Oh and I'll replace all the hoses as you advise - no point messing about, if I'm in there doing this work I may as well do it right and save going back later
Bill, simply because doing that doesn't clean out the line from the thru hull to the pump. I tried it that way for a while before I connected to the sink drain. The "stuff" in that hose still created a stink, until I did it right.Not to be Jonny Raincloud but since all you are interested in is a flush before you close up the boat have you considered just filling a bucket in the galley and pouring that into the head before you leave?
Stu is right. The bugs (saltwater bacteria, not waste) in the water convert the sulfate in the intake line seawater to sulfide and it will stink the first time you flush, in addition to a few bubbles while you're away. You close the through-hull when you leave, for safety but also to make certain there is no oxygen and that barnacles don't grow in the hose; however, the anaerobic bacteria survive.Perhaps I'm confused, I understood that the line from the thru-hull to the pump to be full of plain salt water (raw water not waste). Why the heck would that cause a problem?
When in my slip and I swap the speed paddle wheel for the dummy plug, some water comes in. There are little living critters in that water(mud shrimp?). At the end of a sail I use to pump enough creek water to push the crap in the hoses into the holding tank. When doing so, that creek water- those critters- would be all through the system and then die and then rot and then stink.Perhaps I'm confused, I understood that the line from the thru-hull to the pump to be full of plain salt water (raw water not waste). Why the heck would that cause a problem?
...and I'm so ashamed to show my avitar around herPeggy's right. Unfortunately, I keep bumping the head upgrade down the list, as other "more expensive" things crop up.