Wife + Holding Tank = Fighting With Me

[Dame.n.Jess]

We had a similar thing with a clear plastic inspection port on the top of our plastic H/Tank. Could never get it to seal. ended up putting a ring of sikaflex around the threads and winding the lid in. FIXED THE SMELL/LEAK!!!!!

When I rebuilt my boat, I didnt want to be that cruiser that always ended up talking about their bloody holding tank, but seriously. they can be such a pain in the ****.

I hate them, if I could not have one I would happily throw mine in the bin. I dont have room for a composter, but man when I upgrade boats, I will be taking a tape measure to the head with me and basing a purchase on the ability to fit a you beaut composting head!

We also found on our plastic tank that fluid can leak out between the fittings and the tank. Again piles of Sika and REALLY well sanded mating surfaces need to be done here.

Damien

[Pacificcatalyst]

If all that's leaking is the o-ring, how about replacing the o-ring rather than the whole unit? I have an o-ring kit on the boat that lets me make any diameter and guage o-ring I need, including portlight seals.

I tend to think that it's better to pump macerated poo into the open ocean than it is to chlorinate it, and then pump it into the ocean. Not in a closed area with poor circulation, or where it's prohibited, but in the open. Probably a discussion for another thread.........

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Pacificcatalyst

If all that's leaking is the o-ring, how about replacing the o-ring rather than the whole unit? I have an o-ring kit on the boat that lets me make any diameter and guage o-ring I need, including portlight seals.

I tend to think that it's better to pump macerated poo into the open ocean than it is to chlorinate it, and then pump it into the ocean. Not in a closed area with poor circulation, or where it's prohibited, but in the open. Probably a discussion for another thread.........

Totally agree.

Where I sail no one uses a holding tank, neither at sea nor in harbor, although I am in an area with extremely high environmental consciousness. That is because the area is strongly tidal, and everything is constantly flushed out by tidal streams. The tiny amount of waste generated by cruisers is, in my opinion, NBD, in fact virtually unmeasurable, compared to what municipalities dump into the ocean, and indeed, what fish do themselves. It's organic waste, after all, and totally biodegradable.

The UK government did a huge study on it some years ago and found that the discharge of sailboat toilets in tidal estuaries had zero harmful environmental impact. I think we tend to irrationally exaggerate how gross it is -- the ocean is big and doesn't even notice a tiny bit of our waste.

It's different, of course, in areas where tides are small and water stagnates in harbors.

[Hannah on 'Rita T']

I am sure Peggy Hall will chime in, but the critical steps to avoid smell from the holding tank are to be sure the vent isn't clogged adn it gets air and NEVER use a product with bleach when cleaning the head. Bleach kills the good buggies who eat the poo and prevent the smell.

[tamicatana]

replace O-ring, or perhaps a bit of Teflon tape on threads?

[Sand crab]

I was just wondering about the legal discharge of these.
Raritan Engineering | Waste Treatment | LectraSan
If you were in a marina or harbor in the US would it technically be legal. I realize it would still be a crappy thing to do but I was just wondering about the legality. The website is a little vague, at least to me.

[sww914]

Originally Posted by sarafina

try a composting C-Head for under $500 including shipping...

Or pump out the tank before it gets as high as the o-ring...

My C-head is supposed to be here today. Too bad I tried the holding tank route first, wasted $200.00 on hoses first and the whole system is a big stinky PITA!

[sww914]

BTW, the town we're in is dumping 20,000 gallons of untreated sewage into the ocean a year, 1/2 mile offshore and all the residents are crying about how the liveaboards (about 25 people) are ruining the bay with sewage.
That 20,000 is just what they report when they have "accidents".

[Rakuflames]

Originally Posted by rebel heart

Do you have any idea how disgusting your harbor would be if everyone did that?

People pumping straight out instead of pumping out into a sewer system is the #1 reason lots of landlubbers don't like to look out and see boats off their beaches. I would like to see HUGE fines thrown at everyone who does that.

That was happening in the marina I live in. They figured out who the guy was and made him move. Unfortunately he has just moved on to some other marina that probably isn't as vigilant.

[Rakuflames]

Originally Posted by sarafina

ok, THAT is a horse of a different colour ; -)

That is different. Out in the open ocean we're just another mammal ... well ... taking a dump. WHALES poop out there ...

[peghall]

I guess something as simple as just replacing the o-ring is out of the question???

O-rings do have a finite lifespan...after 5-6 years, they dry out, crack and therefore can no longer seal. Replacing it should solve your problem. You can prob'ly order one directly from Beckson.

However overfilling the tank SHOULD just cause it to run out the vent. If waste is being forced out the inspection port cap, it means that it can't get out the vent--that the vent is blocked...your tank is pressurized. If you're unhappy with the small amount that's leaking out of the inspection port, you'll really hate what happens when the pressure creates a geyser in the head...or only from the deck pumpout if you're lucky.

So pump out the tank and rinse it out...then replace the o-ring and clean out the tank vent. Total cost: about $10 or less.

[Bash]

Originally Posted by Rakuflames

WHALES poop out there ...

Excuse the thread drift, but I've experienced whale feces, and I will assert in the most emphatic terms that you wouldn't want one to defecate in your marina.

Back to the OP: If you're experiencing leakage in a porta-potti, there's a good chance it's being overfilled. Perhaps it's time to look into one with a larger capacity?

[sarafina]

Originally Posted by Sand crab

I was just wondering about the legal discharge of these.
Raritan Engineering | Waste Treatment | LectraSan
If you were in a marina or harbor in the US would it technically be legal. I realize it would still be a crappy thing to do but I was just wondering about the legality. The website is a little vague, at least to me.

It would not be legal in the San Francisco Bay area, or in other protected marine environments.

Originally Posted by sww914

My C-head is supposed to be here today. Too bad I tried the holding tank route first, wasted $200.00 on hoses first and the whole system is a big stinky PITA!

Well better late than never ; -)

[peghall]

It WOULD be legal in SF Bay.

Most of SoCal up to Santa Barbara is "no discharge," but north of Santa Barbara the discharge of treated waste from a CG certfied Type I or II is legal on whole west coast including Puget Sound, except for Richardson Bay, which is a very small harbor off SF Bay in Sausalito.

The discharge of treated waste is also legal on 90% of the navigable inland rivers...the whole Gulf of Mexico except for the FL Keys and Destin Harbor...and almost all of the east coast south LIS. Treated waste is legal on the Sound, but almost all the harbors on it are NDZs...there's only one small NDZ--Herring Bay-- on the whole Chesapeake Bay and only few very small ones on the rest of the east coast all the way to the Keys.

And it's not a "crappy thing to do" either. The discharge from a Lectra/San, ElectroScan or PuraSan is < 10/100 ml and the BOD is only equivalent to that from 4 oak leaves falling off a tree into the water...which is actually cleaner than the discharge from most sewage treatment plants (even when they don't overflow untreated waste) and a LOT cleaner than an illegally dumped tank...more of which ARE illegally dumped than pumped out.

[gonesail]

I would like to see HUGE fines thrown at everyone who does that

to be fair about it .. how bout we throw 250.00 fines at each and every home that is attached to a sewer line that spits accidental leaks in the waterways? a county could get rich quick off that cash cow eh