Which macerator toilet to chose ??

[Captainmitch]

Well, now I have gotten far enough along with the resto of our trawler to move onto the sanitation equipment. I would like to use a macerator toilet in one of the heads and hope I can get some reviews from here. I will feed the holding tank from there and have another grinder for the overboard pump. The second head will remain with the Lavac that is current.
Can I get some suggestions.

[peghall]

Do you want a sea water toilet or one designed to use onboard pressurized fresh water?

The top-rated toilets in both catagories are the Raritan SeaEra (sea water) Raritan SeaEra Promo Sheet and the Raritan Marine Elegance (fresh water) Raritan Marine_Elegance Promo.pdf Fwiw, Raritan is the only electric toilet mfr left who still makes everything in the US.

Don't be spooked by the list prices...there are retailers who have them for a LOT less!

I'll be glad to answer questions about these and any other brands/models.

--Peggie

[Bowdrie]

Ah, a power boat, lots of juice available and, (when running,) enough engine noise to mask the noise of the electric head.
The Raritan would be a good choice, but I would choose the "Crown" model.
Yes, it is a small fortune, but if you find an old used one you can send it back to Raritan, and for ~35>40% of the new cost you can get a factory restored one.
It's bronze, with a motor that could do double duty as a starter motor on a smallish diesel, not some plastic molding with a windshield wiper motor for power.
Peg, IIRC you thought it would be a good choice for a boat on "Deadliest Catch", or some kind of big Houseboat?
Anyway, they are an impressive beast.

[SV Confianza]

I can wholeheartedly recommend the Raritan Marine Elegance.

10 years with three of them (two with basically daily use).

I put a whole write up about them on the upgrades blog: https://www.clevermariner.com/post/t...-ever-possibly

[Captainmitch]

Ahh, the ever gracious Peggy Hall. I was hoping you might jump in.
Thank you for your input.
I have recently had to deal with one of the cheap imitations that pumps great amounts of water but does a poor job of macerating even junk TP .
My years previous experience with the Raritan Crowns was always better but I was glad for the reaffirmation.

[peghall]

The Raritan Crown Head is definitely a "workhorse" but it's a dinosaur that hasn't changed much since it was introduced in the 1960s. The earliest ones drew 50 amps...the current "CD" (Centrifugal Discharge) version--which has been the current version since the1980s draws 36 amps, needs 1-3 GAL. of water/flush and makes enough noise to wake the dead. If I were running a "Deadliest Catch" trawler or other work boat, it's the only toilet I'd want.

But modern sea water macerating toilets only draw 10-15 amps, need only 1-2 liters of water and are MUCH quieter, making them a much better choice for recreational vessels.

--Peggie

[peghall]

I once knew a houseboat owner with a Crown Head who told his kids they wouldn't live to see their next birthday if they flushed it while he was taking a nap!


Btw, Mitch...you should also replace all your sanitation hoses when you replace the toilet. Raritan SaniFlex is top rated, has a 10 yr warranty against odor permeation and has the added advantage of being so flexible it can literally be bent almost as tight as a hairpin without kinking. Defender has it for about $10/ft Raritan Sani / Flex Sanitation Hose at Defender I'd also upgrade the vent line to 1" or even 1.5" depending on the size of your boat and replace the "vent" thru-hull with an open bulkhead or "mushroom" fitting. This will not only provide increased air exchange in the tank, but allow you to prevent vent blockages by sticking a hose nozzle against it to back flush the vent line every time you wash the boat and/or pump out.

--Peggie

[Timryl]

Does noi level equate to efficiency?
I have a tecma head on board, installed by the designer/builder, I am wanting add another one, where do they sit in the efficiency scale?

[Bowdrie]

Originally Posted by Timryl

Does noi level equate to efficiency?
I have a tecma head on board, installed by the designer/builder, I am wanting add another one, where do they sit in the efficiency scale?

Not so sure you can equate "efficiency" with noise level.
Perhaps efficiency can be more accurately determined by the amount of water and electricity used per flush.
I've installed some Tecma units, IMO, they are a good unit, and those whom I've installed them for have been happy with them.
As in any of them, the shorter the rise to the holding tank and the shorter the distance to the tank the less load on the unit.

[Captainmitch]

Again, thanx for the great and patient advise. After reading Peggy's note I did review the Sea Era unit and agree it seems a good bit better than the faithful old crown units.. Thanx Peggy!

[malbert73]

Originally Posted by SV Confianza

I can wholeheartedly recommend the Raritan Marine Elegance.

10 years with three of them (two with basically daily use).

I put a whole write up about them on the upgrades blog: https://www.clevermariner.com/post/t...-ever-possibly

Agree!! Ours also is awesome

[Hhew]

I have a friend who claims through experience that the Raritan Elegance macerator will grind up anything you can throw at it - except a cherry pit. Don’t swallow your cherry pits!

[peghall]

I don't recommend testing that by flushing a wet wipe... a tampon maybe, but I've yet to hear of a toilet that can digest a wet wipe.



--Peggie