| Author | Message | ||
     Jeff Roy New member Username: Jeffr Post Number: 80 Registered: 03-2001 Rating: N/A |
When I replaced my holding tank I set the following requirements for the job. Minimum 20 gallon capacity. No holes on the bottom of the tank. No Y-valves in the system. Oversized vent. No direct discharge, but be able to empty the tank overboard. Short runs on all hoses and minimal low spots that could collect "stuff". The first thing was to rip out all the old hoses and the old tank. Messy, disgusting job, YUK! In order to fit a tank of the required capacity I had to relocate the tank to under the V-berth. I found a really nice 24 gallon roto-molded thick-walled tank from Ronco-Plastics . It fits perfectly. The model number is B114; direct cost is $190.  After an initial search on of the thousands of tanks they sold I focused on this one. I made a cardboard mock up of the tank to insure it would fit and I could get it in place without tearing the boat apart. Once I was sure the tank would fit I ordered it. I bought mine through a local company Oceanlink Inc.. They charge more but they gave put in all the fittings (at additional cost) and gave me a lot of good advice on the installation. Ocean link installed 4 fittings on the top of the tank. One 2" input fitting, two 2" output fittings with internal pick-up tubes and one 3/4" fitting for the vent hose. I plumbed the hose from the toilet to the tank through the hole in the bulkhead that was originally used for the direct discharge. Because this required a tight bend in the hose I installed rigid PVC piping through the bulkhead with a 90 elbow on the head side and a 45-degree elbow on the tank side. This had to be glued in place. One output was plumbed to a Whale diaphragm pump (same as the cockpit bilge pump) mounted on the short bulkhead at the aft end of the V-berth area and from there to the through hull originally used for direct discharge. The other output was plumbed to a new pump-out through-deck fitting just forward of the main bulkhead separating the head from the V-berth. The vent was plumbed to a new through hull vent just under the pump-out through-deck. I fabricated and tabbed in 2 small bulkheads on either side of the tank to hold it in place. I then bedded the tank in construction foam so it was a nice tight fit. Finally I installed some polyester strapping over the tank to make sure it could not jar itself out of there under any circumstances. While I was at it I replaced the pump assembly on the PH-II toilet and gave the bowl a thorough cleaning. It now works, smells and looks like new. I also I ripped all the carpeting off the ceiling, walls and inside the cabinets. I ripped down the wallpaper too. They were all permeated with odor from years of life in the poorly maintained head. I faired in the areas that were carpeted with epoxy and then painted everything in Hatteras Off-White, which is a very close match to the gelcoat used in the sink and pan assembly. The final touch was a nice halogen dome light with dimmer switch to replace the obnoxious fluorescent. I am very happy with the end results. The head looks and smells like new. My wife and daughter certainly appreciate it a lot. We have gone away for 5 days and didn't fill it to capacity. The Whale pump works well for emptying the tank when offshore. The total project cost about $800 dollars. About half of that was for the tank and it's fittings from Oceanlink. |
