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Remove pump out


jeff     b

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9 minutes ago, jeff b said:

Any pointers please re removing pump out tank please? Thanks.

Cut it into small pieces?

Is it integral? If it is then you can only remove part of it.

Is it plastic? That cuts up easy.

Is it stainless? That might have greater scrap value. 

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Possibly the most important thing is not to try and do it by yourself, no matter how big and strong you are. The tank will probably have a lot of soilidified waste in the bottom and it will be heavy. Secondly depending upon the design of your boat, and where the tank is located, you may have a lot of difficult manouvering to do. Thirdly the tank was probably installed before the fitout was completed, so you may have to move fitted units, or even bulkheads. 

Once you have removed the tank, you will be surprised as to hopw much space it leaves for more staorage etc. We removed ours and relied upon the good old faithful Poprta Potti (with spare tank) which we found fine for just two people cruising.

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Big and heavy and smelly. Measure it to check it will fit out the door. Do not expect it to be completely empty. If it was fitted before the boat was fitted out,may involve some carpentry. Make arrangements for disposal of the tank i.e.trailer to take to scrap yard. It will be heavy,even if you have managed to empty most of the contents. Couple of friends needed,preferably with Marigolds.

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Can you not just seal it and leave it (after a thorough pump out)?  I'm sure I read on here of people doing that. Personally I'm keeping mine. Simple dump though 80s unit, works well and not smelly!

 

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25 minutes ago, jeff b said:

Any pointers please re removing pump out tank please? Thanks.

Firstly may I commend you on your sensible approach to boating. I have removed several so if you get stuck please give a little more information although you have had good advice so far.

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I'm looking to buy my first narrow boat and, having read up for weeks/months and searched many websites this seems to be one of the fundamental  variables which has strong pros and cons.

We've had many hols on French canal boats which, as you probably know, pump straight out to the canal/river. Because our new boat will be anything but new, if our final selection is 20 years + and has a tank, my very strong fear of a burst or leaking sewage tank is a total no-no for both my wife and I.

Thanks for contact.

j

  • Greenie 1
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18 minutes ago, Nightwatch said:

I was going to suggest Tim (mrsmelly). I would have thought he would gladly travel at his own expense and remove the tank on his own. He really doesn't like them.

you can but ask him.

 

:P:P

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4 hours ago, jeff b said:

I'm looking to buy my first narrow boat and, having read up for weeks/months and searched many websites this seems to be one of the fundamental  variables which has strong pros and cons.

We've had many hols on French canal boats which, as you probably know, pump straight out to the canal/river. Because our new boat will be anything but new, if our final selection is 20 years + and has a tank, my very strong fear of a burst or leaking sewage tank is a total no-no for both my wife and I.

Thanks for contact.

j

You are aware you can't pump overboard in this country I presume.

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Some boats are fitted with tanks made from mild steel and eventually 10-12 years, the tank perforates. It happened to our shared boat. The smell from under the bed left no doubt as to what had happened. It was replaced with a plastic one which has performed perfectly well. 

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4 hours ago, mross said:

Most sewage tanks are stainless steel and will last a long, long time.  Worth checking though.  Modern ones might be plastic which is also OK.

Old ones might also be plastic. The tank in our boat was plastic and was installed in 1981. We eventually took it out because the sit on toilet failed, and we had become used to using the Porta Potti by then. The tank was still OK and as far as i know was cleaned out and fitted into another boat.

Edited by David Schweizer
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On 24/08/2017 at 09:00, jeff b said:

...my very strong fear of a burst or leaking sewage tank is a total no-no for both my wife and I.

 

When I think of all the things that can go wrong with a boat, this one wouldn't even make my reserve list! Has anyone actually had a 'burst'? Someone earlier mentioned a whiff from under the bed leading to a tank replacement, but surely there's not really a risk of catastrophic failure.

Each to their own on loo types, but I would have thought you're far more likely to come into contact with sewage on daily visits to the sanitary station than in some horrendous sh.. tank based explosion reminiscent of a Tom Sharpe novel. ;)

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On 24 August 2017 at 11:35, Nightwatch said:

I was going to suggest Tim (mrsmelly). I would have thought he would gladly travel at his own expense and remove the tank on his own. He really doesn't like them.

you can but ask him.

 

If mrsmelly prefers a cassette I reckon it must be mr smelly rather than mrs melly.  :)

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On 24/08/2017 at 09:00, jeff b said:

I'm looking to buy my first narrow boat and, having read up for weeks/months and searched many websites this seems to be one of the fundamental  variables which has strong pros and cons.

We've had many hols on French canal boats which, as you probably know, pump straight out to the canal/river. Because our new boat will be anything but new, if our final selection is 20 years + and has a tank, my very strong fear of a burst or leaking sewage tank is a total no-no for both my wife and I.

Thanks for contact.

j

There are thousands of used boats on the market. If you already know that you don't want a pump-out toilet wouldn't it just be easier to buy a boat without a pump-out rather than leave that option open and plan on removing a tank? In some cases it is not an easy job. 

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10 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

When I think of all the things that can go wrong with a boat, this one wouldn't even make my reserve list! Has anyone actually had a 'burst'?

They don't "burst" but mild steel tanks can corrode through and leak. There have been several cases posted on this forum over the years. Stainless and good quality plastic tanks should be fine, although I've seen a leaking weld on a stainless water tank. Of course, plastic cassettes could potentially crack or leak too - but they're just much easier to get off the boat and replace.

On 24/08/2017 at 13:54, mross said:

Most sewage tanks are stainless steel and will last a long, long time.  Worth checking though.  Modern ones might be plastic which is also OK.

There are plenty of mild steel dump through tanks too. I used to have one on a previous boat.

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17 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

Has anyone actually had a 'burst'?

We had an implosion during a pump-out at a service point in Warwick. I think the bloke doing it must have managed to block the vent pipe. We only realised later when it dawned that the persistent stink wasn't from something industrial on the bank but from under the bed. No brown stuff in the boat but the blue liquid which he'd added had gone onto the floor. It was last thing on a Friday and the nice technical bloke at Elsan told us to use sodium carbonate to neutralise it. Not an easy thing to find in the next local shop - indeed, we never did. Mopped it out thoroughly with water. Had to sleep at the front with the doors open for a few nights and used a bucket found in the hedgerow for number twos and for the wife's needs.

That was a rather crude tank which had been made from one of those blue industrial plastic drums. It was replaced with a sturdy polyethylene tank (available if anyone wants to make an offer, it's now in my garage) before that was taken out in favour of a portapotti.

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  • 2 years later...

I have a disused integral pump out tank on my boaty which I want to remove.  If I just cut the top off, leaving the bottom, would I still need new ribs etc welded in?  I've also asked sane question on the Black Prince owner's page.

 

I want to do the most cost effective possible and look at all options before I decide which way I'll go......I desperately want the space for a dinette type area though rather than wasted tank space.....flippitty flip ?

 

Any idea or information much appreciated, thank youu.

 

Just to add that I currently have bed over the tank, so if all else fails maybe I'll just have to spray foam and leave as is and use area at back of boat I was going to put bedroom as a dinette type area......my partner can cut and weld etc no bother but.........

Edited by Suzi
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