Liveaboard Toilets

[samwise]

Agree that Lavac is the best choice for liveaboard. Low maintenance and reliable. Our system includes two diverter valves as part of the holding tank system and you do need to include them in a planned descale programme, although I find that Mr Leesan's patent descale liquid does most of the hard work for me.

 

[syfuga]

Try Vacuflush!

Our Jabsco was a nightmare.

Fitted a Dometic Sealand Vacuflush system three years ago, and had no problems with it.

Uses a small amount of fresh water to flush, and pipes now still clear as a bell.

 

[ccscott49]

Our Jabsco was a nightmare.

Fitted a Dometic Sealand Vacuflush system three years ago, and had no problems with it.

Uses a small amount of fresh water to flush, and pipes now still clear as a bell.

If you use fresh water to flush, you will always have clean pipes, its the reaction between salt water and urine which causes the blockages/scaling.

 

[VicS]

its the reaction between salt water and urine which causes the blockages/scaling.

Nothing to do with the salt a such. BUT seawater is very high in temporary hardness ... calcium bicarbonate. Bacterial action on the urea in urine produces ammonia, that raises the pH, that in turn leads to the bicarbonate being deposited as carbonate scale.

Flushing the urine away fully would pretty much solve the problem.

 

[ccscott49]

Nothing to do with the salt a such. BUT seawater is very high in temporary hardness ... calcium bicarbonate. Bacterial action on the urea in urine produces ammonia, that raises the pH, that in turn leads to the bicarbonate being deposited as carbonate scale.

Flushing the urine away fully would pretty much solve the problem.

Jeeze VicS!
Maybe I should have said seawater!
Yes, we flush lots of water through, which goes a long way to solving the problem on our boat.

 

[prv]

Another vote for Lavac - I wouldn't buy anything else. KS came with a Jabsco, but it's on notice that any funny business and it's getting replaced with a Lavac.

Pete

 

[rivonia]

I did hear somewhere, that olive/cooking oil is not good for the seals etc, but not sure where I heard it, which is why I use soluble/lathe cutting oil.

Olive oil will NOT damage the seals or 'o' rings. In many greek houses they store rubber items in a drum of olive oil to keep them supple and protect from drying out.. Nuff sed

Peter

 

[vyv_cox]

Olive oil will NOT damage the seals or 'o' rings. In many greek houses they store rubber items in a drum of olive oil to keep them supple and protect from drying out.. Nuff sed

Peter

There are very many varieties of rubber. Some will resist aggressive chemicals, whereas others will dissolve in the same ones. The seals in Jabsco toilets are neoprene and I would guess that many other makes use the same material. If you check detergent solutions and vegetable oils in this table you will find that neoprene (= polychloroprene) has moderate resistance to the first and poor resistance to the second. However, I suggest that in each case they are talking about exposure to 100%, or at least strong solutions, of chemicals. For the brief exposure to the dilute solution that toilet seals will see I doubt that any significant deterioration will occur.

 

[silver-fox]

Useful Table that Vyv!

Glad to see that my habit of using silicone grease when re-assembling the pump has little or no deleterious effect.

Of course there is little point in lubricating the pump if a grease solvent/cleaner is later used....

 

[rivonia]

There are very many varieties of rubber. Some will resist aggressive chemicals, whereas others will dissolve in the same ones. The seals in Jabsco toilets are neoprene and I would guess that many other makes use the same material. If you check detergent solutions and vegetable oils in this table you will find that neoprene (= polychloroprene) has moderate resistance to the first and poor resistance to the second. However, I suggest that in each case they are talking about exposure to 100%, or at least strong solutions, of chemicals. For the brief exposure to the dilute solution that toilet seals will see I doubt that any significant deterioration will occur.

Thanks Vyv

Peter

 

[Blueboatman]

I shall be fitting a Lavac..Npw please read on

I actually don't like Lavacs 'cos you can't just flip the lid open to see when to stop pumping or know when the bowl is clean and sparkling..Gets boring waiting for the vacuum to 'release'. If you are reading this, Mr Lavac designer, wot about a designer clear lid?

Also IIRC the old lid seal used to leave a scuzzy black mark around the seat..

Having written all that, I have just renewed the Jabsco moving parts complete 'cos the complete spare assembly came with the boat, but realistically I envisage in a few months time springing for a Lavac or toying with installing my camping Portapotti which to be honest has proved simple, quiet, maintenance free, odourless, complies with all inshore legislation abroad and removes two holes in the hull.

And is cheap, cheap. Hmmm

 

[JRiley]

Mr Leesan's

Agree that Lavac is the best choice for liveaboard. Low maintenance and reliable. Our system includes two diverter valves as part of the holding tank system and you do need to include them in a planned descale programme, although I find that Mr Leesan's patent descale liquid does most of the hard work for me.

Pardon my ignorance, samwise, but what's the real name of Mr Leesan's patent descale liquid please? As a Lavac loving liveaboard, this sounds like stuff which should be aboard!

 

[Happydaze]

I have 2 Jabsco compact loos on board and have been pleased with them, but i replaced one of them about 10 months ago because i wanted the lock-down handle. The quality of the new one is very poor compared with the originals in as much as paint coming off the seat but the locking handle does the job i brought it for. Time will tell if the pump keeps working.

 

[SeamanStaines]

I have 2 Jabsco compact loos on board and have been pleased with them, but i replaced one of them about 10 months ago because i wanted the lock-down handle. The quality of the new one is very poor compared with the originals in as much as paint coming off the seat but the locking handle does the job i brought it for. Time will tell if the pump keeps working.

I also really needed the locking handle as my holding tanks are well above the toilets and without them you tend to get a bowl full of sewage. If I change for a lavac will I have that problem again?

 

[Ariadne]

We have a JABSCO on board, not many problems with it at all considering there are 4 of living on board all year round. We now have the lock-down type cylinder which does what it says, its been on for 18 months now.

I clean the pipes with Calgon tablets about once a month, and with hydrochloric when I feel the need to. We use olive oil to keep it all moving about a cup full poured into the bowl then pumped a little and left overnight.

 

[SeamanStaines]

OK, I admit defeat now, the lock down mechanism on our main toilet has crapped out so that will be a new pump, the lever mechanism has broken on a second and the third has started jamming despite being treated with olive oil.

I am going to get one new lavac to start with and see how it goes. Before I do that a couple of questions

Does anyone know if the Henderson pump will allow a back flow from the waste outlet pump. Its pretty crucial to me and is the reason I get so fed up when the jabsco pump lock downs pack up. This is because of the high holding tanks.

Should I go for the electric or the manual pump (I rather like the sound of an electric

 

[silver-fox]

OK, I admit defeat now, the lock down mechanism on our main toilet has crapped out so that will be a new pump, the lever mechanism has broken on a second and the third has started jamming despite being treated with olive oil.

I am going to get one new lavac to start with and see how it goes. Before I do that a couple of questions

Does anyone know if the Henderson pump will allow a back flow from the waste outlet pump. Its pretty crucial to me and is the reason I get so fed up when the jabsco pump lock downs pack up. This is because of the high holding tanks.

Should I go for the electric or the manual pump (I rather like the sound of an electric

The traditional way to stop back flow is to put a swan neck into your pipe and as long as that goes higher than your tank you won't get back flow

 

[macd]

Does anyone know if the Henderson pump will allow a back flow from the waste outlet pump. Its pretty crucial to me and is the reason I get so fed up when the jabsco pump lock downs pack up. This is because of the high holding tanks.

Should I go for the electric or the manual pump (I rather like the sound of an electric

A common holding tank set up with the Lavac (and the one I have) is simply to put the tank in line with the outlet, below the anti-siphon loop. Hence no diverter valves etc. To use the tank, simply keep the outlet seacock closed. Open it, and the holding tank is simply a fat bit in the outlet plumbing. This, of course, means the holding tank must be above sea level. There's no problem with back-flow.

Electric? Wouldn't touch it on the KISS principle, but it's entirely down to choice.

 

[SeamanStaines]

The traditional way to stop back flow is to put a swan neck into your pipe and as long as that goes higher than your tank you won't get back flow

If only life was so simple :-( the problem I have is that the top of the holding tank as about one and a half metres above the bottom of the toilet. The connection into the holding tank is at the bottom and there is an internal pipe that takes it to the top. As a result there is 1.5 metres of pipe with a diameter of about 40mm withe s**t in it that backflows into the toilet (tries to do the maths and gives up. There is then a second connection to the bottom of the tank that goes out of the hull, below the waterline through a seacock.

You therefore always get that amount of water back, I think it is a couple of litres. If you pump it loads then it is fresh water but that then fills up the holding tank quickly, and guests just cant cope with pumping that amount anyway so they tend to just pump till its gone!

A common holding tank set up with the Lavac (and the one I have) is simply to put the tank in line with the outlet, below the anti-siphon loop. Hence no diverter valves etc. To use the tank, simply keep the outlet seacock closed. Open it, and the holding tank is simply a fat bit in the outlet plumbing. This, of course, means the holding tank must be above sea level. There's no problem with back-flow.

I dont have an anti syphon loop as such, it is inside the tank and the tank has a breather/overflow at the top. What I need to know is if the s**t can pass back through the henderson pump into the bowl? As standard the Jabsco does (the name 'joker' valve is pretty appropriate, it just stops large lumps!), their modification of the 'lock down' works for a while until it wears and then gives up, hence why I am on my third pump, and fourth valve in two years!

 

[Marsupial]

Olive oil sounds sensible. Has anyone got any views on vegetable oil.....or washing up liquid?

Twice a year I remove the plunger and grease it with silicon grease - the stuff used to assemble plastic drain pipes - grease NOT adhesive! So far many years of trouble free service from jasbco equipment.