Huh? Re: [Rhodes22-list] Exploding Porta Potties
Bill Effros
bill at effros.com
Mon Nov 21 18:51:14 EST 2005
Mary Lou,
Did you look at the pictures? I was thinking Porta Pottie, and looking
at what looked something like offshore drilling platforms. It took me a
while to sort it all out. Very funny. I'd never seen this stuff
before. I wandered all over the site. Did you see the banking
information? Of course I checked out the Notices to Mariners, and to
Airmen, too--for Brad.
Bill Effros
Mary Lou Troy wrote:
> Bill,
> I've seen that before. Did you note they even have official Notices to
> Mariners? There are only 2.
> http://www.sealandgov.org/notices/notm01702.html
> http://www.sealandgov.org/notices/notm01502.html
>
> Mary Lou
>
>
> At 06:17 PM 11/21/2005 -0500, you wrote:
>
>> Mary Lou,
>>
>> I've got a SeaLand from West Marine because that's all they had, but
>> when I Googled SeaLand I got this hit--
>>
>> http://www.sealandgov.com/
>>
>> Even Herb is gonna like this one...
>>
>> Bill Effros
>>
>>
>>
>> Mary Lou Troy wrote:
>>
>>> Bill,
>>> All I can say is you have way too complicated a porta-john.
>>>
>>> Ours is a Thetford 135 with a bellows pump and sliding closure a the
>>> bottom of the bowl. I've never experienced the pressure build-up you
>>> describe but if I suspected it, it would be easy to crack the
>>> closure & then flush. Simple, few moving parts and only a 2.6 gallon
>>> waste tank - which is why when we empty it every other day I can
>>> carry it up the dock.
>>>
>>> On the other hand, if we lived on a mooring like you do, we'd have a
>>> marine head or plumb the porta-john to a deck pumpout fitting.
>>>
>>> Best,
>>> Mary Lou
>>> 1991 R22 Fretless
>>> Ft. Washington, PA / Swan Creek MD
>>>
>>> At 11:12 AM 11/21/2005 -0500, you wrote:
>>>
>>>> Maybe it's a "get the new-guy" thing, but the Porta-Potty advocates
>>>> never seem to mention that Porta-Potties can blow out in your
>>>> face--repeatedly.
>>>>
>>>> I developed plumbing problems with my marine head (which is
>>>> terrific and completely odor-free when working properly) owing to
>>>> barnacle build up on the inlet side. On the advice of this list, I
>>>> decided to switch over to a Porta Potty this year, which I planned
>>>> to eventually plumb into the rest of my marine head system.
>>>> Luckily the project was more complex, and launch time too short, so
>>>> my boat went to sea with just a standard Porta-Potty.
>>>>
>>>> I have mentioned this before--as far as I'm concerned, the best
>>>> feature of a Rhodes-22 is that a man can make a pee while standing
>>>> up with no risk of falling overboard.
>>>>
>>>> My first disappointment with the Porta Potty was that the lower
>>>> portion is far more bulky than the small marine heads Stan
>>>> installs, forcing me to lean into the hatch opening at an
>>>> off-balance angle.
>>>> It wasn't quite as satisfying as the no hands required to hold you
>>>> upright position I had grown so accustomed to, but I felt I could
>>>> live with it.
>>>>
>>>> Then came the big surprise!
>>>>
>>>> It was a hot summer day. Time for a great pee. I did my business
>>>> while surveying a lovely ocean vista. Now, I know the women in
>>>> this crowd will have no sympathy for what happened next...It is
>>>> impossible to flush a Porta Potty while standing up, facing
>>>> forward, with your upper body protruding through an open hatch.
>>>> You must back out of the head, and, while in this bent-over
>>>> position, your head mere inches away from the potty seat, grab the
>>>> potty handle and pull it toward you as you exit the enclosure.
>>>>
>>>> Did I mention that it was a HOT summer day?
>>>>
>>>> Most of you have the picture in your minds by now. The lower
>>>> portion of a Porta Potty is air tight. That's why you can't smell
>>>> what's inside.
>>>> On a hot summer day, that air expands. But on a new Porta Potty,
>>>> it has no place to go--until you pull that handle!
>>>>
>>>> Then it blows your business right into your face which is mere
>>>> inches from the seat.
>>>>
>>>> Again, I know the women in this crowd are going to say "Just put
>>>> down the seat!" but if that advice, which has always been in my
>>>> best interest, hasn't always been followed for lo these many years
>>>> of marriage, it's not likely to always be followed now, either.
>>>>
>>>> I tried to remember to let out the air before pulling the handle
>>>> when there was anything in the upper chamber. But on hot days, the
>>>> pressure could build up again, over and over. I just didn't
>>>> remember every time. (It's the same with the toilet seat--I know I
>>>> remember most of the time, but my wife only remembers the splashes
>>>> in the middle of the night followed by husband-awakening invective.)
>>>>
>>>> After 3 or 4 more explosions I pulled out the Porta Potty, and
>>>> replaced it with my old marine head. Life has been much better
>>>> ever since.
>>>>
>>>> Let me mention, also, another factor I found daunting in my Porta
>>>> Potty experience. A gallon of water weighs 8.33 pounds. A large
>>>> porta potty holds 6 gallons of water. That's 50 pounds of sloshing
>>>> s..............stuff you're walking around with, hoping not to pull
>>>> the wrong handle by mistake.
>>>>
>>>> My boat is moored 1/2 mile from shore. The nearest clean out
>>>> facility is 1/4 mile from the dock. My wife didn't take well to
>>>> the notion of bringing the tank back home in the back of the car.
>>>> Sure, I could have done it more often, but the clean out procedure
>>>> is just as foul as you would imagine it to be, and walking around
>>>> with 25 pounds of effluent is no picnic, either--especially if you
>>>> have to do it twice as often.
>>>>
>>>> When I have my boat recycled I'm going to talk to Stan about what
>>>> we're going to do next. Using fresh water on the inlet side of the
>>>> head is the best way to go. It totally eliminates all odors which
>>>> are mainly caused by little creatures pulled in with the sea water
>>>> that die in the tank. The tank and pump out systems have always
>>>> worked perfectly. If all I have to do is replace the valves on the
>>>> marine head every couple of years, I'll gladly do that maintenance
>>>> in exchange for a far preferable marine head system as far as I'm
>>>> concerned.
>>>>
>>>> Bill Effros
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> William E. Wickman wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Ron, et. al.,
>>>>> Everyone has an opinion about marine heads vs. porta-pottie, so
>>>>> here is
>>>>> mine. When I was first looking at a Rhodes, having a marine head
>>>>> was an
>>>>> important criteria. At one point, I had considered going the full
>>>>> monty; a
>>>>> marine head with holding tank, macerator, and even an electra-san.
>>>>> However, after reading the archives and upon further reflection, I
>>>>> realized
>>>>> that the main reason that I wanted one was not for practical
>>>>> reasons, but
>>>>> because it would make me feel more yachty. The Rhodes is not a
>>>>> large boat.
>>>>> That is what makes it so appealing, because it doesn't have all
>>>>> the big
>>>>> boat problems. As I read somewhere else on the list, it seems
>>>>> like those
>>>>> big boat sailors that have marine heads are always having to fix
>>>>> something
>>>>> on them. Moreover, unless you keep the holding tank empty and
>>>>> clean, there
>>>>> always seems to be an odor. Simple is good. I realized that I am
>>>>> not
>>>>> going to be living on this boat, and the longest that I will
>>>>> probably ever
>>>>> stay out is a week (maybe two if I'm lucky). 90+% of the time I
>>>>> am out on
>>>>> the boat for a day sail or overnighter. I believe that most
>>>>> Rhodies will
>>>>> confess a similar percentage. I ended up with a boat that has
>>>>> just the
>>>>> porta-pottie, and have been very happy with it. There is zero
>>>>> maintenance
>>>>> with it, and it is very easy to dump anywhere there is a toilet.
>>>>> Granted
>>>>> it is a bit more hands-on than a pumpout, but a porta-pottie is
>>>>> much easier
>>>>> to keep sanitized than a non-removeable holding tank.
>>>>>
>>>>> I'll finish with a true story. I was on vacation during the
>>>>> summer of 2004
>>>>> chartering a 45 foot sailboat in the San Juan Islands. It was a
>>>>> wonderful
>>>>> trip. We had just docked for the evening in a marina on San Juan
>>>>> Island
>>>>> and were walking off the docks to town when I saw the skipper of a
>>>>> rather
>>>>> nice yacht in the process of emptying his holding tank into a
>>>>> "honey pot".
>>>>> At this particular marina, they had tanks mounted on wheels with
>>>>> electric
>>>>> pumps that they called honey pots. It was a self-serve system
>>>>> that enabled
>>>>> you to empty your sewage at your slip without having to go to a
>>>>> pump-out
>>>>> station. Well, right as we were passing by, something went
>>>>> amiss. The
>>>>> hose popped out of the holding tank fitting and drenched the
>>>>> skipper who
>>>>> was bending over the hose fitting. After everyone around finished
>>>>> their
>>>>> collective Eeeeew, there was a bit of laughter by the small crowd
>>>>> that
>>>>> always seems to gather around when some such activity as emptying
>>>>> a holding
>>>>> tank is taking place. It looked just like something out of a
>>>>> comedy. The
>>>>> skipper didn't think it was very funny though, and proceeded to
>>>>> spew a
>>>>> string of profanities that required me to clap my hands over my 8
>>>>> year
>>>>> old's hears and quickly usher her away. Moral of the story: A
>>>>> porta-pottie will not blow-out in your face.
>>>>>
>>>>> Bill W.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> eroncol at aol.com
>>>>> Sent by:
>>>>> rhodes22-list-bou To
>>>>> nces at rhodes22.org rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org
>>>>>
>>>>> cc
>>>>> 11/18/2005 02:48
>>>>> Subject PM [Rhodes22-list] thanks for
>>>>> replies
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Please respond to
>>>>> The Rhodes 22
>>>>> mail list
>>>>> <rhodes22-list at rh
>>>>> odes22.org>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Hi
>>>>> Ed K., I do exist. Been busy and not always near a computer.
>>>>> Sorry about
>>>>> the delay. Thanks to you, Mary Lou, Steve Hemphill and Russell
>>>>> Miller for
>>>>> your responses.
>>>>> I live in Wynnewood, PA, Mary Lou. I must get hold of your
>>>>> chapter in
>>>>> "Sailing Small." Thanks for the references Ed. I will look at
>>>>> them. I
>>>>> already see abut the differing opinions, answers and facts,
>>>>> though each of
>>>>> you say newer is better. Actually that is true of your comments
>>>>> re boat
>>>>> and motor.
>>>>> I've used marine head but never have used a porta-potti. Seems
>>>>> there are
>>>>> differences of opinion both about enclosed head and about porta-potti
>>>>> versus marine head. Why prefer the porta-potti? I assume as Ed
>>>>> says, that
>>>>> this may be in the archives. I will look.
>>>>> Looks like I've got some thinking to do. And some talking to Stan.
>>>>> Ron Coleman
>>>>> __________________________________________________
>>>>> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> __________________________________________________
>>>>> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>>>>>
>>>> __________________________________________________
>>>> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> __________________________________________________
>>> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>>
>> __________________________________________________
>> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>
>
>
> __________________________________________________
> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>
More information about the Rhodes22-list
mailing list