Contessa 32 Holding Tank

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mikecontessa26

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I'll post on the Contessa Forum too but might catch someone who knows here, I need to fit a holding tank (about time I know) the boat is in Italy and im heading to Greece and I really want a holding tank.

Does anyone know what size off the shelf holding tank will fit under the port v-berth? Im looking at a 600 x 400 x 200 tank?

I have a LAVAC and plan to use the existing pump with a couple of Y valves to do all the work as Blakes suggest.

Thanks
Michael
 
You won't find any standard tank with those dimensions. In particular a depth of 200mm is impractical for a holding tank. Suggest you look at www.tek-tanks.com you will see that their lowest tank is either 240 or 270mm to which you need to add the height of the fittings. There is a lot of useful information on the site covering design of holding tank systems. You may well find that you are not able to use a standard rectangular tank and achieve a useful capacity, and if you are fitting below the waterline you will need a pumped system rather than a gravity system.

An alternative you might consider if you are going to the Ionian is to have a tank made there. www.top-tank.com in Corfu

I have had tanks made by both companies and they are similar levels of design and quality.
 
no but they're just water tanks which i have, any holding tank will need to go under the saloon or fore berth as far as i can see, such a squeeze on a small boat
 
That's quite a big tank for your boat. My tank, on a Sadler 34, is 47 litres, fitted behind the toilet after moving it inboard. Keeps the hoses short and gravity emptying. A friend with a 32 ft boat has a tank fitted under the deck in the heads, made in GRP Having the tank at some distance from the toilet encourages insoluble deposits and you will need a separate pump.
 
mikecontessa26 said:
Sorry it's 250mm deep

http://www.leesan.com/index.asp?m=3&cat1=3&cat2=12&p=78&t=13 Gallon (60 Litre) Holding Tank

Thanks for the heads up on top-tank, i don't really want to be waiting around for a tank all summer though.
Click to expand...

Still think you will have difficulty fitting that size of tank into a Pyramid shape space under a forward bunk berth. almost all installations in a boat shaped space require a custom made tank to make effective use of the space.

BTW although it seems a good idea to have a holding tank, the vast majority of the boats in the Med do not, primarily because of the difficulty and cost of retrofitting an effective system. Most people manage with using a sea toilet away from shore and shoreside facilities close to shore. There is no legal requirement to fit a tank. If you do fit one, don't do it on the cheap as an unsatisfactory system is difficult to live with.
 
mikecontessa26 said:
Can't move the heads forward, the fitted space doesn't allow it without ripping it out.

Just discovered this! can't believe how much of my Sunday i've spent thinking about poo! 25 litres... enough for a day or two at anchorage surely?

http://www.seamarknunn.co.uk/download/toilets/rm69buffertank.pdf
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We used one of these for several years. I doubt if it is compatible with a Lavac but it fits an RM 69 and a Jabsco. We managed for a couple of days with one but they are not a first class example of sanitary design. Far too complex with cheap components to go wrong. As I said earlier, if you can fit a square box high in the heads, go for that. Avoid diverter valves if possible. KISS.
 
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