[Rhodes22-list] Portable Toilets / Canada

[Jim Connolly]

I had this sort of installation on a Grady White 232 about ten years ago.
It was their optional installation for marine head (vs. just a porta pottie)
on that hull.  They haven't changed the boat too much and it may still be
so.  A trip to a dealer or boat show might be instructive.

A standard-size porta-potty was installed with hold down clips.  A spare
drain cap was drilled to accept white sanitary flexible hose that was run to
a Y-valve and from their either to a macerator for overboard discharge or to
a deck pump out fitting.  The bottom compartment served as the (small)
holding tank with no other tank required.  It worked well for us for 5
years.  At 40 knots it was never to hard to run offshore and pump even if a
shore station was not handy.  You could still replace the cap with the
unmodified one and carry the unit ashore to dump if necessary (we never
did).

There was no vent.  You had to crack the flushing valve in the pottie open
to vent while pumping from the deck.  For whatever reason, it didn't seem to
be needed with the macerator.  Macerators use a lot of current if you have
to pump awhile.

Jim Connolly

-----Original Message-----
From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
[mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On Behalf Of Jim Bunnell
Sent: Tuesday, November 22, 2005 1:18 PM
To: The Rhodes 22 mail list
Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Portable Toilets / Canada

Bill,

I rigged mine this way, specifically for cruising in Canada - not in a
Rhodes, unfortunately. I have the larger porta-potty. It has the pump-out
hose as you said, which leads to a fitting on deck. There is also a vent
hose that exits the boat just below the rub rail. No underwater
through-hulls. The waste tubing is sealed, no odor from that. The vent may
produce odor, but I've never noticed it. When you get a pump-out, they
vacuum out the system (air goes in the vent, stuff goes up the waste hose),
they they partially fill with water to clean, and vacuum again. Works great,
no mess. You do have to pay a fee at most marinas, though. You can remove
the tank, but you need a plastic bag and a strong stomach for dealing with
the end of the exit tube you remove.

On Nov 22, 2005, at 10:17 AM, Bill Effros wrote:

> Gregg,
>
> I planned to set mine up this way, but it just doesn't work.  It looks 
> like a legal dodge to me.  The instructions that come with the units 
> don't provide the parts you would require.  Then when you start to 
> think about what you need, you realize that the system just can't 
> work.
>
> Here's why.
>
> The exit tube provided in the lower tank exits from the highest point 
> of lower tank in order to prevent waste from exiting when it is meant 
> to be trapped.  The tube extends inside the tank to the lowest point 
> in the tank to prevent the odors above the waste from exiting the 
> tank.  This means you must always maintain some water in the tank to 
> cover the end of the tube--reducing the useful capacity of the tank.
>
> But how does the waste climb up the tube when you want it to?  It is 
> normally full of air, so there is no siphon.  Some place in this 
> system you've got to add some kind of pump.  That's when I gave up up 
> on the permanent installation.  As soon as you plumb the thing
> into your system you can no longer manually remove the waste tank.   
> Now you are just a few gallons away from disaster if your system  
> doesn't work.  Of course, you test a new tank with fresh water.   
> But once you have set up your water works, it's tough to undo it if 
> you decide its never going to work properly--and you've ruined the 
> integrity of the porto potty for normal use.
>
> The heads Stan installs cost less than a permanent porto potty plus 
> all the parts.  The exit system for waste, and holding tank cost the 
> same.  It is easier to use and maintain the plumbing on the purpose 
> built head.
>
> Bill Effros
>
>
>
>
>
> Gregg J. MacMillan wrote:
>
>>   Apparently, in Canada, "Portable toilets are legal only if they are
>>   well fastened to the boat, and have a permanent fixture enabling 
>> them
>>   to be emptied at a pump-out station."
>>
>>   Does anyone have one set up this way?
>>
>>   --Gregg
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