water in but waste not out?

[m-gulgun]

Hi,
I can pump in fresh water into the bowl but then I cannot send it to the tank after I switch to dry operation. First there was a back-pressure but I could pump. I emptied the tank. So now there is
no longer a back pressure. However, I cannot displace the waste into the holding tank anymore. Did I accidentally break something in the pump? any comments?

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

I see you're a new member here...welcome aboard!
No back pressure prob'ly rules out a blocked tank vent that's caused the system to pressurize, but I'd check it anyway...it may only be that emptying the tank relieved the back pressure temporarily. You'll find all kinds of information about how to clear a blocked tank vent if you search the archives of this forum.
However, there are also other possibilities, but I need more information before giving you a diagnosis and the solution to your problem.
Your toilet is obviously a manual toilet...what's the brand name? How old is it? Do you have the owner's manual for it? If not, you can download one from the web...I can give you the link when I know which one you need. When, if ever, have you put a "service kit" in it or replaced any of the seals and o-rings or even replaced the joker valve?
When I have this information, I should be able to trouble-shoot it for you.

 

[Ron20324]

As a starter, you could CRACK open the deck cap, and that would act as a vent for trouble-shooting the possiblilty of the real vent being blocked. (added) I do this every other week when i get a pumpout. YMMV.

 

[thinwater]

As a starter, you could open the deck cap, and that would act as a vent for trouble-shooting the possiblilty of the real vent being blocked.

I wouldn't.

If the vent is blocked and there is any waste in the tank, the tank will pressurize and the waste will come out the pump out fitting immediately. That fitting has a drop tube that goes to the nearly the bottom on the tank, and it is probably in the waste after just one flush.

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

If the vent is blocked and there is any waste in the tank, the tank will pressurize and the waste will come out the pump out fitting immediately.

Vesuvius burying Pompeii under lava and ash is an appropriate example of what an erupting waste tank can do for a boat...

 

[mz4wheeler]

Hi,
I can pump in fresh water into the bowl but then I cannot send it to the tank after I switch to dry operation. First there was a back-pressure but I could pump. I emptied the tank. So now there is
no longer a back pressure. However, I cannot displace the waste into the holding tank anymore. Did I accidentally break something in the pump? any comments?

First, there was blockage in the outlet to the tank. Then, since you kept pumping, you may have busted the pump.
Check (or replace) the joker valve and run a snake through the outlet pipe. That might fix it.

 

[Newport Bob]

For Peggie Hall,
OMG --- since it happened to me once that is the Absolute BEST description I have ever heard.
I was over the deck fitting, opening it for a pump out.

 

[m-gulgun]

Hi Peggy
thank you for your reply. Yes, I am new in the forum and also a new boat owner (the ownership is new, neither the owner nor the boat is a newborn (-.
I will check the brand of the manual toilet. I do not know at the moment. I brought my boat to my base and started discovering and fixing it slowly. Therefore, I do not know when the last replacement of parts in the toilet was. Maybe it is a good practice to start with replacing all replacable parts so that I can write down into the logbook when things were touched.
will write soon the answers to your questions.
Many thanks again from Istanbul

 

[Ron20324]

[QUOTE="thinwater,.... the waste will come out the pump out fitting immediately. ...[/QUOTE]

That is why you'd just crack the cap enough to let air escape. It might even rock like a pressure cooker vent. My cracked-open cap will blow bubbles as the tank vents.

 

[Gunni]

Check the position of the waste diverter valve. Sounds like yours is set to pump to a closed thru hull not the holding tank.

 

[m-gulgun]

Hi Peggie
I first apologize for misspelling your name in my last posting. in the meantime I tried to
figure out what brand the toilet was. Unfortunately all the signs on the labels are wiped away by too much scrubbing.
I could only read ITT at one corner. but it looks veery similar to the one shown
in the you tube video on how to change the joker valve by Jabsco (

).

would that help?
Also in the meantime I took the boat out into the open sea (ocean) and openned the drain from the holding tank and pumped it out a bit manually. After that the waste water could be pumped out into the tank again. hmmmm. probably an engineering solution (although not the best solution). I am still reading the forum for more clues. and I thank you all for all your very useful comments.

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

Your toilet is a Jabsco. ITT was Jabsco's parent company for decades...they spun it off to Xylem just a few years ago.

I took the boat out into the open sea (ocean) and openned the drain from the holding tank and pumped it out a bit manually. After that the waste water could be pumped out into the tank again.

Everything you've said only convinces me that there's nothing wrong with your toilet...the tank vent is blocked, pressurizing the system which creates that backpressure that prevents flushing. Twice you've managed to remove enough from the tank to relieve the pressure....when using the toilet re-pressurizes it again, maybe you'll decide it's time to clear the tank vent and put an end to this repeating problem. You'll find a number of posts that provide detailed instructions for clearing a tank vent in the archives of this forum as well as in my book.

 

[WayneH]

Vesuvius burying Pompeii under lava and ash is an appropriate example of what an erupting waste tank can do for a boat...

We recently ran across a dockmaster who has pictures of just such an eruption. The way the story goes the dockmaster was about 30 upwind of the deck fitting and telling the owner to stop unscrewing the fitting. Afterwards, they washed down the boat, the pumpout dock and the owner. Think floating dock with brown spots 12 feet off the water on the piling.

 

[Capt jgw]

Those pesky vents! On one of my previous boats the vent was behind a towel cabinet made from about 17 pieces of wood and 80 screws. After taking it all apart to clear the vent I seriously wanted to track down the guy who built that and do him great bodily harm.
After I put it back together I cut a hole in the back of the cabinet. Easy access after that.

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

Next time you get a chance to get in there, replace the vent thru-hull with one that'll let you stick a hose nozzle up against it to backflush the vent line every time you wash the boat. If you do, you'll never have to unclog a vent again.

 

[druid]

After reading all this, I AM wondering if it's as simple as a diverter valve (which allows you to pump directly overboard if the situation allows) and a closed thru-hull.

druid