That dreaded head problem

[dis-patch]

OK, so here i am the new boat owner and i've got a head problem. No ... not so you say and you all are out there laughing right now. So let me get down to what's going on. When i first bought her and moved aboard, the head, a Jabsco manual twist & lock, not even a year old, worked great. Did my business one day with a little paper and now she doesn't evacuate the bowl at all. No problem with water coming in. Pump primes and everything but when you switch over to dry bowl the pump is hard to move in either the up or down motion. I just replaced the joker valve, which i noticed when i took apart first time the valve was inverted the opposite way, go figure, and that other valve at the bottom of the pump but it still doesn't work. HELP!

 

[thinwater]

OK, so here i am the new boat owner and i've got a head problem. No ... not so you say and you all are out there laughing right now. So let me get down to what's going on. When i first bought her and moved aboard, the head, a Jabsco manual twist & lock, not even a year old, worked great. Did my business one day with a little paper and now she doesn't evacuate the bowl at all. No problem with water coming in. Pump primes and everything but when you switch over to dry bowl the pump is hard to move in either the up or down motion. I just replaced the joker valve, which i noticed when i took apart first time the valve was inverted the opposite way, go figure, and that other valve at the bottom of the pump but it still doesn't work. HELP!

If you inverted the joker you've got a blockage. If the handle won't move up, I'm betting it's on the suction side (base of head). It is also possible there is more than one problem.

 

[dis-patch]

Suction side i get. Base of head not so sure. Could you be a little more specific. Where do i go looking.

 

[kloudie1]

In order to invert the joker, you'd most likely have to plug the vent on the holding tank .. It would then back pressure the joker..?? Not likely..but Inverting the joker can also be done by plugging the foot valve at the bottom of the pump. The difficulty in pumping may be another problem with the little check valves in the top of the pump.. These are the valves that the wet/dry switch works on when ya flip it.. ya may have some debris from the seawater in those valves.. I think you do have more than one problem.. When the valves stick, the pump can hydraulically lock on the seawater side and not allow the pump piston to move up or down. Carefully remove the top and clean out any debris in the little check valves..

 

[dis-patch]

Thank you very much as that is the only thing i haven't tried is removing the top and cleaning out the gasket with the brass weights. I have a new one of those also.

 

[kloudie1]

Coupla words : be very careful when re-installing the gasket and screws. be gentle with the gasket positiion and don't let it slip around on the mating surfaces. The screws are really easy to strip out ; when re-installing a screw into that valve body, put the screw into the hole and rotate it backwards with gentle pressure. When it clicks on the threads, then rotate forwards to tighten. That will put the threads into the same grooves and help to keep from stripping. Check the wet/dry switch action carefully and inspect it for cracks. try moving it to one side and snapping it hard over to the other to get the pump unlocked.. Good Luck !

 

[Steve Dion]

Solution to your problem may involve removing the entire toilet and throwing it overboard and starting over (not another Jabsco).

Like Claude mentioned be very careful not to strip out the screw holes. This will cost you a new pump (cheaper to replace the toilet).

 

[Sailm8]

I second Steve. I had Jabsco we called John Wayne, cuz it wouldn't take crap from anyone. Replaced it with a Raritan.

 

[dis-patch]

Thank for the tip about turning the screws opposite way to set before tightening it made putting screws back in very easy. But now I am giving up and am going to call a pro. tomorrow. I've replaced all the pump parts and the damn thing still won't evacuate. Lack of knowledge to go on leads me to call someone who knows symptoms and their fixes.

 

[centerline]

Thank for the tip about turning the screws opposite way to set before tightening it made putting screws back in very easy. But now I am giving up and am going to call a pro. tomorrow. I've replaced all the pump parts and the damn thing still won't evacuate. Lack of knowledge to go on leads me to call someone who knows symptoms and their fixes.

I would be interested to know what you find to be the problem....

it sounds as if you may have blockage in the discharge line from the toilet to the tank... obviously, its not allowing waste to pass thru...

the only time i will get a vacuum lock on my jabsco is when the raw water intake is shut off at the thru hull AND the switch is set to "flood", then it cant pull anything in and the handle wont move either way.... otherwise, it will either flood the bowl with fresh water, or pump it out, depending on how I have the switch flipped.

maybe the bowl flood/dry switch isnt switching completely??? or the bowl discharge line is blocked.

 

[reraft]

Just a note - we have a manual jabsco twist & lock head on our boat & have been cruising mexico full time for four years & the head works flawless but it does require routine maintenance - rubber parts wear out. Your problem very much sounds like your discharge line is plugged in fact i would bet money on it. What ever is easiest for you either remove the line or use a snake & muratic acid to remove the clog.
The Jabsco manual head is simple & easy to maintain
S/V Hotel California
Currently in Manzanillo MX

 

[timvg]

Replacing the pump is easy and fairly quick. We usually do it every couple of years.

Yes, we could buy a new and different head, kind of like all of the 100's of other things on my list.

 

[dis-patch]

Please do tell me about this muratic acid thing and snaking my line. I bought a snake this weekend but don't really know where to start in clearing the discharge line. I would bet that there is where my problem lies. Everything else seem to be working fine.

 

[reraft]

We plugged up our line at Isla Coronados last year but it was self induced. WE added a product to sweeten up the tank in powder form & flushed it down the toilet instead of directly into the tank so you know what happened next. As far as the snake i took the discharge line off at the toilet end & started working it up the line & when it would make no more forward progress i took the discharge line off at the holding tank & snaked from that end . then holding the hose up started pouring in muratic acid but do this very slowly - it will fizz up in a hurry. We used a bucket to catch the eruption. Then snake again & again until the snake will pass through.
This method worked well for us & this was the first time the line was clogged in the last four years & is still free today.
We do regularly put white vinegar in to sit in the line & also cheap vegetable oil to lube the rubber parts.
Happy head repairs
S/V Hotel California
svhotelcal.blogspot.com

 

[Stu Jackson]

Please do tell me about this muratic acid thing and snaking my line. I bought a snake this weekend but don't really know where to start in clearing the discharge line. I would bet that there is where my problem lies. Everything else seem to be working fine.

Head Hoses 101 http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,5738.0.html

 

[dis-patch]

So i have now found out that the discharge line probably hasn't ever been touched/maintained. A neighbor on my dock gave me some vinegar to pour into the line and it's been sitting all day bubbling and fizzing away. I tried putting a snake through and no way will it go through. It stops within a foot of entry. The neighbor suggested that if the vinegar didn't work that the next step was to actually pull the line out of the boat and clean it or replace it which is where i am headed. My question is how to remove the old line and run the new with zero access to the pathway. Hunter never thought that these systems were going to have to require maintenance? How the hell do I get to this stuff and run the new line in?

 

[reraft]

the lower access plate in your wet locker should reveal a splice in the line with a connector & Clamps. Then go to the rear opening locker on the port side & you will see screws to remove the inner panel at the rear of the locker. This gave me good access to replace the discharge hose back in 2010. We used the Trident white hose for replacement.
It's still a push & pull affair but this will get the job done.
Rick

 

[dis-patch]

WOW! I'm going to check that out right now. The only thing I saw yesterday was the small opening at the top of the holding tank in the port aft locker. Couldn't figure out how i was going to disconnect the hose from the tank.