Sea Toilet

[StuDryden]

how easy is it to remove a sea toilet and cap all the thru-hull fittings?

the toilet i have has no holding tank so all "waste" is just flushed into the blue stuff and i want to replace this with a standard chemical toilet

HELP - please the distance from our pontoon to the amenties block is no laughing matter!

<hr width=100% size=1>I dont care if its a PETROL it rocks

 

[powerskipper]

It should be a matter of closing the sea cocks , removing the pipe work. and sealing the ends up. if you do it that way , when you sell the boat it could always be changed back. . Other will have more experiance about this I mostly just drive them.

<hr width=100% size=1>Julie , The one and only , the world could not cope with more, so I have been told!

 

[boatone]

Shouldnt be very difficult....I did it on a P32 a couple of years ago without any problems.
Seawater inlet and waste outlets should have valves on the skin fittings which can be closed and inlet sides then plugged one way or another (I plugged one gate valve with a screw in plug and the other with a wooden plug in a short length of hose with double hose clips for good measure).
A few nuts and bolts were removed and heave ho....sea toilet was off to the skip.

With boat out of water you could remove the skin fittings and permanently seal the holes with pads/sealant but I took the view that this way someone could reinstall a sea toilet if the boat went coastal again.

<hr width=100% size=1><A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.boatsontheweb.com/> Website, Photo Gallery, Chat Room, Burgees</A>

 

[HeadMistress]

Why not just install a holding tank...with a y-valve in line to let you choose whether to hold while at the dock or flush overboard at sea?

<hr width=100% size=1>Peggie Hall
Specializing in marine sanitation since 1987

 

[boatone]

Simple logistics and economics:
Boat is based on non tidal River Thames so sea toilet use not permitted without holding tank.
Cost of buying holding tank and fittings etc around £500 plus considerable difficulties installing in suitable location and running pipework etc. Cost of emptying holding tank between £5 and £8 every time with facilities somewhat spread out along the river..
Removing sea toilet dead easy.
Cost of new chemical loo around £75 and no emptying charges, more disposal points available. Only downside needs emptying more frequently than a holding tank would, and a little physical effort required.
No contest IMHO.
My latest boat has a holding tank though and I am very happy with it (except when handing over the emptying fee !)


<hr width=100% size=1><A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.boatsontheweb.com/> Website, Photo Gallery, Chat Room, Burgees</A>

 

[HeadMistress]

$500 Pounds (sorry, I'm in the US...my computer doesn't have the symbol) for holding tank an plumbing??? Ouch! That's at least twice what it typicall costs here for a tank suitable for a boat that size. In fact, a Type I MSD (Lectra/San) isn't much more.

By "chemical toilet," I'm assuming you mean what we call a portapotty? (Since joining your merry band I'm discovering the need to learn a second language: English....we haven't spoken it here for years.) Here there are both portable models--the tank is carried off the boat for disposal ashore--and models that can be either portable or permanently installed and fitted for pumpout....not interchangeably, though...once installed and fitted for pumpout, they're no longer portable. They come in two sizes--about 3 gallons, and 5-6 gallons. The larger ones that are typically permanently installed because of the weight--about 50 pounds full.

If what you mean is a permanently installed "portapotty," what chemicals are typically used in them there? Are they successful in suppressing odor? (If not, I may have some suggestions.)

Your pumpout fees are about in line with ours...though in some places, it may be based on the size of the tank...it can run upwards of $25 to have a large tank (40 gallons +) pumped out in some places.

<hr width=100% size=1>Peggie Hall
Specializing in marine sanitation since 1987