"Falky foo" wrote in message om...
cool thanks for the info...

how much do little holding tanks or porta potties cost to install in a boat
that wasn't originally built with one? Or can they be installed?

I have no idea. I have not looked at holding tank prices in a long
while. My 42 year old boat never had one. I installed a lectrasan
when I bought the boat - replaced a stinky, improperly functioning
turd ejector.

I don't know what they cost, but portapotties are just that.
Portable. They generally are not "installed". I have seen folks
dealing with them.... Some have detachable tanks... Seen people
carrying these jerrycan looking things to restrooms to be emptied in a
regular toilet. Doesn't interest me at all - pump outs are tolerable,
but I am not interested in pouring a bucket of crap out in a bathroom
stall. I'd rather just pee over the rail (legal AFAIK - except for
possible indecent exposure laws g)

Peggy Hall has a great article, that I still have somewhere on one of
my computers, called "Marine Sanitation: Fact vs. Folklore" It's a
great article. But it doesn't seem to be available at some of the web
site where it used to be kept. I googled for it, and the first couple
of links didn't work and I didn't bother looking further.








"Curtis CCR" wrote in message
om...
"Falky foo" wrote in message
om...
Been shopping around for sail boats here in Calif. One guy has one at a
great price, but it was built in 1970 and "doesn't have a holding tank."
Does that mean that your crap flushes straight into the ocean? Is that
even
legal? Can a holding tank be fitted easily or would that be super
expensive? I plan on leaving the thing at anchorage and on moorings,
not in
a marina. But I don't want to be arrested when big turds bob to the
surface
around my boat (I inhale a lot when I eat). Do anchorages require
holding
tanks?

I must admit I know next to nothing about marine sanitation.

You cannot discharge untreated sewage. And "treated" has specific
defintions are not met by some of those old, funky, not so sanitary,
sanitation systems.

And don't be led by anyone to believe that "this old boat is
grandfathered". It doesn't matter how old the boat is, you can't
discharge raw sewage within 3 miles.

You would probably need to install a holding tank or treatment system.
Treatment systems like the Lectrasan use a significant amount of
electricity. Each flush thorugh a 12 volt Lectrasan draws about 40
amps for two to four minutes. This may not be practical on a small
sailboat.

Even if you have a treatment system, you may not be able to discharge
treated sewage. You can't discharge any sewage, treated or not, in a
no-discharge zone. The only federal no-discharge zone I know of in
California is Richardson Bay. However - there is an obscure
California state regulation that makes any CA marina with shoreside
restroom facilities a no-discharge zone. Kinda stupid, and I have
never heard of it being enforced, but the reg exists.