was not my intention....But...

The H 33.5 venting is far from desirable. The tank is below a settee used for sitting while eating at a table. A 5/8" hose is connected to the tank, run through a bulkhead, and straight up to a right-angle elbow to a small thru-hull fitting. If I were to replace the thru-hull fitting with a larger one with no elbow, and try to connect a 1-1/2" hose, it would extend out into the head area, through a cabinet with sliding Plexiglas doors, then somehow get it back to the tank.

I am no spring-chicken either, and that job seems pretty difficult to me. As for cutting the hose... I guess I didn't think of the obvious. The sag wasn't much, and putting in a clamp was pretty easy. I know I always have difficulty taking hoses off fittings, even using a heat gun.

Thanks for all your advise. I really have read your book and commend you for taking on this column.

Cheers, Ken

 

[Syversens]

no screen... I think...

I tried to get the cover off on the outside but it looked like the elbow and fitting, cover and all is one unit solidly in there with sealant of some kind so I gave up taking it out for inspection.

on the other hand I have not yet been able to get anything thru the elbow and out though a ziptie (in my estimation) made it to the cover but couldnt do the 90 degree aft.... I'd need a second person to see if they can actually see the ziptie.

anyone have a good idea on what to use as a unclogging device ? I heard cloth hanger and I think that might work but all the way form the outside to tank/blockage ?

 

[Steve Dion]

Remove the hose from clam shell vent.

Just try removing the hose from the clam shell vent and pushing through the back side with a small screw driver or such. I dug mine out with a needle nose pliers.