Head odor solution
 

One of the things I'm not looking forward to about sailing is head
odor, especially in a boat where we'll be sleeping on top of the
holding tank. I'm thinking of setting up an arrangement like this:

I'll put a tee with a valve into the head intake line just upstream
from the seacock. This will run to a plastic tank of two to five
gallons with a large diameter screw top and a hose with valve nearby
running to the fresh water system. Throw the deodorizer of your choice
into the tank and fill it with fresh water. Last flush of the day,
switch the head over to the tank so that fresh water and deodorizer
runs through everything. I wouldn't hard pipe the tank to the FW
system because there needs to be an airgap between it and any possible
connection to sewage.

Obviously not a solution for long distance cruising where fresh water
supply is an issue but, if you're doing that, you've probably gotten
used to odor.


--


Roger Long

Roger:

I would advise sticking to the KISS principle.

I presume you are equipped with a holding tank. As long as your VENT IS
CLEAR, your hoses are reasonably new and your connections are caulked
and tight, you won't have odour.

And far simpler way to add deodorizer is to flush it through the head.

Gary MacDonald
Kingston, ON
http://home.ca.inter.net/~gkmd/sail/CarpeDiem.htm


Roger Long wrote:
One of the things I'm not looking forward to about sailing is head
odor, especially in a boat where we'll be sleeping on top of the
holding tank. I'm thinking of setting up an arrangement like this:

I'll put a tee with a valve into the head intake line just upstream
from the seacock. This will run to a plastic tank of two to five
gallons with a large diameter screw top and a hose with valve nearby
running to the fresh water system. Throw the deodorizer of your
choice
into the tank and fill it with fresh water. Last flush of the day,
switch the head over to the tank so that fresh water and deodorizer
runs through everything. I wouldn't hard pipe the tank to the FW
system because there needs to be an airgap between it and any
possible
connection to sewage.

Obviously not a solution for long distance cruising where fresh water

supply is an issue but, if you're doing that, you've probably gotten
used to odor.


--


Roger Long

Ah, I see you are in fresh water.

In salt water, it is the head itself that stinks. Different kinds of
bugs and chemistry.

There is simple and there is simple. Kneeling down in the head
compartment to scrub and clean the thing isn't simple in my book.
This set up will get fresh water and deodorant anywhere the water
goes.

As for the tank, sure, you can just dump the stuff in the bowl but
that doesn't get it where it is needed.

--

Roger Long



wrote in message
ups.com...
Roger:

I would advise sticking to the KISS principle.

I presume you are equipped with a holding tank. As long as your VENT
IS
CLEAR, your hoses are reasonably new and your connections are
caulked
and tight, you won't have odour.

And far simpler way to add deodorizer is to flush it through the
head.

Gary MacDonald
Kingston, ON
http://home.ca.inter.net/~gkmd/sail/CarpeDiem.htm


Roger Long wrote:
One of the things I'm not looking forward to about sailing is head
odor, especially in a boat where we'll be sleeping on top of the
holding tank. I'm thinking of setting up an arrangement like this:

I'll put a tee with a valve into the head intake line just upstream
from the seacock. This will run to a plastic tank of two to five
gallons with a large diameter screw top and a hose with valve
nearby
running to the fresh water system. Throw the deodorizer of your
choice
into the tank and fill it with fresh water. Last flush of the day,
switch the head over to the tank so that fresh water and deodorizer
runs through everything. I wouldn't hard pipe the tank to the FW
system because there needs to be an airgap between it and any
possible
connection to sewage.

Obviously not a solution for long distance cruising where fresh
water

supply is an issue but, if you're doing that, you've probably
gotten
used to odor.


--


Roger Long

Use the thickest wall tank you can find, this can delay the odor seeping
out. I had no oder for the first year or so and then it was pretty bad. I
flushed with fresh water and never allowed # 2 in the tank and it still got
me.

Scott

"Roger Long" wrote in message
...
Ah, I see you are in fresh water.

In salt water, it is the head itself that stinks. Different kinds of
bugs and chemistry.

There is simple and there is simple. Kneeling down in the head
compartment to scrub and clean the thing isn't simple in my book.
This set up will get fresh water and deodorant anywhere the water
goes.

As for the tank, sure, you can just dump the stuff in the bowl but
that doesn't get it where it is needed.

--

Roger Long



wrote in message
ups.com...
Roger:

I would advise sticking to the KISS principle.

I presume you are equipped with a holding tank. As long as your VENT
IS
CLEAR, your hoses are reasonably new and your connections are
caulked
and tight, you won't have odour.

And far simpler way to add deodorizer is to flush it through the
head.

Gary MacDonald
Kingston, ON
http://home.ca.inter.net/~gkmd/sail/CarpeDiem.htm


Roger Long wrote:
One of the things I'm not looking forward to about sailing is head
odor, especially in a boat where we'll be sleeping on top of the
holding tank. I'm thinking of setting up an arrangement like this:

I'll put a tee with a valve into the head intake line just upstream
from the seacock. This will run to a plastic tank of two to five
gallons with a large diameter screw top and a hose with valve
nearby
running to the fresh water system. Throw the deodorizer of your
choice
into the tank and fill it with fresh water. Last flush of the day,
switch the head over to the tank so that fresh water and deodorizer
runs through everything. I wouldn't hard pipe the tank to the FW
system because there needs to be an airgap between it and any
possible
connection to sewage.

Obviously not a solution for long distance cruising where fresh
water

supply is an issue but, if you're doing that, you've probably
gotten
used to odor.


--


Roger Long

"sailct41" wrote in message
news:ceudnatfA9FBWqXfRVn-
never allowed # 2 in the tank..

Now, how in the world did you do that?

--

Roger Long

Perhaps... but you know, your hoses will become permeated with sewage
over time and get pretty ripe smelling, fresh water or salt. A smell
that's hard to isolate. And no matter what kind of bugs you have, if
that vent ever gets plugged - just ask me about it.

Oh, I kneel down & scrub my fresh water head, too.

Anyway, good luck! Hope it works.

Gary MacDonald
Kingston, ON
http://home.ca.inter.net/~gkmd=AD/sail/CarpeDiem.htm





Roger Long wrote:
Ah, I see you are in fresh water.

In salt water, it is the head itself that stinks. Different kinds of

bugs and chemistry.

There is simple and there is simple. Kneeling down in the head
compartment to scrub and clean the thing isn't simple in my book.
This set up will get fresh water and deodorant anywhere the water
goes.

As for the tank, sure, you can just dump the stuff in the bowl but
that doesn't get it where it is needed.

--

Roger Long



wrote in message
ups.com...
Roger:

I would advise sticking to the KISS principle.

I presume you are equipped with a holding tank. As long as your
VENT
IS
CLEAR, your hoses are reasonably new and your connections are
caulked
and tight, you won't have odour.

And far simpler way to add deodorizer is to flush it through the
head.

Gary MacDonald
Kingston, ON
http://home.ca.inter.net/~gkmd/sail/CarpeDiem.htm


Roger Long wrote:
One of the things I'm not looking forward to about sailing is head
odor, especially in a boat where we'll be sleeping on top of the
holding tank. I'm thinking of setting up an arrangement like this:

I'll put a tee with a valve into the head intake line just
upstream
from the seacock. This will run to a plastic tank of two to five
gallons with a large diameter screw top and a hose with valve
nearby
running to the fresh water system. Throw the deodorizer of your
choice
into the tank and fill it with fresh water. Last flush of the day,
switch the head over to the tank so that fresh water and
deodorizer
runs through everything. I wouldn't hard pipe the tank to the FW
system because there needs to be an airgap between it and any
possible
connection to sewage.

Obviously not a solution for long distance cruising where fresh
water

supply is an issue but, if you're doing that, you've probably
gotten
used to odor.


--=20


Roger Long

I'll tell you what got me going on this. I design boats like these

http://home.maine.rr.com/rlma/Challenger_Class.HTM

and work with a very experienced shipyard that takes care of the
systems design. The boats are fast so weight is an issue. I started
by assuming the heads would be salt water flush. They said, "No, no,
it's got to be fresh water because of the smell. It's worth the
weight penalty of carrying more fresh water."

The boats do smell better than the salt water flush boats. Fresh
water flush obviously isn't practical on a 32 foot sailboat but this
might be the next best thing.

--

Roger Long

If you flush well and exhaust all the nasties out of the lines then there
will be no odors as long as the holding tank is well ventilated. When
leaving
the boat for a long period, run fresh water through before leaving. Also,
using a treatment like Raritan KO in the bowl will help.

Doug
s/v CAllista

"Roger Long" wrote in message
.. .
I'll tell you what got me going on this. I design boats like these

http://home.maine.rr.com/rlma/Challenger_Class.HTM

and work with a very experienced shipyard that takes care of the systems
design. The boats are fast so weight is an issue. I started by assuming
the heads would be salt water flush. They said, "No, no, it's got to be
fresh water because of the smell. It's worth the weight penalty of
carrying more fresh water."

The boats do smell better than the salt water flush boats. Fresh water
flush obviously isn't practical on a 32 foot sailboat but this might be
the next best thing.

--

Roger Long

Roger Long wrote:
One of the things I'm not looking forward to about sailing is head
odor, especially in a boat where we'll be sleeping on top of the
holding tank.

If you're concerned about odor in the toilet, whether you sleep on top
of the holding tank has nothing to do with it...that odor is in the
head, not the tank...and odor from inside the tank--unless the tank is
leaking--only has one place to go: out the tank vent.

I'm thinking of setting up an arrangement like this:

I'll put a tee with a valve into the head intake line just upstream
from the seacock.

There's a much easier way. Tee the head sink drain into the head intake
line. To flush the sea water out of the head intake line--the whole
syststm, in fact--close the head intake seacock...fill the sink with
clean fresh water...flush the toilet. Because the seacock is closed, the
toilet will pull the water out of the sink. In fact, if you have the
fresh water to spare, you could just keep the intake seacock closed and
use this method to flush the toilet all the time.

--
Peggie
----------
Peggie Hall
Specializing in marine sanitation since 1987
Author "Get Rid of Boat Odors - A Guide To Marine Sanitation Systems and
Other Sources of Aggravation and Odor"
http://www.seaworthy.com/store/custo...0&cat=6&page=1

sailct41 wrote:
Use the thickest wall tank you can find, this can delay the odor seeping
out. I had no oder for the first year or so and then it was pretty bad. I
flushed with fresh water and never allowed # 2 in the tank and it still got
me.

That's because the source of your odor inside the boat had nothing to do
with the tank...most likely your hoses permeated with odor. Or, you
needed to clean your bilge--really CLEAN it, not just dump in more bilge
cleaner and/or bleach, followed by flushing out all the dirty water.
Dirty sumps are another source of odor that can make a boat smell like a
swamp, or even a sewer, because they generate the same gasses as a sewer.

--
Peggie
----------
Peggie Hall
Specializing in marine sanitation since 1987
Author "Get Rid of Boat Odors - A Guide To Marine Sanitation Systems and
Other Sources of Aggravation and Odor"
http://www.seaworthy.com/store/custo...0&cat=6&page=1

Now, why didn't I think of that?

It's great when someone who actually knows what they are talking about
shows up.

I just went through Calder's section on head plumbing and it sounds
like a lot of the greater odor of salt water flush over fresh is not
the salt but all the plant and animal stuff that comes in. A strainer
in the intake line sounds important.

--

Roger Long



"Peggie Hall" wrote in message
...
..

There's a much easier way. Tee the head sink drain into the head
intake line. To flush the sea water out of the head intake line--the
whole syststm, in fact--close the head intake seacock...fill the
sink with clean fresh water...flush the toilet. Because the seacock
is closed, the toilet will pull the water out of the sink. In fact,
if you have the fresh water to spare, you could just keep the intake
seacock closed and use this method to flush the toilet all the time.

--
Peggie
----------
Peggie Hall
Specializing in marine sanitation since 1987
Author "Get Rid of Boat Odors - A Guide To Marine Sanitation Systems
and Other Sources of Aggravation and Odor"
http://www.seaworthy.com/store/custo...0&cat=6&page=1

"Roger Long" wrote:

Now, why didn't I think of that?

It's great when someone who actually knows what they are talking about
shows up.

I just went through Calder's section on head plumbing and it sounds
like a lot of the greater odor of salt water flush over fresh is not
the salt but all the plant and animal stuff that comes in. A strainer
in the intake line sounds important.

I don't think you can really strain out the stuff - it's plankton
sized.

We used freshwater flush before we got the LectraSan(1) (or when the
output has to go to the holding tank), and there's an even easier way
if it works for you. Our shower is in the head, and we just take the
shower head down and flush with water from the shower. No need to do
anything to the thru-hulls, or anything else.

(1) LectraSan of course needs the salt from the salt water.

grandma Rosalie

Roger Long wrote:
I just went through Calder's section on head plumbing and it sounds
like a lot of the greater odor of salt water flush over fresh is not
the salt but all the plant and animal stuff that comes in. A
strainer in the intake line sounds important.

A strainer will keep weeds, jellyfish, and other larger sea life from
being sucked into the head intake line and becoming trapped there or in
the channel in the rim of the bowl...but it won't prevent sea water
intake odor. Sea water--especially coastal sea water--is alive with
microscropic animal and vegetable life that die, decay and stink when it
sits and stagnates in the intake line, pump and rim of the bowl.
Flushing all the sea water out, especially at the end of a cruise,
before the boat will sit for several days or longer is the only way to
eliminate it. Just pouring fresh water into the bowl cleans out the
head DISCHARGE line, but it won't rinse out the intake and channel in
the rim of the bowl, because nothing that goes into the bowl is
recirculated through the intake...if it did, waste in the bowl would
recirculate too.

So the only way to get rid of it is by using some means of introducing
clean fresh water into the head intake line--but NOT by connecting
directly to the onboard fresh water system! There's no way to connect
any raw water toilet to the fresh water system without risk of polluting
the potable water supply...and every toilet mfr warns against doing so
in their installation instructions. Only toilets designed by the mfr to
use pressurized flush water should ever be connected to the fresh water
plumbing.

--
Peggie
----------
Peggie Hall
Specializing in marine sanitation since 1987
Author "Get Rid of Boat Odors - A Guide To Marine Sanitation Systems and
Other Sources of Aggravation and Odor"
http://www.seaworthy.com/store/custo...0&cat=6&page=1

So I was on the right track with my tank idea for running fresh water
through for the last flush of the day. Using the sink makes a lot
more sense. I'm going to put a "Y" in the sink drain line so I can
fill the sink and then use that water to flush. The sink will make
the required air gap.

BTW I just ordered you book.

--

Roger Long



"Peggie Hall" wrote in message
...


Roger Long wrote:
I just went through Calder's section on head plumbing and it
sounds
like a lot of the greater odor of salt water flush over fresh is
not
the salt but all the plant and animal stuff that comes in. A
strainer in the intake line sounds important.

A strainer will keep weeds, jellyfish, and other larger sea life
from being sucked into the head intake line and becoming trapped
there or in the channel in the rim of the bowl...but it won't
prevent sea water intake odor. Sea water--especially coastal sea
water--is alive with microscropic animal and vegetable life that
die, decay and stink when it sits and stagnates in the intake line,
pump and rim of the bowl. Flushing all the sea water out, especially
at the end of a cruise, before the boat will sit for several days or
longer is the only way to eliminate it. Just pouring fresh water
into the bowl cleans out the head DISCHARGE line, but it won't rinse
out the intake and channel in the rim of the bowl, because nothing
that goes into the bowl is recirculated through the intake...if it
did, waste in the bowl would recirculate too.

So the only way to get rid of it is by using some means of
introducing clean fresh water into the head intake line--but NOT by
connecting directly to the onboard fresh water system! There's no
way to connect any raw water toilet to the fresh water system
without risk of polluting the potable water supply...and every
toilet mfr warns against doing so in their installation
instructions. Only toilets designed by the mfr to use pressurized
flush water should ever be connected to the fresh water plumbing.

--
Peggie
----------
Peggie Hall
Specializing in marine sanitation since 1987
Author "Get Rid of Boat Odors - A Guide To Marine Sanitation Systems
and
Other Sources of Aggravation and Odor"
http://www.seaworthy.com/store/custo...0&cat=6&page=1