Stuck Thru-hull (open)

Peroo

Peroo

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The outlet on our Raritan head is no longer working as it should. To tackle the problem I’ve tried to close the outlet thru-hull before tackling the Raritan head but it is stuck open. The outlet from the Raritan has a Y valve in place to route waste to either the holding tank or directly to the sea via the thru-hull. The Raritan outlet and the pump out line from the holding tank both have an anti-syphon inline. Pumping from the holding tank routes waste through the same thru-hull as when discharging directly to the sea.

We are in the water and live aboard – I have tried hot water over the ball valve, tapping with a hammer and penetrating oil to try and close it before tackling the Raritan – I suspect something has failed in the pump-out side of things as water can be drawn in, it’s just nothing is pumped away and there is no “pressure” when clearing the bowl indicating a blockage somewhere, to my mind anyway.

Question:- 1. do I continue with boiling water and/or penetrating oil to try and close the thru-hull assuming that the cone in the ball valve has seized at this time? If so, is this likely to be days or weeks?
2. can I be confident that, with the anti-syphon in place on both exit lines, that I can tackle the pump anyway – as the thru-hull is stuck open, at least I may be able to resolve the Raritan problem leaving the thru-hull for another day? I may get some residual waste water in the boat as a result of disconnecting the outlet hose. Not ideal, but a part way forward.
3. do I haul-out to tackle the thru-hull and the Raritan?

All thru-hulls were removed and replaced/refurbished in 2011 – all are ball valves and are closed when leaving the boat for any length of time. Last time they were operated was in June this year – only this Raritan outlet thru-hull is stuck; however it is one of the most used as we are in the water and living aboard full time. [I now “get” the “monthly” checklist and yes I have been remiss!!!] All thru-hulls on the boat are below the water line.

Ideas, suggestions, guidance and thoughts most welcome – have I missed any other options?
 
I don't think there is any risk from what you are describing. I suspect that it would be less messy if you could get the valve going. As it is I would just ignore the valve and carry on as you would wish to in an attempt to problem solve. Worse case scenario is that a bit of water comes in but it won't be too much and even if the syphon break fails you just need to stick a bung in until you can reconnect everything or hold the end above the waterline. In nay event it is probably going to be a pita and a bit messy. Get yourself all kitted up and get stuck in.
 
Agree you can tackle the pump without closing the valve. The valve is probably stuck because of a build up of deposits on the exposed part of the ball during the period that it was unused. That is why you cannot unstick it. You need to be able to get inside the skin fitting from outside the boat to clear it. you may find it eventually unsticks if you apply enough leverage on the handle. If the valves are sound there is little danger of doing any damage by applying a lot of pressure on the lever, using a pipe for example.
 
Your options are defined by the installation. If the hose to the seacock is long enough, you could disconnect it at the inboard end (the divertor valve?) and stand it upright so that the end is above the water line to prevet an inrush of seawater. The outlet from the valve can then be directed into a bucket whilst you are working. If it is not long enough then plug the end.

The through hull is strictly speaking just the flange and spigot which attach to the hull, with a ball valve screwed onto the top. They can be replace whilst afloat, but it involves someone going for a swim to put a bung in from outside! if you prefer to continue as you are with it seized open, I would stress that you should keep a softwood plug of suitable size next to it in case some part of the heads fails and you have water gushing in!

Rob.
 
If I am understanding your question correctly you are wishing to solve two problems - the toilet not pumping out and the seacock not closing. The first is due to failure of one of the bowl discharge valves, either the foot valve or the joker valve. There are diagrams showing the operation of these at https://coxengineering.sharepoint.com/Pages/Toilets.aspx. As has been said you do not need to close the seacock to service these.

If the seacock has not been operated for some time it is likely, also as said previously, that the cause is an accumulation of sealife on the ball. However, it is possible that the joker valve has broken up and the debris is blocking the seacock, preventing its closure. Looking at the toilet first may give a clue. Of course, it is also possible that something that has not been eaten first has been flushed down the toilet, which could account for both problems. In this case, pushing a stick up the valve from the outside may dislodge it, at least temporarily. If shell-type sealife on the ball is the cause you may find that alternately tapping the handle one way and then the other may clean it up. Getting a plug into the outside followed by removing the hose inside will give most information.
 
vyv_cox said:
If I am understanding your question correctly you are wishing to solve two problems - the toilet not pumping out and the seacock not closing. The first is due to failure of one of the bowl discharge valves, either the foot valve or the joker valve. There are diagrams showing the operation of these at https://coxengineering.sharepoint.com/Pages/Toilets.aspx. As has been said you do not need to close the seacock to service these.

If the seacock has not been operated for some time it is likely, also as said previously, that the cause is an accumulation of sealife on the ball. However, it is possible that the joker valve has broken up and the debris is blocking the seacock, preventing its closure. Looking at the toilet first may give a clue. Of course, it is also possible that something that has not been eaten first has been flushed down the toilet, which could account for both problems. In this case, pushing a stick up the valve from the outside may dislodge it, at least temporarily. If shell-type sealife on the ball is the cause you may find that alternately tapping the handle one way and then the other may clean it up. Getting a plug into the outside followed by removing the hose inside will give most information.
Click to expand...

Thanks Viv - you are correct - I need to solve two problems - I was looking to solve the Raritan first if I could do this with an open thru-hull as we are living aboard - it appears that this is an option. The second was resolving the thru-hull while in the water - I will need to be lifted in the Spring, but, as you noted, was looking to avoid the need for a second lift hence looking for suggestions.

I will explore the option of getting a bung into the outlet as well as giving it an initial "poke" so the hoses can be removed.

Many thanks to all for the responses.
 
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