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Stinky head

mjsouleman

Sustaining Member
Moderator
Finally had a chance to get to my stinky boat problem this weekend. Bought a replacement head (Jabsco compact) and sani-hose.

Issues:
The head backing up and the stink was awful. Turns out not only had the Joker valve failed but when I removed the old hoses, the plastic elbows at the top and bottom of the tank
were lose (I could spin them with no effort) making the holding tank vented into the v-berth.

I replaced everything except the pump out line because it was attached to the bottom of the holding tank and there was liquid in the tank.
This last will be a pain because of the position at the bottom of the holding tank cavity.

This is an easy enough job but it is a stinker.

MJS
 

Frank Langer

1984 Ericson 30+, Nanaimo, BC
Hi,
We have always been very careful to pump out regularly and add Odorlos treatment, periodically run vinegar through to get rid of calcium, and use Lysol spray in the head when needed. That worked well for us til this year, when we went on a four week cruise to the Discovery islands off Johnstone Strait in BC. Prior to that, our cruises were only about 2 weeks, but this time, we began to notice quite an odor, which didn't seem to dissipate despite our efforts. There was no smell in the boat, but we could smell exhaust from the vent on occasion.

On our return, I flushed the tank thoroughly using the pump out machine at our yacht club, and since then there has been no odor. I was impressed by the speed with which the water flowed through the hose (there is a glass viewing area), and used it until the water being pumped from the holding tank was totally clear.

Head treatment to keep everything clean and smelling ok is no laughing matter on a boat! :0

Frank
 

bigd14

Contributing Partner
Blogs Author
I pulled all the plumbing out including the holding tank, but I could not get to part of the waste vent line and the pump out hose behind the cabinet. That was over a year ago, and there was always a head odor that did not go away until I removed the head cabinet and pulled out the remnants of those hoses. The smell was gone the next day!
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
When I re-hosed our entire head and holding tank system, I cleaned the exposed hull interior with bleach and soap and wiped it down finally with a damp rag.
I also used that opportunity to make changes in hose routing, and where there had to be sharp turn in the hose I used an SS elbow (from McMaster carr).

My new holding tank was spec'd out with only top openings - dip tubes for the deck pump out and also for the overboard pump out piping.
 
Last edited:

bolbmw

Member III
Hi,
There was no smell in the boat, but we could smell exhaust from the vent on occasion.


Frank

Sounds like your system may have went anaerobic from lack of ventilation. Check to see if the vent hose is obstructed in any way (low spots, water/waste residing in it, etc.) Should be a straight shot to the holding tank as close to horizontal as possible. If your 30+ is anything like ours the vent exhaust on the hull is close enough to the head portlight to make sure whomever is pumping gets a nice nose full!
 

toddster

Curator of Broken Parts
Blogs Author
This seems to be a common misconception. The vent hose does not provide aeration - its purpose is to prevent pressurization when organic matter is converted to gas. The rate of diffusion down a long tube is insignificant compared to the rate of oxygen consumption by bacteria. Consider that water can hold - at most - 8 or 9 milligrams of oxygen per liter, and every milligram of organic matter that you put in the tank takes around 2 milligrams of oxygen... if you put anything in the tank, it is going to go anaerobic. Unless you have a forced-air mechanical aeration system. Products like Odorlos provide an alternate oxidizer that bacteria can use (nitrate) that is much more soluble than oxygen, and is reduced to odorless nitrogen gas by the process. Unfortunately, the next most favorable oxidizer (skipping a few unlikely ones) is sulfate - which is reduced to stinky hydrogen sulfide. And sea water is loaded with it. So if you're going to hold organic matter in the tank for any length of time, you need to actively add some kind of oxidizer or live with the resulting odors.
 

mjsouleman

Sustaining Member
Moderator
the story loses context with the telling.

re-state: The holding tank has two elbows, one on top, one on the bottom. Both elbows are so loose, that they can be unscrewed by hand with no effort.

The odor from the holding tank is issuing not from the hose but from the holding tank/elbow joint.

The fact that the joker valve failed a long time ago didn't help either.

Solution:

1) Replace the head with a new Jabsco system, 1) replace the porous hose with sani-hose, 3) remove the loose elbow, clean and use a sealant that will remain flexible and not leak odors.

MJS
 
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