I have the manual style pump...having rebuilt the pump including replacing the jake valve, it would seem like it would be pretty easy to clog up? Is mine different then what you all describe or are they all about the same?? On a 270...
I have the same Jabsco pump that you do Ras and it'll withstand our burrito night extravaganza with no problem. As MT said, use lots of FRESH water to flush and marine grade TP. Saltwater rinse in the bowl will introduce a host of really nasty microbes into a holding tank that create very nasty war with each other. Aside from TP and a fresh water flush, if it hadn't gone down your throat don't put it through the head.
If you don't have a carbon vent filter then do a quick search for how to build one. It's as simple as an 18" pvc pipe filled with fish tank carbon pellets and a hose nipple to splice into the vent line. I have about $10 tied up in mine and it works like a de-stinkin' miracle for those sitting in the cockpit when that digested burrito goes down the bowl. Otherwise it can be a shocking whiff of unreal sensory overload.
I have not looked "down there" yet but reading your other posts it plugs into a vent hose? What pushes the air through the filter vs. I'm thinking if it is line the bad air goes in one end and the good air out the other....is your picture not showing the fitting at the other end? Oh....just off to the right I see the other end does have a fitting on it too, correct? Now it's making sense.....
Ras, the flush (& whatever is in it) is what pushes it thru. That movement into the tank, means the air has to be pushed out. The filter just keeps that smell from coming thru the vent line.
Guess I need to get down there and look....I need to install the Y valve and be done with it! What is the difference if I hang my butt over the back of the boat or pump it from out of the boat?
There are laws regarding direct discharge so be aware that the fines are stiff if you don't have a lock on that Y valve and maserator when navigating in a no discharge zone. I prefer a pump out as the responsible thing to do but long range cruisers have treatment options that make legal offshore discharge a truly minimal/insignificant impact. If a few mammals in a tiny recreational boat 3mi or more offshore made a bigger daily impact than a million porpoise, manatee, or whale I'd be pretty shocked. Still, do your best to pump out at the dock.
Freshwater lakes and no discharge zones should always be respected. I certainly take MTs approach on any trash thrown overboard but beyond 3mi offshore I don't panic over a few gals of organic material. Most municipalities have multi million gal accidental releases every year. Thats a reality that wont change. When I do a pump out at the dock it doesn't disappear. Its processed somewhere and reintroduced back into the chain hopefully with a minimal impact..... Hopefully.
Unbelievably many cities are now doing deep well injection of billions of gals of effluent underground everyday. Out of sight, out of mind I guess. I can't wait for the day when they realize that was a huge mistake as it inevitably finds a perforation in the strata and ends up in an entire cities water supply.
Its a conundrum. But follow the laws of the area youre in and call the cops if somebody shoots a flare at you when you are
There are free pump out stations at all the marinas in So. Cal. It just take a few minutes, so pumping is near zero hassle. When you moor your boat in Avalon Harbor at Catalina Island the harbor patrol puts dye tabs in your holding tank. If they see dye in the water, automatic one year ban from mooring at the island. This is a good idea for the health of the harbors and is supported by boaters.
I try to avoid any #2s on my boat, but that has lead to a few episodes of "prairie dogging" in my dinghy on the way to the restrooms ashore. Not a good feeling.
Just kidding guys, calm down.....I was thinking of all the boaters out there that obviously don't have a port a potty in their smaller boats- they are going somewhere aren't they? I would think boats that have a holding tank are very much the minority, at least they are in my area. I am not going off shore and no plans of changing my plumbing to discharge from the boat...but you have to wonder where it ends up. Guess we can only do our part and hope it is being handle correctly.
Comments
If you don't have a carbon vent filter then do a quick search for how to build one. It's as simple as an 18" pvc pipe filled with fish tank carbon pellets and a hose nipple to splice into the vent line. I have about $10 tied up in mine and it works like a de-stinkin' miracle for those sitting in the cockpit when that digested burrito goes down the bowl. Otherwise it can be a shocking whiff of unreal sensory overload.
Just sayin'. Happy stink free boating.
Dream 'Inn III -- 2008 400 Express
PC BYC, Holland, MI
x
Freshwater lakes and no discharge zones should always be respected. I certainly take MTs approach on any trash thrown overboard but beyond 3mi offshore I don't panic over a few gals of organic material. Most municipalities have multi million gal accidental releases every year. Thats a reality that wont change. When I do a pump out at the dock it doesn't disappear. Its processed somewhere and reintroduced back into the chain hopefully with a minimal impact..... Hopefully.
Unbelievably many cities are now doing deep well injection of billions of gals of effluent underground everyday. Out of sight, out of mind I guess. I can't wait for the day when they realize that was a huge mistake as it inevitably finds a perforation in the strata and ends up in an entire cities water supply.
Its a conundrum. But follow the laws of the area youre in and call the cops if somebody shoots a flare at you when you are
I try to avoid any #2s on my boat, but that has lead to a few episodes of "prairie dogging" in my dinghy on the way to the restrooms ashore. Not a good feeling.