Small head inlet leak

[northoceanbeach]

I am almost done with my flurry of activity getting the boat up to par.

The inlet for the toilet, and keep in mind this is my first boat that has an actual head and not a porta potti, the inlet that lets in salt water to flush the bowl is leaking a bit. I see wetness around it sometimes and also after a couple weeks there are dried salt crystals around the head.

Is this something I need to worry about? Is it a simple fix, just to tighten a bolt or anything?

[JPA Cate]

nob,

Try tightening the hose clamp where the inlet hose comes into the toilet. Hope the hose isn't split. But if it's old, you might want to consider replacing.

usually, you'll have a hose from a through hull fitting with a seacock to the inlet side of the toilet. Safest practice is to have two hose clamps on the toilet hoses, but sometimes the fittings on the toilet are too short for double clamping. If this is your case, get a good hose clamp for it (not perforated).

Ann

[peghall]

Originally Posted by northoceanbeach

I am almost done with my flurry of activity getting the boat up to par.

The inlet for the toilet, and keep in mind this is my first boat that has an actual head and not a porta potti, the inlet that lets in salt water to flush the bowl is leaking a bit. I see wetness around it sometimes and also after a couple weeks there are dried salt crystals around the head.

Is this something I need to worry about? Is it a simple fix, just to tighten a bolt or anything?

Where exactly are you seeing the dried salt crystals? From your comment it doesn't sound like they're only around the bowl inlet fitting.

That leak is likely due to either a hose that's so old it's cracked and splitting. The average working life of any hose--fuel, water, waste--is about 10 years because over time plastic and rubber dry out, become brittle and begin to crack...and then leak or even separate from fittings. Or the bowl spud (plastic hose connector on the back of the toilet) may have a crack. If the hose fits very snugly on the fitting, it shouldn't leak whether there's a clamp on it or not...however, because a clamp is what keeps it from working off the fitting over time, one is definitely called for!

However, there's a WEE bit more than just a slight leak at the bowl spud that needs attention:

That you're seeing signs that the toilet's been leaking while you've been away from the boat says you're not closing the seacocks when you leave the boat. Seacocks left open--especially toilet seacocks--while no one is aboard are a leading cause for boats sinking in their slips. If the toilet is left in the "wet" mode, there's nothing to prevent water from flooding and overflowing the bowl.

Which brings me to the reason why a vented loop (anti-siphon device) is absolutely necessary in the intake of any toilet that's at or below waterline. It should NOT be installed between the thru-hull and the pump...it needs to go between the pump and the bowl...which means you'll have to replace the short piece of hose that connects them now with the right lengths of hose to put the loop at least 6-8" above waterline AT ANY ANGLE OF HEEL...which on most sailboats is 2-3 FEET above the bowl. The installation instructions for your toilet will have a drawing showing how to install it. If you don't have the manual, you should be able to download one from the mfr's website.

You're brand new at all this...nobody was born knowing it. You're starting YOUR learning curve and I'll be glad--all of us will--to help you climb it.

[northoceanbeach]

Thanks guy! This forum is great.

I never, ever leave the seacocks open when I'm away, I don't even leave them open when I am aboard, I shut them overtime I use them.

I don't see where the water is actually coming from, just that there is wetness around the bottom of the seacock and there are salt crystals every couple weeks.

I have the high vented loop you are talking about for my head outlet. my setup is like this.

Head. It can either pump to a holding tank or with a t fitting, overboard. The overboard outlet hose is run way up in the air in a loop and then back down.

The holding tank is under the v berth and has a vent on the bow.

The toilet has an inlet seacock for salt water about 8 inches to the right of the bowl and the bowls' pump. It is bronze and the bottom where it attaches to the boat is often damp. I though maybe water was seeping in around it, but it is also very easy to open and close. Not like the newer big strong seacock that is for the outlet which has obviously been replaced many years later. This is the original design and is very easy to open and close.

[deblen]

Would the seacock be sweating,due to high humidity & cool water?

[Greenhand]

Oh, the wetness and crystals are at the seacock? Even though you leave it closed?

I am sorry to say, it sounds like you may need a new thruhull and seacock. Try the hoses first, as you may just be seeing the backwash to a loose fitting, but keep a close eye on the situation and make sure you have a plug nearby.

[MarkSF]

Originally Posted by deblen

Would the seacock be sweating,due to high humidity & cool water?

Where would the salt crystals be coming from?

[northoceanbeach]

Poor quality picture!

[misssherry]

Hard to tell from the pic, but I'm guessing that your thru-hull valve is a Wilcox Crittenden tapered cone. These valves are no longer manufactured but are well made and can be disassembled and serviced when you haul out. In the meantime, there is a nut on the opposite side of the shutoff lever that is used to adjust how tightly the cone fits in the bronze housing. Try tightening the nut until you feel more resistance from the shutoff lever.

[peghall]

Originally Posted by northoceanbeach

Poor quality picture!

Any vented loop is in the DISCHARGE line. Your photo clearly shows that there isn't one in the INLET, which is the most important one in a system that flushes into a tank. See "figure 1" on page 3 of the manual for your toilet here:Jabsco Manual Twist & Lock or here if your toilet is too old to be the Twist & Lock version: Jabsco Manual Twist & Lock

Others seem to be giving you good advice about your leak, so I'll defer to them for now.

[northoceanbeach]

The toilet itself is a pretty new jabsco. I'll look into installing that hose proper,y.

It is a Wilcox crittendom seacock. I touched it with my finger and believe the water is coming from between the lever and the bolts on the other side. It is really loose to turn, maybe tightening it up like you say will also stop the leak? Maybe it had just become too loose.

[northoceanbeach]

Definitely from the handle. I'm tightening now. We will see if that fixes it.

[Rhapsody-NS27]

Looks like a tapered cone seacock that needs to be cleaned up a bit.
Here's a resource to help.
Servicing Tapered Cone Seacocks Photo Gallery by Compass Marine How To at pbase.com

[northoceanbeach]

Agree at information rhapsody! Now I understand that seacock. When I haul out next which hopefully won't be for a long time I will rebuild it like they say, but in the mean time, like the website say, it gets worn down from all the rubbing and water can leak through, but tightening the bolts and I now have now more leakage for three days.

I also learned how to line it up properly! Thanks. Another boat problem solved through CF