[Public-List] Bad Holding Tank

[Manza, John CIV OSD POLICY]

When I opened up the companionway Saturday morning, I was greeted by the sweet smell of open sewage!  

I checked hoses and clamps and found nothing...but there was a small stream of "stuff" oozing down the bilge from the bow to the deepest reaches of the bilge under the steps.  What I found was bilge juice seeping out from underneath the forward cabin sole.  On my 1966 version A30, the step down from the forward cabin to the head has a gap underneath that runs under the fixed flooring to the holding tank (originally the water tank) between the two berths.  

With few options available, I pumped out the holding tank, unscrewed the inspection port, and dove in.  The tank itself employs the hull itself as two of the tank sides and has GRP walls for the back and top.  I cleaned it out, and with the aid of a small flashlight, I found several small cracks in the fiberglass in several different locations.  I'm not sure which one of these is the guilty party.  

I had a little strategy session with my crew/wife and we discussed three options: (1) Reseal the inside of the current tank, (2) put a new tank in the locker next to the head, or (3) install a composting head.  We decided that a repair job would only last a few seasons...and then I would be back in the sewer business -- perhaps in the middle of our annual cruise.  A new tank is fairly expensive and would require the loss of my underway boat repair shop that I keep in that portside locker.  The composting option has been under consideration for several years...but is expensive.

We decided to go with the composting head system.  This weekend, I'm going to pull the hoses and seal up the existing holding tank...perhaps it will serve out its time as buoyancy or later will become an additional stowage space.  I ordered the Airhead toilet last night and plan on putting it in as soon as it arrives. http://www.airheadtoilet.com/  

Anxious to hear insights from the group on this system.

John 
JANTE II # 150    




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