Holding tank flush

[kjg1951]

I have been searching on this site about the holding tank and how to flush it out after a pump out. I have tried to do so but when i put the hose in the pump out hole the water goes in for a bit then it comes back out. I have noticed that the hose is located at the bottom of the holding tank and maybe that is why i cannot get a good amount of water in the tank to give it a good flushing I have a 94 28t Albin and also the Y value is very confushing as to which way to turn when pumping out and when one is 3 mlies out to sea for over board discharge. thank you for your help
Kevin G

[jleonard]

It sounds to me very much like your vent line is plugged. You should be able to put water in thru the pump out fitting...maybe not full force though, as the vent line would only be 1/2 or so.
If it were me (and it was a few times ) I would first try spraying water into the vent line from the outside of the boat. If not successful, inspect the vent fitting closely as maybe mud daubers or salt have crudded it up.
Last choice and I have been there, is to undo the vent hose from the tank and clear it out that way. If the tank was ever "full" the fitting at the top of the tank might be plugged up....

As to where to set the Y valve...I think we would need a good picture of yours to help figure that out.

[kjg1951]

ok i will get a pic of the y value tonight...

[RobS]

Look closely at the Y valve body. When the handle is in one position it should expose arrows on the valve body for the open ports and cover the arrow for the closed port. Here's a photo I found on the web, I circled the arrows that are on the valve body in green, the yellow arrows show the routing of the flow..

[kjg1951]

Here is a pic of my Y value the red denotes the long part of the handle and is pointing to the overboard discharge through the maserator...

[kjg1951]

Here is another pic although blurry which way should the long part of the hanle point to overboard discharge and to pump out and which way to leave it so the fluid goes into the holding tank... thanks

[chiefrcd]

Another way. When I would pump out, I'd use either a garden hose from the dock or my shower head and flush clean water into the tank with a little odor loss. Then I'd pump it out again...do that a couple of times and it worked well for me. In addition, we always flush with fresh water from the shower head as 75 % of the stink we experienced was from the salt water organisms that died in the line/tank.

[Nepidae]

As I stated previously, we have a Raritan Electro Scan and use it almost exclusively, although I found out my Y valve hadn't been 'thrown' all the way so some effluent had gone to the holding tank.
At the Annapolis Powerboat Show I stopped at the Raritan booth and purchased some of their holding tank cleaner ‘KO’ which we put in the heads and flushed then we put some directly into the pump out on deck, added some water and went for a ride. When we were pulled for the winter our marina pumps out as part of the haul. Without some sort of inspection port I will be presuming that I now have a clean holding tank.
I have also made sure my Y valves are properly 'seated'.
One of my winter projects is the aft head which doesn't seem to pull raw water (I'm hoping it is an impeller).
I also plan on using new Raritan Y valves in both heads, replacements are in order as the current ones almost need a 'convincer' to move.
Since we are on the topic, I read here, I believe, that someone used plastic pipe in their sewage hookup which if I have to pull a head I might as well replace some hose (not sure it isn't vintage 1985 hose).
I check with Steve D'Antonio who told me that ABYC didn't have a standing on the use of plastic (PVC 40 or 80) but he thought it a good idea. He felt since odor was one of the biggest problems with heads on boats that plastic would help eliminate that. Here is his email to me: With a few caveats, using schedule 40 or 80 PVC pipe for sanitation systems makes very good sense indeed. Above all else, the primary woe of sanitation systems is odor, which is frequently the result of hose permeation. Hose can permeate for several reasons, chief among these are low quality material or hose runs that allow effluent to stand within them. The former is easy to avoid by purchasing only high quality hose that includes a minimum five year permeation warranty. The latter can be more challenging to deal with, it’s often a function of the vessel’s overall design. However, when PVC pipe is used, the permeation issue, as well as the need for hose replacement for any other reason, is eliminated.
ABYC is mute on the subject of sanitation system plumbing. However, in my opinion, PVC pipe should not be used in areas where its failure would result on seawater flooding.
I covered this this and other sanitation system details in a PassageMaker online Newsletter in January of 2012, it’s available via this link. http://www.passagemaker.com/subscriptio ... ystem-woes
In closing our new marina offers free pump outs but the last time it was pumped out I asked the docperson if he could do a little flush, this was before I used the KO. He was glad to put a hose in the pump out and run some fresh water in then pump it out again. I gave him a buck or 2 tip.