Changing Out The Head Again..

[HopCar]

I sold marine toilets for more than forty years. If I were going to buy a marine toilet today it would be the Raritan Marine Elegance. Very reliable toilets.

A straight fresh water flush would be my choice if I had plenty of water. It does keep everything nicer and it saves you the cost of a salt water pump.

If you are short of water of course you need a salt water flush which cost more because you need to buy the pump.

The model that allows you to choose to flush with fresh or salt is the most expensive. Some people choose this because it allows them to save fresh water but they can clean the system by flushing with fresh once in a while.

Raritan has excellent customer service. If you have any questions call Mac McCoy in their Ft. Lauderdale office.

[a64pilot]

I thought about PVC the first time, but figured if I buy the good stuff it ought to be good for 10 years anyway.
One good thing about a macerating head is you can use 1” pipe, and I think once I figure out how to connect PVC to short sections of hose, I may go that route.
I’m surprised the Raritan hose permeated so quickly, and the smell is odd, it’s a rotten milk smell.
You only smell it in my tool storage lockers where the hose runs through, not in the boat thankfully, and the smell is only really apparent when I’m using the tank too, if we direct discharge, there isn’t any noticeable smell. If we use the tank, since it discharges into the top of the tank, the hose stays full of waste, I theorize if the thru hull is open the hose drains of waste.
Using the tank makes the hose form a trap.

[SVTatia]

Originally Posted by KenH

...

Is there a better one on the market? I would rather spend the money once and get the best then any I might need to keep fixing. because we all know that's one shitty project to keep working on.

Originally Posted by S/V Alchemy

Lavac. That is all.


(aside from a bucket of fresh water every 10 flushes, however!)

Yes, Lavac is the one.. the simplest and more reliable. It uses a bilge pump - very strong and if you pump sitting down it may suck you right in.
Also, the pump is mounted separately so there is nothing beside the bowl. After 10 years of use and abuse not one single clogging.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by newhaul

every couple weeks with the solids sounds like lots of people or lots of paper or both.
Or option 3 emptying more often than needed.
But if in marinas often and don't mind pumping poo every week or (more often depending on tank size and number of users)
a standard flush head may be best for you. I'm sure there are many on here that will want your composter.

I agree. We empty our Nature’s Head main bin every four to six weeks, and that’s two adults full time. Two weeks for one person suggests an issue with the mix or venting, or perhaps it’s the TP usage. Something is unusual.

We empty the urine bucket every two to three days.

[Dave22q]

If you're getting weekly pumpouts sea water should be fine. Just pump dry after flushing. Be careful rigging for fresh water. The marina pressure will be too high for most head setups. You will need some kind of storage tank and pump from there to the head. Might be best to have a 'Y' valve to retain the sea water option.
As for dumping urine over the side in the marina, don't be tied up next to most of the folks I know or there might be more than piss in the water.

[HopCar]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

I thought about PVC the first time, but figured if I buy the good stuff it ought to be good for 10 years anyway.
One good thing about a macerating head is you can use 1” pipe, and I think once I figure out how to connect PVC to short sections of hose, I may go that route.
I’m surprised the Raritan hose permeated so quickly, and the smell is odd, it’s a rotten milk smell.
You only smell it in my tool storage lockers where the hose runs through, not in the boat thankfully, and the smell is only really apparent when I’m using the tank too, if we direct discharge, there isn’t any noticeable smell. If we use the tank, since it discharges into the top of the tank, the hose stays full of waste, I theorize if the thru hull is open the hose drains of waste.
Using the tank makes the hose form a trap.

Environmental marine makes an adapter that connects 1-1/2 pvc to 1-1/2 hose. Unfortunately I don’t think they make a 1” adapter.
https://www.environmentalmarine.com/...er-341513.html

[Storspigg]

Natures Head is an envirionmentally friendly toilet if you keep feces and urine onboard, until you have the opportunity to get rid of it ashore. Especially urine is rich in plant nutrients. You have to dilute it before using it as a fertilizer.

Our common sea is getting more polluted every year and I think it is our duty to keep it as clean as possible for us and for coming genereations. Naturs Head separates urine from feces, I believe. On my salingboat, 28 feet long, I save the urine in eight 10 liter containers. 1 liter is 1 cubic decimeter. When I reach land, it is easy to empty the containers into a toilet for proper treatment. If you have a garden you can dilute it about ten times and use it as a fertilizer. Ask the authorities first! A farmer probably will be happy to take care of it before dilution.

The feces goes into a steel container on my boat, where I mix it with dry peat mulch. A small electric fan slowly dryes the contence to make it smell less. The end product is a good fertilizer, especialy if the toilet users are vegetarians. Ask the athorities before using it as a fertilizer!

[vanderd]

We have 2 Raritan Marine Elegance toilets and can offer some advice/recommendations. Ours uses fresh water and perform well. The downside in our application is that the top of the waste tank is above the toilet. There are 2 rubber duck bill valves that prevent the contents within the hose to flows back into the toilet. Keep spares on hand because they do fail with some regularity. The discharge hose can be either 1” or 1.5”. If your installation puts the waste tank above the toilet use the 1” hose. It puts less volume i.e. less pressure against the rubber duck valves. I speak from experience as I am both captain and plumber!

[a64pilot]

I think the 1” hose is simply better, smaller and therefore easier to run, and hold less effluent, so it requires much less water to flush the hose clean

[Scout 30]

We use little baggies for our TP & it works well. That would easily double your emptying intervals. Personally, I'll never go back to dealing with all the hassles & smells of marine heads & pump outs.

[Jdeuel]

Originally Posted by SVTatia

Yes, Lavac is the one.. the simplest and more reliable. It uses a bilge pump - very strong and if you pump sitting down it may suck you right in.
Also, the pump is mounted separately so there is nothing beside the bowl. After 10 years of use and abuse not one single clogging.

I’ll be replacing my head as part of my refit, and I’ve considered the Lavac. Do the hoses have the same issues with smell as a traditional head?

[KenH]

Originally Posted by vanderd

We have 2 Raritan Marine Elegance toilets and can offer some advice/recommendations. Ours uses fresh water and perform well. The downside in our application is that the top of the waste tank is above the toilet. There are 2 rubber duck bill valves that prevent the contents within the hose to flows back into the toilet. Keep spares on hand because they do fail with some regularity. The discharge hose can be either 1” or 1.5”. If your installation puts the waste tank above the toilet use the 1” hose. It puts less volume i.e. less pressure against the rubber duck valves. I speak from experience as I am both captain and plumber!

Thanks, good to know..

[KenH]

Originally Posted by Scout 30

We use little baggies for our TP & it works well. That would easily double your emptying intervals. Personally, I'll never go back to dealing with all the hassles & smells of marine heads & pump outs.

That's it, I don't want to go to a separate bag or container for paper..

[James S]

We are intermittent sailors and my wife absolutely hated that rotten egg smell... when we did our refit we went with raraitan electric for both heads and fresh water flush... but with a twist.. having a huge bilge I installed a 80 gallon dedicated tank ...its not connected in anyway to my potable water system.. filled directly with a hose from the dock or if need be sea water.. or cool-aid if I like... I love its versatility..
My boat is a heavy full keel cruiser.. 20 tones.. so the extra weight doesn't bother me at al and I was happy to eliminate two below the waterline thru-hull fittings.

[RaymondR]

Originally Posted by Jdeuel

I’ll be replacing my head as part of my refit, and I’ve considered the Lavac. Do the hoses have the same issues with smell as a traditional head?

They do if you use hose which allows the gasses the waste produces permeate the hose. There are hoses which do not allow the permeation.

The big advantage of the Lavac is it's simplicity. I have two of the more conventional toilets which pump water in whilst they pump effluent out and I hate the damned things. I will be converting them both to vacuum flush, which is what the Lavac is, during my next summer lay over.