• Untitled Document

    Join us on March 29rd, 7pm EST

    for the CBEC Virtual Meeting

    All EYO members and followers are welcome to join the fun and get to know the guest speaker!

    See the link below for login credentials and join us!

    March Meeting Info

    (dismiss this notice by hitting 'X', upper right)

Holding tank monitoring

simdim

Member II
Folks,
With two kids aboard i am looking for the simple yet foolproof system to monitor holding tank levels. It seems like market is overflowing ( no pun intended ;)) with options but real life sometimes differs from glossy brochure. The option to have a "no flush" blinking neon sign is a must! I would appreciate the input especially regarding inside vs outside sensors.

Cheers,
 

u079721

Contributing Partner
It will be interesting to see whether anyone responds with any positive experience with any of the electronic designs on the market, because my experience with the mechanical TankWatch was mixed. The TankWatch system uses magnets that activate the monitor as they slide up and down tubes that are suspended from the cap. But I found that they could get fouled by waste that would dry on the tubes and keep the magnets from floating up the tube to activate the monitor. Which can give you a very undesired low tank reading. Believe me, pulling out the wands and sticking the whole thing in a bucket to clean the tubes was not a fun task to do while at anchor!
 

Glyn Judson

Moderator
Moderator
How to determine holding tank level.

Simon, Use an electronic stud finder to determine the fluid level in your polyethylene holding tank. The dielectric constant principle of the finder works quite well to tell you how full your tank is. Place it horizontally against the side of the tank near the bottom. Turn the device on and slowly slide it up the tank side. It will indicate when it reaches the fluid level. This method is pretty foolproof as long as you can gain access to one side of your polyethylene tank. You can pick up these cool stud finders at any DIY or big box store for typically around $20.00. Here's the result of a quick search I made: http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs...langId=-1&catalogId=10053&productId=100395149 I use a device like this on our boat and can tell you that it works like a son if a gun. A partial solution to the problem is to educate everyone on board that it's not like being at home as regards use of the head. Go ashore as often as possible and use it sparingly when aboard. Our tank os only 13 gallons and can handle both of us using it for four days or more with room to spare. What's that saying? Let it mellow if it's yellow, flush it down if it's brown. This might be a good motto to adopt on the boat for everybody. Glyn Judson, E31 hull #55, Marina del Rey, CA
 

treilley

Sustaining Partner
PS just recently(May 2008) did a review and they found the best unit to be one that uses air pressure. I believe the gauge is not dynamic though. You need to pump air into the system for it to tell you the level. The good part is that it uses no electricity. I am thinking of installing one. I think the top one was the Hart Systems Tank Tender.

http://www.thetanktender.com/
 

Tom Metzger

Sustaining Partner
This might be what you want

This past spring I bought a tank monitor with an external sensor recommended by Peggy Hall, the Head Mistress, from Ferriello Sales. I bought it for $100 during a promotion.

http://www.ferriellosales.com/page5.html

It was easy to install and worked well throughout the season after resolving one glitch. The glitch was a defective switch on the panel. They replaced the unit with no questions asked even before I returned the bad unit.

Normally you have to push a button for a reading, but there is a red light to warn of an approaching full tank.

The pics show the sensor mounted on my E-34 holding tank and a temporary plywood cover to protect it from abuse in my sail locker. That cover was replaced with a proper cover to protect the sensor and the tank.
 

Attachments

  • Tank Monitor 002 (Medium).jpg
    Tank Monitor 002 (Medium).jpg
    63.6 KB · Views: 97
  • Tank Monitor 003 (Medium).jpg
    Tank Monitor 003 (Medium).jpg
    64.4 KB · Views: 84

simdim

Member II
Folks,
Thank you for the incite. Looks like Ferriello system that Tom suggests is the most attractive and according to their web site it can be calibrated for the v-shaped tanks. All I need to do now is to wait for the promotion Ferriello might run :).

Cheers,
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Thanks for the link, and from that vendor page you reach another of their suppliers,
http://www.wemausa.com/tank_sensors/tank_level_sensors.htm#Holding_Tank_Level_Sensors

This is the company I went with for my new fuel tank sensor and guage last winter. If I had only known then that I would soon be installing a new holding tank I would have used their h.t. sensor and put in their multi tank readout gauge system.

Loren
 

Tom Metzger

Sustaining Partner
Give it a try.

Simon - I would call Dennis Ferriello and ask him for the special price you found on SailboatOwners.com. It was from January, but so what. All he has to say is "no" if he doesn't want to do it.

Peggie had mis-stated something earlier in the thread.

Because of Peggie's OOPS I want to extend to you a very special Holiday price on our Solo W/Full alert for Waste tanks or the Solo W/Empty alert for Water tanks. The panel comes with of course the sensor kit for the plastic tank.

I will give you or anyone in this forum till January 10th a special Peggie goofed price of $100.00 each.

I will be closed from Sat the 22nd of December till Jan 5th. If you are interested you can call me before Sat or after the 5th.

Thanks for your interest in our products.


Dennis

He later extended the offer for some period of time.

Good luck.
 

Greg Ross

Not the newest member
Holding Tank Level Guage

Contacted Dennis this afternoon via eMail and had a conversation shortly thereafter. Dennis indicated "Peggys' Oops" can still be accessed by the folks here for the next 30 days. Thats' the "Solo W/Full alert for Waste tanks"
From the Site Link got to the "Contact Us" to eMail Dennis, he'll direct you on how to place your order and take advantage of this promotional price.
I renewed all the plumbing this Summer so our holding tank could actually be utilized, and then had two occasions where it overflowed and plugged the vent. First time I couldn't get pumped out and couldn't figure out why, turned out the vent was solidly plugged and was creating a vaccuum, killing the pump suction.
I have no connection with either Dennis or the product, just want to share the opportunity.
 
Top