Silent toilets

[Tucepi]

See lots of boats for sale with "Silent flushing sea toilets" how quiet are they? and what makes are the best. I currently have a manual Jabasco toilet and considering fitting electric. My earlier boat had a electric flush from holland but it was noisy at night.

 

[DavidJ]

The Jabsco electric conversion (maserator) is incredibly noisy, I know I did the conversion. If I was doing it again I would sling the manual toilet completely and go for a silent flush.
I would be interested in why the same manufactuters have made a noisy and a quiet one. Are they different technologies?

 

[jfm]

Peggy will know the market better but afaik none are really true silent flush, at least in the sub-superyacht market. The Sealand Vacuflush are near silent at the toilet end but the vacuum pump then swithces on and is reciprcating action so a bit clunk clunk noisy. But extent of its noise depends how far away/how deep in bilge you are able to locate it.

The Tecma Silence are quietish but not silent. They have built in macerator and it runs very smoothly but the final whoosh to evacuate the bowl isn't quiet, though lasts <1 second

But the Sealand and Tecma are miles better than the jabscos which have pretty noisy macerators located right beside the toilet bowl.

I dont think you need true silence do you? Just need not to have a long grinding noise. The sealand vacu and tecma are therefore fine imho

 

[Lakesailor]

It may be the noise before the flush that is more disconcerting. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[miket]

Why change?
Electric loo is just one more complication. I never had a problem with a manual loo but several with electric. Also, quite juicy on power.

 

[Tucepi]

Thanks, I don't need it to be silent but some wake everyone up on board at night, but i would like to fit electric and one that will replace my existing manual jabasco bowl without too much work or fitting needed. Boat is Sealine F36.

 

[deborahann]

I've got two electric "Saninautico" toilets, they are very quiet, just make a whooshing noise then a slight grunt. They are, like most boat toilets, not keen on toilet paper. I would have this type again, probably not though as robust as the usual manual toilets. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif what a subject

 

[HeadMistress]

The so-called "silent" or "quiet" toilets are designed to use pressurized flush water instead of sea water.

There are two types of electric toilets: toilets designed to flush using sea water and toilets designed use onboard pressurized fresh water. All electric sea water toilets are noisy--some a LOT noisier than others (the Jabsco conversion is one of the noisiest)--because contrary to what most people think, it's the not the discharge pump and macerator that make all the noise, it's the intake pump.

Toilets designed to use pressurized flush water don't have an intake pump...flush water flow is controlled by a solenoid valve. They aren't exactly silent, but they ARE very quiet...quieter, in fact, than many domestic toilets. Almost all toilet mfrs now offer at least one "fresh water" toilet model...some offer several.

NEVER connect a sea water toilet to the onboard fresh water system. It cannot be done without risk of polluting the potable water supply, damage to the toilet, or both...and every mfr specifically warns against doing so in their installation instructions. ONLY toilets that are designed by the mfr to use pressurized flush water can safely be connected to the onboard fresh water system.

 

[Ships_Cat]

Headhunter do them with no mechanical macerator - they macerates the waste with a high pressure jet of water and are reasonably quiet from what I can remember (a "whooosh" type noise which I don't recall hearing outside the compartment itself, albeit on larger vessels).

They are quite alot bigger than the manual Jabsco in that they are full sized bowls, etc, so don't know how would fit in and I suspect reasonably expensive - it includes pressure pump, accumulator etc to provide the high pressure seawater flush. I think about 2-3 litres/flush.

A google on Headhunter toilet turns them up.

{Edit: I see Peggie has also posted on the jet of water flush. Pretty sure Headhunter is USA maker so maybe Peggie can comment more on them - I have just looked after new builds that have had them specified and not taken too much notice of them detail wise}

John

 

[DavidJ]

[ QUOTE ]
Thanks, I don't need it to be silent but some wake everyone up on board at night

[/ QUOTE ]

Yep, that's the Jabsco conversion alright and it will probably wake up next door also if the window's open....however with a really long screwdriver the conversion is straightforward. Also if you have a bowthruster with an independant battery under the main bed (like my S37) then hooking up the electrics is easy too.

 

[adrianm]

I used to have a Blakes Lavac with a manual and electric pump in-line. A pushof the electric one during the day when the noise (hardly noticeable, just a bit long) wasn't such a problem and a few pumps of the manual one during the night so as not to disturb.

Even though my new boat is much bigger and fancier I'll go for the same again.

 

[HeadMistress]

You're correct, John...Headhunter is a US toilet. The mfr--and just about the only source is in Ft. Lauderdale FL. Although they've tried to market 'em for use on boats in the 35-50' range, they're really designed for use on megayachts. The sea water pump(s) on boats that size is buried so deep in the bowels of the boat that it isn't heard by user. So-called "jet" toilets use a LOT of flush water, btw...they have to, to move bowl contents the distances they have to travel to the tanks or treatment devices.

I've become very impressed with Tecma toilets. They're available in several sizes to fit most spaces and in both sea water and pressurized water versions...they're one-piece china...the darned thing will shoot bowl halfway across a small town! And their "grinder" (Tecma doesn't call it a macerator) will even chew up a tampon without choking. All for less than half the price of a VacuFlush installed. Hard to beat, IMO.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

We've got Tecma ("The World of Toilet" is their slogan)toilets on our boat and I agree with you, they seem to work very well although it took me a while to get used to the second flush which seems to happen automatically about a minute after the first one. Also had good experience with the Vacuflush but I bow to your greater experience in this field. Both the Tecma and the Vacuflush seem to be much better at dealing with 'larger objects' than something like the Jabsco which is a hideously noisy thing anyway