Raritan Marine Elegance - Sounds like rocks rattling around when flushing

[Mike Banks]

Cherry and plum pips are often the culprits--and they bounce off the stainless steel blades. I managed to get them out of mine by using a plumber's friend plunger. then removing them from the bottom of the bowl one at a time with one of those claw things mechanics use. The last resort would be to dismantle the thing, but plastic blades? even the el-cheapo Chinese ones are surgical stainless steel.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Plastic macerater blades??? Say it isn't so. Seems a bad idea to this sanitary engineer (amateur). The blades in our cheapo Jabsco macerater/pump are stainless steel of some sort.

Jim

I cannot imagine that the Marine Elegance has plastic macerator blades! Crazy.

I have to say, however, that my Raritan Sea Era is a very cheaply made, flimsy thing, which has already failed once because the macerator plade and cheap plastic end plate met when the assembly flexed.

If the Marine Elegance has plastic macerator blades, then . . . that's it for me and Raritan I think.


To the OP -- I know that the idea of taking apart a toilet is disgusting, but I really don't recommend non-invasive methods tried while something is obviously wrong in the macerator. Suppose it was a bolt or something which fell into it? You'll just be tearing it to pieces inside while you vainly try to dissolve it with different things. If you get a foreign object in a macerator, better to IMMEDIATELY stop macerating, bite the bullet, and take it apart. Besides saving the unit in many cases, it will almost always be faster.

Anyway any yachtsman needs to be able to strip and reassemble his toilet, in a seaway, quickly, and without being disgusted. When I do this, I s flush it out with plenty of fresh water (turn off the inlet sea cock), siphon it out repeatedly, then give it a good scrub with bleach. Then I put on long rubber gloves, and go at it. Clean up everything plus myself thoroughly afterwards. It's no big deal once you get used to it.

I do it from time to time, because the impeller of my Sea Era is very weak and won't pump the toilet out if there is anything disturbing the flow. Just a bit of hair or the corner of a paper towel will stick on the macerator blade (stainless steel BTW) and disrupt the flow to the impeller, preventing pump out. My old Jabsco (which I moved to the forward heads) is much less sensitive, and will generally chew up and flush most anything which is not metallic. Except that bane of all marine toilets -- wet wipes or baby wipes, which have an incredibly tough, fibrous texture which can't be macerated.

[autumnbreeze27]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

I cannot imagine that the Marine Elegance has plastic macerator blades! Crazy.

I have to say, however, that my Raritan Sea Era is a very cheaply made, flimsy thing, which has already failed once because the macerator plade and cheap plastic end plate met when the assembly flexed.

If the Marine Elegance has plastic macerator blades, then . . . that's it for me and Raritan I think.


To the OP -- I know that the idea of taking apart a toilet is disgusting, but I really don't recommend non-invasive methods tried while something is obviously wrong in the macerator. Suppose it was a bolt or something which fell into it? You'll just be tearing it to pieces inside while you vainly try to dissolve it with different things. If you get a foreign object in a macerator, better to IMMEDIATELY stop macerating, bite the bullet, and take it apart. Besides saving the unit in many cases, it will almost always be faster.

Anyway any yachtsman needs to be able to strip and reassemble his toilet, in a seaway, quickly, and without being disgusted. When I do this, I s flush it out with plenty of fresh water (turn off the inlet sea cock), siphon it out repeatedly, then give it a good scrub with bleach. Then I put on long rubber gloves, and go at it. Clean up everything plus myself thoroughly afterwards. It's no big deal once you get used to it.

I do it from time to time, because the impeller of my Sea Era is very weak and won't pump the toilet out if there is anything disturbing the flow. Just a bit of hair or the corner of a paper toilet will stick on the macerator blade and disrupt the flow to the impeller, preventing pump out. My old Jabsco (which I moved to the forward heads) is much less sensitive, and will generally chew up and flush most anything which is not metallic. Except that bane of all marine toilets -- wet wipes or baby wipes, which have an incredibly tough, fibrous texture which can't be macerated.

Thanks. I've worked on Skipper 2, Jabsco Manual, Jabsco Electric, Sealand Vacuflush. I have a raritan sea elegance and a raritan fresh head on the boat right now (after installing and/or removing all the above from the same boat). Not afraid to take them apart if I have to, but don't want to take them apart unless I have to!

I also compare the price of a new toilet to the cost of a replacement and the toilet's age. I know some people rebuild their toilets when expensive parts fail, but I usually yank and replace them. Nothing worse than spending 50-75% of replacement cost on parts to have a part you didn't replace fail 6 months later. I'd put a new toilet in, clean up and repair or sell the old one, and it ends up costing very little extra to have a new toilet, with all new parts.

Speaking of toilet stories. There was the time we were in a catalina 34 we had recently purchased, and I went to pump the holding tank overboard on the way to our first yacht club raft up. The pot metal bolts that jabsco uses to hold their pumps together had failed, and raw sewage was leaking out of it. There was no shutoff on the waste tank, it ran straight to the falling apart macerator. So I pulled the hose off, free flowing 1.5" hole worth of waste into the bilge and all over me, then put a bung in it. I then pulled the hose off the thru-valve and used seawater to wash out the bilge and pump it dry until the boat didn't smell like a sht house anymore. Got all done, came out into the cockpit, and then I dry heaved a bit.

Am I a yachtsman?

[HopCar]

I have never had an Elegance apart but I doubt that the macerator blade is plastic.
The pump housing and discharge impeller are probably plastic, but that is common practice. Take a look at the parts drawing: http://www.raritaneng.com/wp-content...nceExpView.pdf

[peghall]

You're right, Hop...the impeller IS plastic and the macerator blade IS metal.

[barboak]

Interesting thread as we are considering 1replacing 1 of our 2 Groco Model K heads with an electric head. Read somewhere about a Saniflo Sanimarin electric head which looks good but no reviews or feedback, otherwise maybe a Raritan Elegance. Anyone know about the Saniflo brand? Thanks

[CarlF]

Yes. I can report that the macerator on my two Elegances are metal. Maybe I've just been lucky, but they've also been by far the most reliable and trouble free heads I've ever had (far better than my previous Lavac).

In five years of pretty heavy use, I've done no maintenance beyond pouring some of Peggy's CP cleaner in there - and replaced no parts - not even a joker valve. We have no rules against flushing TP. Even non-sailor guests have not been able to clog it.

I'd second the possibility that some deposit hardened during storage and then broke off when the head was used again. It's rattling around in the impeller. I use fresh water flush and have left the boat for 2 months with no problem.

If I ever get another boat, one of the first tasks will be to replace the existing head with an Elegance.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by autumnbreeze27

Speaking of toilet stories. There was the time we were in a catalina 34 we had recently purchased, and I went to pump the holding tank overboard on the way to our first yacht club raft up. The pot metal bolts that jabsco uses to hold their pumps together had failed, and raw sewage was leaking out of it. There was no shutoff on the waste tank, it ran straight to the falling apart macerator. So I pulled the hose off, free flowing 1.5" hole worth of waste into the bilge and all over me, then put a bung in it. I then pulled the hose off the thru-valve and used seawater to wash out the bilge and pump it dry until the boat didn't smell like a sht house anymore. Got all done, came out into the cockpit, and then I dry heaved a bit.

Am I a yachtsman?

He, he, he. You, sir, have endured the baptism of excrement, which qualifies you, without any doubt, as:

A YACHTSMAN.


Congratulations!

[peghall]

Sanimarin is a French company with manufacturing in Romania.Several companies around the world including Vetus private label their toilets. They're decent quality, but nowhere near that of Raritan toilets, which are made in the US. And if/when you need customer service or tech support, it's likely to be online only.

[barboak]

Originally Posted by peghall

Sanimarin is a French company with manufacturing in Romania.Several companies around the world including Vetus private label their toilets. They're decent quality, but nowhere near that of Raritan toilets, which are made in the US. And if/when you need customer service or tech support, it's likely to be online only.

Thanks Peggy, that's what I thought!

[a64pilot]

Hopcar, I apologize, I edited your post as opposed to quoting it. I fixed it now

Ref your parts list,
part #5, the blade is I am sure metal.
part #9, the impeller is I assume plastic, and that is I think the confusion

[HopCar]

Jody I was wondering what happened. You can edit my copy any time.

[autumnbreeze27]

We've had no problems since returning the toilet to service. The sound has returned to normal.

We've got a raritan sea elegance in the aft head, and a raritan fresh head in the front.

Hopefully it will be a long time before we're in the yard again, but I will be sure to give the toilet a good flushing with vinegar or muriatic before leaving it sit again.

The wife brought down some "flushable baby wipes"... I said "only if you eat them first!"

Thanks all for the assistance! Happy this was an easy one! I needed one of those!

[Sailshabby]

Too much fiber.