Pump outs

[clyst]

You would think that with most boats now fitted with holding tanks that pumping out would be as common as refuelling yet Iv never seen a boat along side pumping out to shoreside facility's. Iv had the misfortune of sailing through what was obviously a "slick"from some unscrupulous Owner though.

 

[V1701]

Neither have I, anywhere. Most newer, bigger boats do now have them, personally I find the idea of a big holding tank full of sh*t & p*ss sloshing around, associated pipework, pumps, macerators, etc. pretty dire, especially given there's rarely anywhere to pump them out. My solution, living FT on a wee boat in a marina, was to replace the sea toilet with a Porta Potti, so I have a holding tank, it's all self contained & I don't need pumpout facilities...

 

[macd]

Speaking as someone who five minutes ago was in the process of fabricating a holding tank, I have some sympathy for V1701's view (and, no, it won't have pumps and macerators). I've never consciously seen a pump-out facility, although I daresay I've passed one or two. But surely the main usage to which they're actually put is emptying black water out at sea rather than in anchorages and harbours, which is both antisocial and sometimes harmful. Although excessive sewage can be acutely detrimental to relatively enclosed marine environments, it's no bother at all in the open sea. When did you last see a whale in a diaper?

 

[Burnham Bob]

In tidal waters I wouldn't have thought pumping out a holding tank that you've filled during a stay at a marina would really be detrimental to the planet's wellbeing. We use the holding tank when we're staying in marinas on a cruise and then empty when we're at sea. With a macerator pump you're discharging a slurry and I can't remember seeing a slick behind us. After all, the waste products of a few days - diluted a lot with seawater anyway - are biodegradeable by their very nature.

Bearing in moind the cost of pump outs I think most of us will discharge at sea. Exception of course is when we plan to visit Holland later this year where apparently pump outs are much more common.

 

[laika]

List of uk pump-out facilities here:
http://www.thegreenblue.org.uk/files/new pump out D2.xlsx
More canal/river than not, but there's actually more yacht-accessible facilities than I imagined.

I'll agree with Burnham Bob's comments, especially when crew are instructed to use the greek-style bag in the heads to dispose of waste which hasn't been through their body, rather than flushing it.

 

[Tranona]

You would think that with most boats now fitted with holding tanks that pumping out would be as common as refuelling yet Iv never seen a boat along side pumping out to shoreside facility's. Iv had the misfortune of sailing through what was obviously a "slick"from some unscrupulous Owner though.

Seagoing boats fitted with holding tanks are a tiny minority rather than the "most" you suggest. Even in new sailing boats it is often still an extra although probably more popular in MOBOs where the hull shape usually makes fitting easier. Retrofitting to the 10's of 000's of existing boats is impractical and uneconomic as anybody who has done it will confirm. The "problem" of waste from boats in tidal waters is vastly overstated, but of course there are some locations such as inland waterways and tideless shallow anchorages where it is a problem, but even in the latter such as the Med, facilities are rare - and non-existent in the French inland waterways for example.

 

[Beamishken]

it seems more common for motor boats to have holding tanks as standard we pump out ours at sea (via a macerator) which I think is fine & is totaly leagal beyond 3 miles (thats how I understand it anyway but may stand corrected if someone knows better)

we always slow down to pump out & its very difficult to tell when the tank is empty as you cant see the dicharge I therefore find it hard to believe anyone coming across a slik

but it wouldnt be the first time we had the misfortune of being moored next to a yacht in a marina who used the pump out toilet straight into the marina without a macerater which is not nice & I guess ileagle too

 

[clyst]

it seems more common for motor boats to have holding tanks as standard we pump out ours at sea (via a macerator) which I think is fine & is totaly leagal beyond 3 miles (thats how I understand it anyway but may stand corrected if someone knows better)

we always slow down to pump out & its very difficult to tell when the tank is empty as you cant see the dicharge I therefore find it hard to believe anyone coming across a slik

but it wouldnt be the first time we had the misfortune of being moored next to a yacht in a marina who used the pump out toilet straight into the marina without a macerater which is not nice & I guess ileagle too

Just to clarify things Ken it was a yacht on a lovely gentle summers evening and it was obvious what the skipper was doing I had no reason to lie .

 

[Beamishken]

Just to clarify things Ken it was a yacht on a lovely gentle summers evening and it was obvious what the skipper was doing I had no reason to lie .

I wasnt having a pop just assumed you came across a random slick & just guessed what it was

we drop down to displacement speed but the pump out is in the centre of the hull & therefore between the two drives which act as large mixers so nothing to see but i guess totaly diferent following a yacht with little or no wake & I guess close in if you were that close to him

 

[Grumpybear]

You would think that with most boats now fitted with holding tanks that pumping out would be as common as refuelling yet Iv never seen a boat along side pumping out to shoreside facility's. Iv had the misfortune of sailing through what was obviously a "slick"from some unscrupulous Owner though.

Often see boats using the facility in Sutton Harbour.

 

[mjcoon]

... some locations such as inland waterways and tideless shallow anchorages where it is a problem, but even in the latter such as the Med, facilities are rare - and non-existent in the French inland waterways for example.

Have visited just one in Turkey so far (and that was to clear a holding tank blockage rather than pumping out). They are supposed to be building more and trying to legislate for their use.

Mike.

 

[prv]

There's a pumpout at Warsash on the Hamble, though I've never seen anyone using it.

I can't see any problem emptying a holding tank at sea in Northern European waters. Hold in marinas, confined anchorages, etc, then empty offshore.

I'm not aware of any legal basis in the UK for Ken's three miles, though it's a fair rule of thumb. The MARPOL regulations on ditching waste (at least, the idiot's guide poster that gives all the different distances for types of rubbish, I haven't read the regs themselves) specifically excludes toilet waste and fish-processing waste.

Pete

 

[Davegriff]

Most councils pump sewage waste into rivers or through (shortish) pipes off beaches etc; huge amounts and often nowhere near fully treated! Can't get much more inshore than that. Don't see any problem with boats offshore.

 

[sailorman]

Most councils pump sewage waste into rivers or through (shortish) pipes off beaches etc; huge amounts and often nowhere near fully treated! Can't get much more inshore than that. Don't see any problem with boats offshore.

Wot like Anglian Water pump-out just above the Orwell Bridge

 

[wotayottie]

You would think that with most boats now fitted with holding tanks .

Joking surely? Many new boats might be so fitted but the vast majority of boats are MABs with no tank at all.

When did you last see a whale in a diaper?

Bloody hell - I always knew it. Being such fat barstewards, even the whales must be yankee.

 

[sailorman]

Joking surely? Many new boats might be so fitted but the vast majority of boats are MABs with no tank at all.


Bloody hell - I always knew it. Being such fat barstewards, even the whales must be yankee.

whats the length of a whale turd

 

[Beamishken]

I looked online to see if there was a regulation regarding pumping out holding tanks & found this http://www.sailtrain.co.uk/environment/environment.htm which mentions the 3 mile limit but it doesnt seem to be a "rule" mearly a recommendation I suppose it depends where your emptying your tank we wouldnt do it in a sheltered sea lock but we do once we get into open water

I guess some people just think its fine to s---- in there own back yard even if there might be people swiming a matter of meters away

Ken



I can't see any problem emptying a holding tank at sea in Northern European waters. Hold in marinas, confined anchorages, etc, then empty offshore.

I'm not aware of any legal basis in the UK for Ken's three miles, though it's a fair rule of thumb. The MARPOL regulations on ditching waste (at least, the idiot's guide poster that gives all the different distances for types of rubbish, I haven't read the regs themselves) specifically excludes toilet waste and fish-processing waste.

 

[Tranona]

That is only somebody's opinion and has no basis in fact. The sea deals very effectively with the tiny amount of human waste discharged by yachts, particularly in tidal waters whether 100 yds or 3 miles offshore. It is concentrates in fresh and shallow still waters that might cause a problem. However, there are no pumpout facilities in the French canal system and it does not seem to pose a health problem!