SCUMBAG BOATER

[Bob18]

It all depends on the local treatment works, some with very large throughputs will be able to stand the relatively small amounts of bug killers from a boat tank, while those with a very limited throughput would be struggling.

The thing with disposing at an approved location is that the waste is properly managed, and not just chucked into the environment in an unmanaged, uncontrolled manner.

 

I still think giving the "gent" from the OP's first post a tooth brush and a drinking straw to clean up the mess he's made is an appropriate punishment.

[Theo]

Not allowed at Mercia marina as the local water co. (severn trent) had concerns about chemicals as in 'blue' getting in the sewerage system.

 

Hence they had an elsan that emptied into a cess pit that had to be emptied...still the same AFAIK...

 

If blue were banned there would be no problem. There are other ways like Ecomagic.

 

Nick

Edited November 24, 2011 by Theo

[Bob18]

If you banned blue tomorrow (which I think is a good idea) there would still be a period of time during which the water treatment plant would be at risk from the blue that is currently sitting around not being used. And knowing how responsive the utilities are to change that would probably be ten years, by which time they'd have thought of another excuse...

[bargemast]

That has answered a question I have been wanting to ask for a while as in -

 

'If we take our boat to France or buy one over there which is our best option PO or cassette?'

 

I guess then it depends on which method you are most comfortable with....

 

 

There are a few pump-out places in France, but most people don't know where they are.

 

They want to oblige boat owners to have a black water tank, but if there's nothing done quickly, it will all and up in the waterways anyway.

 

I still think that the best option is a PO, if you have a reasonably big tank, you can wait with your pump-out until you are on a river with at least some current and empty while underway instead of just in one spot.

 

In Holland you are not allowed to empty your toilets straight into the water, but there are plenty of pump-out places wherever you go.

 

Peter.

[i love my narrowboat]

What a filthy b####d, we moved on our boat to get away from filthy Jeremy Kyle trash,, I hope he can be identifed,,

[Guest]

I was moored outside a pub at Christleton on the Shropshire Union canal in the summer. It was opposite a boatyard where a day boat operates from and at the and of a day hire the operator empties the pump out into the canal.

Anyone report it?

 

Whilst on this pleasant subject, can anyone recommend or otherwise using bio washing powder/liquid in a porta potti so as to avoid using the deadly blue stuff? If it is OK which type and what quantity etc?

 

Many thanks.

Edited November 24, 2011 by Guest

[ditchcrawler]

Yes, there are pump-out places in France. There's one at Châtillon Coligny on the Canal de Briare south of Montargis. Oh, and there's one at ......... er .. Châtillon Coligny - did I mention that? Oh, and Châti...... Ah, and I forgot to say, but it does not have have standard size hose connections, and I don't think it has ever been used.

 

In reality I believe many hire bases have them, but they don't welcome private boats. Don't forget too that the maximum permitted size of a hire boat was 15m till very recently, so they are not going to be set up to have access for larger craft anyway. Other than the Canal du Midi the number of boats per kilometer is negligible and the waterways much wider and deeper than in the UK; the cows/birds/fishermen add more pollutants to the water than the handful of boats do.

 

We advise anyone having a boat built to bring to France to have a black tank fitted, but to have a diverter valve so the loo can pump straight overside until the time there are facilities available for emptying it. Far better to allow overside pumping as the loo is used, rather than filling a holding tank, sterilising the contents, and then pumping it all out in one dollop. They will eventually come about, no doubt, but at this point it has not even been possible to get the French to adopt the standard hose fittings in use e.g. in the UK.

Has your tank ever been used yet?

When we hired on the Canal du Midi the boat loo went straight over the side but all waste water went into a grey tank. This was fitted with an overflow so when it was full it also went over the side and did it stink, worse than any pump out tank.

 

No halo but you can have a greenie for being a good boater.

D

In view of your recent accident I think your profile should be changed from Long Standing Member to sitting.

[i love my narrowboat]

Just to add to this though, I put my toilet tissue in a bin in our shower room, and the cassette lasts much longer for doing this, I thought about it and remember when on holiday in Greece that this is the norm, so I thought I would give it a go too.

Edited November 24, 2011 by i love my narrowboat

[cereal tiller]

Anyone report it?

 

Whilst on this pleasant subject, can anyone recommend or otherwise using bio washing powder/liquid in a porta potti so as to avoid using the deadly blue stuff? If it is OK which type and what quantity etc?

 

Many thanks.

Hi catweasel

we have been using biological washing machine liquid in the cassette for a couple of weeks,also using some in the rinse tank.

 

loo now has a pleasant fragrance,and when it is emptied,the contents pour more easily than before.

 

i got the suggestion from this venerable forum(hope i spelt that word correctly),will let you know if there are any problems encountered.

[bizzard]

I use the cheap recycled toilet paper from supermarkets as i find that it disintegrates completely and there's never any evidence of it when i root through the contents of my cassette when emptying.

[Naughty Cal]

Ooh can I have a halo then?

 

I'm in the same marina as phylis and fitted a holding tank precisely because I was not happy using the sea toilet my boat had when I bought it

 

We already had a holding tank fitted to Cal

[carlt]

I use the cheap recycled toilet paper from supermarkets

 

I use Izal medicated...if I can get my gimp suit off in time.

[cereal tiller]

I use the cheap recycled toilet paper from supermarkets as i find that it disintegrates completely and there's never any evidence of it when i root through the contents of my cassette when emptying.

will give the recycled paper a try bizzard,ta.

 

a thought keeps entering my mind,if biological liquid is being used in the holding tank,should i be using FABRIC CONDITIONER in the rinse tank?

[Naughty Cal]

Why do people feel obliged to put chemicals in their holding tanks/cassettes?

 

We have never put anything in NC's holding tank (other than the obvious of course) and have never found it to smell. Good ventilation is the key.

[Steilsteven]

Why do people feel obliged to put chemicals in their holding tanks/cassettes?

 

We have never put anything in NC's holding tank (other than the obvious of course) and have never found it to smell. Good ventilation is the key.

 

The main purpose of using chemicals is to break down the solids, only really necessary when the tank is gravity fed as in dump through.

 

Keith

[Guest]

Why do people feel obliged to put chemicals in their holding tanks/cassettes?

 

We have never put anything in NC's holding tank (other than the obvious of course) and have never found it to smell. Good ventilation is the key.

 

At the risk of re-awakening the 'well you should have stuck with your pump out shouldn't you' brigade it does make the emptying the cassette process more pleasant.

Having once forgotten to put some blue in I won't be doing it again in a hurry..particularly as the cassette in question didn't get emptied for a few days..

 

When my current stock of blue is used however I am going to give the cassettes a good old rinse out and switch to something more eco friendly though.

[Theo]

At the risk of re-awakening the 'well you should have stuck with your pump out shouldn't you' brigade it does make the emptying the cassette process more pleasant.

Having once forgotten to put some blue in I won't be doing it again in a hurry..particularly as the cassette in question didn't get emptied for a few days..

 

When my current stock of blue is used however I am going to give the cassettes a good old rinse out and switch to something more eco friendly though.

 

Good for you! I, for one, have no interest in preserving my poos for posterity (There's a pun in there somewhere ) I much prefer to accelerate their decomposition with Ecomagic.

 

Nick

[Albion]

Good for you! I, for one, have no interest in preserving my poos for posterity (There's a pun in there somewhere ) I much prefer to accelerate their decomposition with Ecomagic.

 

Nick

When we boated in the UK (with a cassette toilet fitted, of course ) we used the green version of the Thetford. Out of interest has anyone any views on that product? We found that it didn't mask the smell quite as well as the blue but it wasn't a significant problem.

Roger

[Guest]

When we boated in the UK (with a cassette toilet fitted, of course ) we used the green version of the Thetford. Out of interest has anyone any views on that product? We found that it didn't mask the smell quite as well as the blue but it wasn't a significant problem.

Roger

 

We used to use it when we were caravanners and found the same hence why I used blue when got the boat - I had hoped the product had improved though as it was a good few years ago and 'early' days for eco friendly stuff.

[Athy]

We switched to Green Loo from Blue Loo because our moorings landlord (an organic farmer) did not want any of the blue stuff poured down his disposal 'ole. I assume the green stuff is more natural. But some posts above suggest that Blue Loo can be harmful; what does it do?

[Naughty Cal]

We used to use it when we were caravanners and found the same hence why I used blue when got the boat - I had hoped the product had improved though as it was a good few years ago and 'early' days for eco friendly stuff.

 

But if you are really bothered about being "eco friendly" then surely the best option is to avoid chemicals in the tank/cassette altogether.

[Albion]

We switched to Green Loo from Blue Loo because our moorings landlord (an organic farmer) did not want any of the blue stuff poured down his disposal 'ole. I assume the green stuff is more natural. But some posts above suggest that Blue Loo can be harmful; what does it do?

 

AFAIAA it contains formaldehyde which is, I believe, the thing that can kill the bacteria in cess pit tanks etc.

Roger

[Tam & Di]

Has your tank ever been used yet?

When we hired on the Canal du Midi the boat loo went straight over the side but all waste water went into a grey tank. This was fitted with an overflow so when it was full it also went over the side and did it stink, worse than any pump out tank.

 

No, our tank is still pristine. I did think to convert it for bulk wine deliveries.

 

If/when rules come in that craft must have tanks for grey water too things really will get difficult. Everyone will fetch up living in a little cabin at the back like on a working boat, with the rest of the space devoted to holding tanks.

[Guest]

But if you are really bothered about being "eco friendly" then surely the best option is to avoid chemicals in the tank/cassette altogether.

 

I don't describe myself as an 'eco warrior' or anything like that but think we should do what we can were we can. In some cases that means a compromise this being one of them between the emptying process being as acceptable as it can be made and not harming the environment.

 

Trust me emptying a three day old full cassette tank with no toilet fluid in it is not something you want to be doing very often.

 

Different with a PO like yours where the process is effectively 'sealed' and odours are to a larger (though not 100% IIRC) degree much less.

[adam1uk]

We put yeast in our tank, although I don't know whether it would have time to work in a cassette.