WC & holding tank costs

[Cashbuyer]

Hi guys
Need to fit sea/flushing loo and holding tank into steel Pedro. Any ideas of cost? Is this a huge problem/job? Can we have fresh water flush straight into tank without seacocks and or hull fittings? Are electric flush any better? So many questions...

 

[Tranona]

Welcome to the forum

Suggest you visit websites from Leesan www.leesan.com and Tek Tanks www.tek-tanks.com Vetus www.vetus.co.uk is also a useful source

All of these specialise in holding tank systems and Leesan also supply all the most popular types of toilets.

There are a number of different ways of designing and installing systems, so you need to understand what the alternatives are and how they would fit with your expected pattern of usage and particularly the space and layout of your boat.

Be prepared for quite a large amount of work and considerable expenditure. The most basic gravity sytem using a standard size tank is likely to be about £500 for tank and fittings plus toilet. A Custom made tank - very common because of space problems on boats, add about £250. A large capacity pumped system would be at least £1000 for all the materials and fittings plus the toilet. You can get fresh water electric flushing toilets but these need a good supply of fresh water and are significantly more expensive than a basic sea (or river) water manual toilet.

Hope this helps get you going in your search.

 

[cliffdale]

If I were fitting my tank from new, I would definitely fit a fresh water flush system. Having used both sea and fresh water flush systems, fresh water is the best for cutting down on the smells caused by the microscopic organisms that die and give off that rotton egg pungent whiff.

Cliff

 

[ian38_39]

From your previous post I assume you are going to use the boat inland so you will need either a holding tank or the easiest and cheapest method a caravan type chemical toilet, which one depends on how much and by how many the boat will be used.

A fresh water flush system needn't cost a fortune, even the cheapest of electric toilets will provide sufficient pull to take water from a small tank and push the waste a suprising distance through the boat.
you will need a tank. Level sensing filling valve, a few fittings and a bit of pipe for the fresh water side. A friend of mine adapted a decent sized tupaware container as his tank you just need something of about 5 to 10 litres.

The holding tank needs to be odour resistant plastic or 316 stainless steel, if you go for stainless you should be able to get a local fabricator to make one for you, then you need the right odour resistant piep to run as flat as possible from the WC to the tank. Pump out fitting and a vent.

if you do it yourself it is possible to do the job from around £600.

 

[oldgit]

"So many questions..."

Just out of interest before you decide on choice of tank materials,you can get a plastic tank made up very cheaply compared to stainless.
Had to replace both water tanks on my boat,the first was made up in stainless and cost a fortune,was blimming heavy and getting the right sized in/ outlets was a pain. Finding somebody to do the job and finally getting them to actually fabricate the thing ,took ages and was nearly double the cost and my second tank.
Learning from the earlier saga,I went onto ebay.Choose a supplier sent off an email with measurements and tank was back in 4 days with all unions in standard sizes fully present and correct.They will make a custom tank to your dimensions in different materials to suit fresh/black water or fuel.My 100l tank was around £80 inc,smaller tank should cost less.
Ps.there are several "marine" tank suppliers out there with "marine" prices,my tank came from a firm that does tanks for all and sundry and made out of black material.

 

[ian38_39]

"So many questions..."

Just out of interest before you decide on choice of tank materials,you can get a plastic tank made up very cheaply compared to stainless.
Had to replace both water tanks on my boat,the first was made up in stainless and cost a fortune,was blimming heavy and getting the right sized in/ outlets was a pain. Finding somebody to do the job and finally getting them to actually fabricate the thing ,took ages and was nearly double the cost and my second tank.
Learning from the earlier saga,I went onto ebay.Choose a supplier sent off an email with measurements and tank was back in 4 days with all unions in standard sizes fully present and correct.They will make a custom tank to your dimensions in different materials to suit fresh/black water or fuel.My 100l tank was around £80 inc,smaller tank should cost less.
Ps.there are several "marine" tank suppliers out there with "marine" prices,my tank came from a firm that does tanks for all and sundry and made out of black material.

You are dead right about the weight of a stainless tank, put a 180 litre Stainless tank into a Sealine 255 and it was seriously heavy. Was not able to find anyone to make a custom Plastic tank for sensible money at the time but if I had I would definitely have gone that way, providing it was made of the right plastic of course, as it sounds yours was.

Another thing to consider when fitting a tank for inland use is that if you are going to have one make it a big one, you will pay the same to empty a 50 gallon tank as a 1 gallon, and there never seems to be a pump out station when you need one.