Holdimg tank

Good morning I have gotten to the point with my project Cal were I have to start thinking about a holding tank. When I purchased the boat, it did not have a holding tank - the head was connected straight to a thru hull. The rest of used water from shower, sink etc just flowed to the sump, and got pumped out when the float switch was triggered. Anyway, I'd like suggestions as far as holding tank sources and advise on size, placement and what is required to go to the tank, if some or all the drain connections. As usual, the group's help is always appreciated! Best regards Jeff '72 Cal 33

alternative? just installed a composting head. no holding tank. no hoses. no Y valves. no clogs. no searching vor pumpouts. reggie To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com From: je… [at] yahoo.com Date: Fri, 17 Jun 2011 09:58:36 -0400 Subject: [Cal_Boats] Holdimg tank Good morning I have gotten to the point with my project Cal were I have to start thinking about a holding tank. When I purchased the boat, it did not have a holding tank - the head was connected straight to a thru hull. The rest of used water from shower, sink etc just flowed to the sump, and got pumped out when the float switch was triggered. Anyway, I'd like suggestions as far as holding tank sources and advise on size, placement and what is required to go to the tank, if some or all the drain connections. As usual, the group's help is always appreciated! Best regards Jeff '72 Cal 33

Jeff, I purchased my holding tank from Ronco http://www.ronco-plastics.com/ I forget the size, but I ordered the largest tank I could shoehorn under the sink of our Cal 2-27. The head goes to the tank. The tank output feeds a Y-valve that allows deck pump-outs or dumping via a macerator to the thruhull when we are offshore. If you are interested, I'll dig up some photos of the project. Michael --- On Fri, 6/17/11, Jeff <je… [at] yahoo.com> wrote: From: Jeff <je… [at] yahoo.com> Subject: [Cal_Boats] Holdimg tank To: "Cal" <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> Date: Friday, June 17, 2011, 9:58 AM Good morning I have gotten to the point with my project Cal were I have to start thinking about a holding tank. When I purchased the boat, it did not have a holding tank - the head was connected straight to a thru hull. The rest of used water from shower, sink etc just flowed to the sump, and got pumped out when the float switch was triggered. Anyway, I'd like suggestions as far as holding tank sources and advise on size, placement and what is required to go to the tank, if some or all the drain connections. As usual, the group's help is always appreciated! Best regards Jeff '72 Cal 33

Hey, Michael: Thanks for the info, I am indeed interested in the photos! Best regards Jeff On Jun 17, 2011, at 10:22 AM, Michael D <md… [at] yahoo.com> wrote: > Jeff, > > I purchased my holding tank from Ronco http://www.ronco-plastics.com/ I forget the size, but I ordered the largest tank I could shoehorn under the sink of our Cal 2-27. The head goes to the tank. The tank output feeds a Y-valve that allows deck pump-outs or dumping via a macerator to the thruhull when we are offshore. If you are interested, I'll dig up some photos of the project. > > Michael > > --- On Fri, 6/17/11, Jeff <je… [at] yahoo.com> wrote: > > From: Jeff <je… [at] yahoo.com> > Subject: [Cal_Boats] Holdimg tank > To: "Cal" <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> > Date: Friday, June 17, 2011, 9:58 AM > > > Good morning > > I have gotten to the point with my project Cal were I have to start thinking about a holding tank. > > When I purchased the boat, it did not have a holding tank - the head was connected straight to a thru hull. > > The rest of used water from shower, sink etc just flowed to the sump, and got pumped out when the float switch was triggered. > > Anyway, I'd like suggestions as far as holding tank sources and advise on size, placement and what is required to go to the tank, if some or all the drain connections. > > As usual, the group's help is always appreciated! > > Best regards > > Jeff > > '72 Cal 33 > >

Jeff, Well, I just was getting ready to send this and realized that you do not have a 29 and so many of my comments are overly specific to that model. If you go to Ronco's marine tank web page you can browse the dimensions of the tanks and try and figure out which one will work for you. Ask them for a discount when you order the tank, as I believe they probably still show retail prices on their web-catalog. I suggest you build a cardboard mock-up of any tank you want to consider and test that for fit before you order. Ronco will guide you through the placement of your hose fittings. http://www.ronco-plastics.com/newRonco/installation.php I fit a 16 gallon tank from Ronco under the V-berth directly in front of the water tank without doing any modifications to the v-berth deck. It was adequate. Another Cal 29 owner, our own beloved Alfred Poor, fit a 25 gallon Ronco tank into the same space with easy modifications to the opening in the v-berth deck -- I hope I recall this properly. Alfred no longer owns the 29, but I believe he still monitors this list. My complaint was that the hoses were necessarily long and even the most expensive ones will become saturated and smell after a while. I plumbed a small hand pump mounted under the deck to port of the water tank so I could pump it out when off-shore. The pump was a source of odor in short order -- I am fanatical about head odors, so was unhappy with it. A purpose built for waste pump would have been better, but I have friends with those and they still get odorous after a while. I also plumbed a Y-valve into the discharge side hose but later decided it wasn't necessary -- when hand-pumping the waste out, the deck fitting is screwed in so why would that be a problem? After changing out all of the hoses a couple of times I decided to build a gravity tank that sits up behind the head. It only holds 15 gallons because I couldn't find a tank that fit the space very well. I've had some problems with that installation as well, but have figured it all out. If the waste sits in the tank very long it tends to plug up the discharge hose with enough solids that gravity is insufficient to drain it. I experimented with putting a little pressure into the tank (my inflatable hand pump just happens to fit the vent fitting on the tank) and that gets it started and out it goes. That is also very inconvenient as I won't discharge the tank unless I am well off-shore which means often rougher water and perching on the deck with the pump. A macerator discharge pump would solve this, of course, or maybe even a valve in the vent line that I could close to pressurize the tank. I would never want to put too much pressure into the tank, however, for fear of blowing a hose off into the interior of the boat. I saw that happen to a friends boat out at the Islands one nice weekend. Ended their trip abruptly. Another related issue to both of the above installations was that the brand of head that I had did not block waste seeping back into the toilet bowl, especially when the tank started getting full. I currently use an electric macerating head, which seems to prevent that from happening, but I also have noticed that many of the heads have a locking pump handle to prevent this as well. Another of my boat friends installed a large rectangular tank under his settees and added a macerator pump for discharging it off-shore. It seems to work great but I don't see enough space on the 29 to do this. So I am restless with my current system and am getting myself geared up to either install the 25 gallon tank under the V-berth with rigid plumbing back to the head side of the front bulkhead and a macerator pump for discharge, or I am going to build my own epoxy tank that fits the shape of the hull and sits behind the head with either a gravity or macerator discharge option. Still thinking about this. I like the idea of the tank under the v-berth because I waste that space otherwise as it's too hard to get to. Hope these thoughts help you figure this out. Wilkie On Jun 17, 2011, at 6:58 AM, Jeff wrote: Good morning I have gotten to the point with my project Cal were I have to start thinking about a holding tank. When I purchased the boat, it did not have a holding tank - the head was connected straight to a thru hull. The rest of used water from shower, sink etc just flowed to the sump, and got pumped out when the float switch was triggered. Anyway, I'd like suggestions as far as holding tank sources and advise on size, placement and what is required to go to the tank, if some or all the drain connections. As usual, the group's help is always appreciated! Best regards Jeff '72 Cal 33

jeff we have a raritan compact II marine head .. we put a day tank that is removeable on also could be plumbed in ..we wanted a bigger tank but with Y valve it looked a like octopus nearly 12 feet of hose... if you use sink (gray) water to supply head this will conserve fresh water and keep holding smelling better (THAN SEA WATER) I have incl 1 pic of toilet with tank ....you might want to consider a sealand marine RV toilet which has a wet bowl and fushes using 1/4 a gal perflush ...if you can make it sit on top of tank (or on a corner) ..this makes vacuum flush unnecessary .... remember the 2 THINGS that WOMEN hate about boating is boat toilets and boat names... edward (helen) From: Jeff <je… [at] yahoo.com> To: Cal <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> Sent: Fri, June 17, 2011 6:58:36 AM Subject: [Cal_Boats] Holdimg tank Good morning I have gotten to the point with my project Cal were I have to start thinking about a holding tank. When I purchased the boat, it did not have a holding tank - the head was connected straight to a thru hull. The rest of used water from shower, sink etc just flowed to the sump, and got pumped out when the float switch was triggered. Anyway, I'd like suggestions as far as holding tank sources and advise on size, placement and what is required to go to the tank, if some or all the drain connections. As usual, the group's help is always appreciated! Best regards Jeff '72 Cal 33

and anther one of your friends eliminated all of what you continue to battle and has a composting head Reggie To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com From: dw… [at] me.com Date: Fri, 17 Jun 2011 10:52:38 -0700 Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] Holdimg tank Jeff, Well, I just was getting ready to send this and realized that you do not have a 29 and so many of my comments are overly specific to that model. If you go to Ronco's marine tank web page you can browse the dimensions of the tanks and try and figure out which one will work for you. Ask them for a discount when you order the tank, as I believe they probably still show retail prices on their web-catalog. I suggest you build a cardboard mock-up of any tank you want to consider and test that for fit before you order. Ronco will guide you through the placement of your hose fittings. http://www.ronco-plastics.com/newRonco/installation.php I fit a 16 gallon tank from Ronco under the V-berth directly in front of the water tank without doing any modifications to the v-berth deck. It was adequate. Another Cal 29 owner, our own beloved Alfred Poor, fit a 25 gallon Ronco tank into the same space with easy modifications to the opening in the v-berth deck -- I hope I recall this properly. Alfred no longer owns the 29, but I believe he still monitors this list. My complaint was that the hoses were necessarily long and even the most expensive ones will become saturated and smell after a while. I plumbed a small hand pump mounted under the deck to port of the water tank so I could pump it out when off-shore. The pump was a source of odor in short order -- I am fanatical about head odors, so was unhappy with it. A purpose built for waste pump would have been better, but I have friends with those and they still get odorous after a while. I also plumbed a Y-valve into the discharge side hose but later decided it wasn't necessary -- when hand-pumping the waste out, the deck fitting is screwed in so why would that be a problem? After changing out all of the hoses a couple of times I decided to build a gravity tank that sits up behind the head. It only holds 15 gallons because I couldn't find a tank that fit the space very well. I've had some problems with that installation as well, but have figured it all out. If the waste sits in the tank very long it tends to plug up the discharge hose with enough solids that gravity is insufficient to drain it. I experimented with putting a little pressure into the tank (my inflatable hand pump just happens to fit the vent fitting on the tank) and that gets it started and out it goes. That is also very inconvenient as I won't discharge the tank unless I am well off-shore which means often rougher water and perching on the deck with the pump. A macerator discharge pump would solve this, of course, or maybe even a valve in the vent line that I could close to pressurize the tank. I would never want to put too much pressure into the tank, however, for fear of blowing a hose off into the interior of the boat. I saw that happen to a friends boat out at the Islands one nice weekend. Ended their trip abruptly. Another related issue to both of the above installations was that the brand of head that I had did not block waste seeping back into the toilet bowl, especially when the tank started getting full. I currently use an electric macerating head, which seems to prevent that from happening, but I also have noticed that many of the heads have a locking pump handle to prevent this as well. Another of my boat friends installed a large rectangular tank under his settees and added a macerator pump for discharging it off-shore. It seems to work great but I don't see enough space on the 29 to do this. So I am restless with my current system and am getting myself geared up to either install the 25 gallon tank under the V-berth with rigid plumbing back to the head side of the front bulkhead and a macerator pump for discharge, or I am going to build my own epoxy tank that fits the shape of the hull and sits behind the head with either a gravity or macerator discharge option. Still thinking about this. I like the idea of the tank under the v-berth because I waste that space otherwise as it's too hard to get to. Hope these thoughts help you figure this out. Wilkie On Jun 17, 2011, at 6:58 AM, Jeff wrote: Good morning I have gotten to the point with my project Cal were I have to start thinking about a holding tank. When I purchased the boat, it did not have a holding tank - the head was connected straight to a thru hull. The rest of used water from shower, sink etc just flowed to the sump, and got pumped out when the float switch was triggered. Anyway, I'd like suggestions as far as holding tank sources and advise on size, placement and what is required to go to the tank, if some or all the drain connections. As usual, the group's help is always appreciated! Best regards Jeff '72 Cal 33

Seen these advertised but never known anybody that owned one. I am very intrigued with the concept and will postpone any head and holding tank revisions until your reviews are in...... keep us posted. Wilkie On Jun 17, 2011, at 7:50 PM, r good wrote: and anther one of your friends eliminated all of what you continue to battle and has a composting head Reggie To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com From: dw… [at] me.com Date: Fri, 17 Jun 2011 10:52:38 -0700 Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] Holdimg tank Jeff, Well, I just was getting ready to send this and realized that you do not have a 29 and so many of my comments are overly specific to that model. If you go to Ronco's marine tank web page you can browse the dimensions of the tanks and try and figure out which one will work for you. Ask them for a discount when you order the tank, as I believe they probably still show retail prices on their web-catalog. I suggest you build a cardboard mock-up of any tank you want to consider and test that for fit before you order. Ronco will guide you through the placement of your hose fittings. http://www.ronco-plastics.com/newRonco/installation.php I fit a 16 gallon tank from Ronco under the V-berth directly in front of the water tank without doing any modifications to the v-berth deck. It was adequate. Another Cal 29 owner, our own beloved Alfred Poor, fit a 25 gallon Ronco tank into the same space with easy modifications to the opening in the v-berth deck -- I hope I recall this properly. Alfred no longer owns the 29, but I believe he still monitors this list. My complaint was that the hoses were necessarily long and even the most expensive ones will become saturated and smell after a while. I plumbed a small hand pump mounted under the deck to port of the water tank so I could pump it out when off-shore. The pump was a source of odor in short order -- I am fanatical about head odors, so was unhappy with it. A purpose built for waste pump would have been better, but I have friends with those and they still get odorous after a while. I also plumbed a Y-valve into the discharge side hose but later decided it wasn't necessary -- when hand-pumping the waste out, the deck fitting is screwed in so why would that be a problem? After changing out all of the hoses a couple of times I decided to build a gravity tank that sits up behind the head. It only holds 15 gallons because I couldn't find a tank that fit the space very well. I've had some problems with that installation as well, but have figured it all out. If the waste sits in the tank very long it tends to plug up the discharge hose with enough solids that gravity is insufficient to drain it. I experimented with putting a little pressure into the tank (my inflatable hand pump just happens to fit the vent fitting on the tank) and that gets it started and out it goes. That is also very inconvenient as I won't discharge the tank unless I am well off-shore which means often rougher water and perching on the deck with the pump. A macerator discharge pump would solve this, of course, or maybe even a valve in the vent line that I could close to pressurize the tank. I would never want to put too much pressure into the tank, however, for fear of blowing a hose off into the interior of the boat. I saw that happen to a friends boat out at the Islands one nice weekend. Ended their trip abruptly. Another related issue to both of the above installations was that the brand of head that I had did not block waste seeping back into the toilet bowl, especially when the tank started getting full. I currently use an electric macerating head, which seems to prevent that from happening, but I also have noticed that many of the heads have a locking pump handle to prevent this as well. Another of my boat friends installed a large rectangular tank under his settees and added a macerator pump for discharging it off-shore. It seems to work great but I don't see enough space on the 29 to do this. So I am restless with my current system and am getting myself geared up to either install the 25 gallon tank under the V-berth with rigid plumbing back to the head side of the front bulkhead and a macerator pump for discharge, or I am going to build my own epoxy tank that fits the shape of the hull and sits behind the head with either a gravity or macerator discharge option. Still thinking about this. I like the idea of the tank under the v-berth because I waste that space otherwise as it's too hard to get to. Hope these thoughts help you figure this out. Wilkie On Jun 17, 2011, at 6:58 AM, Jeff wrote: Good morning I have gotten to the point with my project Cal were I have to start thinking about a holding tank. When I purchased the boat, it did not have a holding tank - the head was connected straight to a thru hull. The rest of used water from shower, sink etc just flowed to the sump, and got pumped out when the float switch was triggered. Anyway, I'd like suggestions as far as holding tank sources and advise on size, placement and what is required to go to the tank, if some or all the drain connections. As usual, the group's help is always appreciated! Best regards Jeff '72 Cal 33