MMC wrote:
Peggie,
Do you recommend white vineger for flushing fresh water systems?

I'm not sure whether you mean toilets that use fresh water, or the
potable water system...so I'll address both.

White vinegar is both an odor eliminator and a mineral dissolver...so
while it's not really needed in toilets that use fresh water, it
certainly can't hurt the hoses to flush a cupful through 'em before the
boat is to sit. Just don't leave it sitting in the bowl, and be sure to
flush it all out of the pump...'cuz while vinegar won't do anything to
soft rubber just passing through, soft rubber left to soak in vinegar
will swell and distort.

Potable water systems: After recommissioning the system each spring, a
solution of 1 quart white vinegar to 5 gal. water left in the tank for
several days--with the pump left on to also keep the solution in the
plumbing--will remove any remaining chlorine or antifreeze taste/smell
in the system. Drain through every faucet, then fill the tank 1/4-1/2
full with clean water and flush the vinegar solution out of the lines.

--
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://shop.sailboatowners.com/books...ku=90&cat=1304

Peggie Hall wrote:

MMC wrote:

Peggie,
Do you recommend white vineger for flushing fresh water systems?


I'm not sure whether you mean toilets that use fresh water, or the
potable water system...so I'll address both.

White vinegar is both an odor eliminator and a mineral dissolver...so
while it's not really needed in toilets that use fresh water, it
certainly can't hurt the hoses to flush a cupful through 'em before the
boat is to sit. Just don't leave it sitting in the bowl, and be sure to
flush it all out of the pump...'cuz while vinegar won't do anything to
soft rubber just passing through, soft rubber left to soak in vinegar
will swell and distort.

Potable water systems: After recommissioning the system each spring, a
solution of 1 quart white vinegar to 5 gal. water left in the tank for
several days--with the pump left on to also keep the solution in the
plumbing--will remove any remaining chlorine or antifreeze taste/smell
in the system. Drain through every faucet, then fill the tank 1/4-1/2
full with clean water and flush the vinegar solution out of the lines.

Wow, that means that I need to buy 38 quarts of vinegar for my 140 gal
and 50 gal that I am currently fixing. Didn't realize I would need so much.
krj

krj wrote:
Potable water systems: After recommissioning the system each spring, a
solution of 1 quart white vinegar to 5 gal. water left in the tank for
several days--with the pump left on to also keep the solution in the
plumbing--will remove any remaining chlorine or antifreeze taste/smell
in the system. Drain through every faucet, then fill the tank 1/4-1/2
full with clean water and flush the vinegar solution out of the lines.

Wow, that means that I need to buy 38 quarts of vinegar for my 140 gal
and 50 gal that I am currently fixing. Didn't realize I would need so much.

You didn't read what I wrote carefully enough...'cuz you don't need
anywhere near that much. You only need a couple of gallons for the 140
gal tank and 1 quart at most for the 50 gal tank.


--
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://shop.sailboatowners.com/books...ku=90&cat=1304

Peggie Hall wrote:

krj wrote:

Potable water systems: After recommissioning the system each spring,
a solution of 1 quart white vinegar to 5 gal. water left in the tank
for several days--with the pump left on to also keep the solution in
the plumbing--will remove any remaining chlorine or antifreeze
taste/smell in the system. Drain through every faucet, then fill the
tank 1/4-1/2 full with clean water and flush the vinegar solution out
of the lines.

Wow, that means that I need to buy 38 quarts of vinegar for my 140 gal
and 50 gal that I am currently fixing. Didn't realize I would need so
much.


You didn't read what I wrote carefully enough...'cuz you don't need
anywhere near that much. You only need a couple of gallons for the 140
gal tank and 1 quart at most for the 50 gal tank.


Guess I read it wrong. I figured 1 quart white vinegar to 5 gal. water
was 140/5= 28 quarts.
krj

This business about not connecting FW systems to sanitary plumbing
reminds me of a USPH required and approved arrangment for FW flushing
systems.

It's called an "Air Gap" and is basically just a funnel with a pipe
outlet a few inches above it. The funnel goes to the tank for fresh
flush water. The valve can either be manual or perhaps controlled by a
float in the flush water tank. If something goes wrong with the
sanitary system, the water just backs up and overflows the funnel with
no way to get into the potable water.

--

Roger Long

Larry wrote:
"Roger Long" wrote in news:N7Svg.653$uH6.463
@twister.nyroc.rr.com:


If something goes wrong with the
sanitary system, the water just backs up and overflows the funnel with
no way to get into the potable water.



Yecch....geez. I just ate Chinese food!.....



You're as bad as my plumbers. Just finished my bath re-model and one of
the young plumbers was snaking a slow moving tub/shower drain. I could
tell he didn't want to do it, as they do brand new installations 95% of
the time...nice clean work.
As he pulled the snake back with that greasy gray hairy mess, he put his
nose into his sleeve. I thought he was going to hurl.
It didn't smell the best... but after all...what would you expect.
Young guys...... they don't want to get their hands dirty anymore.

krj wrote:
Peggie Hall wrote:

krj wrote:


I figured 1 quart white vinegar to 5 gal. water
was 140/5= 28 quarts.


Read it again (the third time it HAS to sink in)...I didn't say FILL the
tank...I said, "fill the tank 1/4-1/2 full ..."

The solution is 1 quart vinegar to 5 gal WATER, NOT 1 quart vinegar to
the total amount the tank can hold.

--
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://shop.sailboatowners.com/books...ku=90&cat=1304

Roger Long wrote:
This business about not connecting FW systems to sanitary plumbing
reminds me of a USPH required and approved arrangment for FW flushing
systems.

What is USPH???

It's called an "Air Gap" and is basically just a funnel with a pipe
outlet a few inches above it. The funnel goes to the tank for fresh
flush water. The valve can either be manual or perhaps controlled by a
float in the flush water tank. If something goes wrong with the
sanitary system, the water just backs up and overflows the funnel with
no way to get into the potable water.

???? I can't see how that would work in any marine sanition system.

--
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://shop.sailboatowners.com/books...ku=90&cat=1304

"Peggie Hall" wrote

???? I can't see how that would work in any marine sanitation
system.

Back when I was a young pup in a design office drawing piping
schematics for passenger vessels I used to put these in on every
sanitary piping plan because they were on the plans they gave me as a
"go-by". These were large vessels by yacht standards, generally with
ordinary jet flush toilets like you would find in an office building.

I can't see any reason why it wouldn't work in a fresh water flushing
system. Even if you had a large flushing tank, you might want to be
able to replenish it from the main tank; especially if you were
running an RO system into it.

Here's how it would look:

http://home.maine.rr.com/rlma/Flush.jpg

On the large vessels with engineers monitoring everything, the float
switch was just a manual valve and the flush tank large enough for
about a day's use.

My sink drain connection to the head intake is just a variation of
this. If I simply added a 2 -3 gallon tank into the line, which I
have some minimally useful space to do, I could easily set the system
up for several unattended FW flushes. This is something I might want
to do if I planned to visit some place like St. Johns, Newfoundland
where the water coming into the head might well be dirtier than the
water flushing out of it

--

Roger Long

Potable. Thanks Peggie.
"Peggie Hall" wrote in message
. com...
MMC wrote:
Peggie,
Do you recommend white vineger for flushing fresh water systems?

I'm not sure whether you mean toilets that use fresh water, or the
potable water system...so I'll address both.

White vinegar is both an odor eliminator and a mineral dissolver...so
while it's not really needed in toilets that use fresh water, it
certainly can't hurt the hoses to flush a cupful through 'em before the
boat is to sit. Just don't leave it sitting in the bowl, and be sure to
flush it all out of the pump...'cuz while vinegar won't do anything to
soft rubber just passing through, soft rubber left to soak in vinegar
will swell and distort.

Potable water systems: After recommissioning the system each spring, a
solution of 1 quart white vinegar to 5 gal. water left in the tank for
several days--with the pump left on to also keep the solution in the
plumbing--will remove any remaining chlorine or antifreeze taste/smell
in the system. Drain through every faucet, then fill the tank 1/4-1/2
full with clean water and flush the vinegar solution out of the lines.

--
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://shop.sailboatowners.com/books...ku=90&cat=1304