Lavezzi 40: Retrofitting Holding Tanks

[lavezzi]

I am considering purchasing a 2003 Lavezzi 40 maestro. It does not have holding tanks. I would like to have 2 holding tanks fitted. Does anyone have any experience of carrying out this sort of retro fitting. I would be having the work done in Europe - probably croatia. Any idea of the likely cost and any difficulties that might be encountered.

[gonesail]

this job is labor intensive .. running 1.5" sanitary hose and mounting 2 tanks along with deck and overboard pumpouts is not easy. and since it is a new installation you will need to plan it out in detail. get the best tanks and fittings you can afford. good luck.

[rusky]

I put holding tanks into our peterson last year.

I found a tank which was the biggest I could fit comfortably into a cupboard and went about fitting the macerator pump [only needed the pump, but one fittted with a macerator was similar in power usage and size]. I used a jabsco y valve, breether and a deck fitting. I just used a buzz bar to add the switch.

Australian prices are very expensive compared to USA or European so my costs are irrelevant to you.

It went in easily enough and if you do it yourself, you know exactly how it works etc etc..
regards
David

[IdoraKeeper]

You are lucky! You have no nasty old tanks to remove. I too did this job last year and had to deal with a calcified tank and rotton hoses routed through nasty tight spots. This was sufficiently unpleasant to convince me to go all out in an effort to avoid doing the job again in the near future. This job is not expensive in the cost of parts and matierials but could mean alot of labor (depending on your configuration).

After the tearing out process and the cleanup I came to three conclusions.

1- Stainless steel holding tanks get pin holes over time. Plastic is better.

2- Hose is your enemy and stinks.

3- All pumps must be in accessible locations to be easily replaced.

Research on ship construction indicated that the most common matierial for sewage lines is PVC pipe. I chose to use it and isolated it with short lengths of hose and valves at all head, tank, and through hull locations. To this date I have no leaks, minimal stink and no cracks or other failures.

I keep heat on the boat and have not had freeze problems either. I agree that if you do it yourself you will know all the details. Something to consider.

Todd

[swagman]

Doing it right now.
Suggest you ask UK firm 'Tek-Tanks for a brochure as it shows all the options you could adopt in diagrams / parts required.
My suggestion would be to keep it all as simple as you can.
Overall and compared with other boat work I don't think you'll find it difficult.
If you do go with stainless then be sure they are sprayed inside with plastic. We've gone with a roto-moulded plastic tank this time.
Due to past (good) experience we chose to go again with a vertical gravity tank. Means no pumps to bother with - the toilet pump shoves the stuff uphill enough to fill the tank from the top. It empties from a deck pump out or you open the through hull and out she goes.
The deck pump outlet is straight up from the top of the tank, and the through hull outlet is directly in line with that, meaning should one ever get a blockage you can push it out via a rod from the deck.
Re costs - we had to go for a custom made tank, plus vent, charcole filter, inspection hatch, deck pump out fittings - lifting our cost to just under UK£600.
Had we slightly more room we could have used a standard plastic tank from Vetus or others and saved over UK£200.
I am fitting it myself.
Enjoy!
JOHN

[sailvayu]

Check with the boat builder i am sure they offer this as an option and might be able to supply you with parts list and other needed info. Worth a try.

[Matt sachs]

I was planning to use 1/8 aluminum plate to build my waste holding tanks and coating the inside with ________ (something, I dont know what yet, but I'm open to ideas) Is aluminum a suitable material for these tanks?

[sailvayu]

Plastic is really your best choice for this Metals do not do well with waste storage. Coating might help but would be hard to do once the tank is built. I would really think plastic you can get them custom made if you have to. Stock shapes of course are cheaper

[muskoka]

I have a Lavezzi Maestro. Our port hull has a gravity tank mounted on the wall above the heads which drains overboard to a 60mm seacock. The pump out is directly above. The installation would be very easy for anyone with reasonable skills. I would strongly suggest that you contact FP and simply buy the parts required:

1. Plastic tank with mounting brackets
2. Fibreglass cover for tank
3. 60mm hose, seacock & through hull

They'll overcharge, no doubt, but it all fits. The other things you'll need are:

1. 38mm x 1800mm sanitary hose to run from head to tank
2. Vent hose and through hull
3. Pump out hose and deck plate
4. Clamps, elbows & barbs

I haven't got a holding tank on the second head but I imagine you could fit one in the medicine locker or under the vanity ledge in the dressing area.

Cheers

[What If]

My Lavezzi set up is the same as muskoka. I too have been wondering about fitting a holding tank in the starboard owners bathroom. I would be keen to hear what you discover works in that bathroom. I am at the head in every hole having a look stage.

Cheers

[gettinthere]

good hose is mandatory, don't cheap out there unless you can fit PVC pipe instead. But make the short connections with the very best sanitation hose. I prefer Trident 101

[Grateful]

Back to this stinky subject...

I to am adding holding tanks to a 2007 L40. Could someone send a photo of the factory holding tanks in a Lavezzi.

There's not much room above the head, so I assume that the tank goes into the void directly behind and above the head.

[PaulinOz]

Tank is 45 lt
800mm High
400mm wide
Tapered
at the top 250mm front to back.
at the bottom from 100mm front to back.

Picture is a Panorama scanning up, the tank has straight sides not wavy as pictured. This is all covered by a Fiberglass cover panel.

[Kim Gregory]

Almost ordered a custom tank for the v berth before checking the hatch and door dimensions! It would have been impossible to get the tank inside the boat!

Make a cardboard mock-up of the tank first, and see if you can get it through the doors and hatch!

Ended up converting the existing keel fiberglass water tank into a holding tank, and fitting a new flexible water tank.

[Grateful]

Originally Posted by PaulinOz

Tank is 45 lt
800mm High
400mm wide
Tapered
at the top 250mm front to back.
at the bottom from 100mm front to back.

Picture is a Panorama scanning up, the tank has straight sides not wavy as pictured. This is all covered by a Fiberglass cover panel.

Paulin,

Thank you so much - this is just what I need! Any idea what purpose that elaborate molding near the bottom of the tank serves?