What happens when you flush the loo?

Well, it all depends on the type of loo you've chosen

The 'PortaPotti' - Probably the simplest type of toilet, it doesn't need any plumbing - you can carry the whole thing on and off the boat.

One of its tanks holds water, the other holds the water once you've flushed the loo. When tank number 2 is full you empty it at a sanitary station along the canal.

 

 

The Cassette toilet - A more advanced version of the PortaPotti, it can be plumbed in so that the clean water supply comes from the boat's tanks. It might also be built into the boat with an access panel in the corridor so that the cassette containing the 'dirty' water can be removed.

A spare 'cassette' would normally be carried in case you fill one and can't get to empty it.

The 'Dump Through' - A holding tank is situated directly under the toilet. You 'flush' and the tank is momentarily opened to the allow the water+ into the tank. Can be smelly. Also, if the toilet and tank are positioned to the side of the boat, the boat will list as the tank gets fuller as days go by. When the tank is full you need to get it pumped out either at a marina or at a self pump out station.

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The 'Macerator' ( this is what we have gone for) - You can have a remote holding tank with these type of toilets so should be able to avoid the listing effect if the tank is positioned along the centre line of the boat. (Ours is going under our bed). These toilets use a set of chopping blades as the pump action, and are electrically operated.

The Vacuum Extractor - These toilets require quite a lot of 'extras' such as vacuum pump, vacuum generator, etc in order to flush the loo. One of the reasons for using vacuum toilets is that very little water is required on the flush which means that the holding tanks take longer to fill up so you don't have to pay to empty them as often. When we were looking at options, the Vacuum toilets were twice as expensive as the Macerators and we reckoned we would need to save about 100 pump outs before we would break even.

Generator
Pump
Tank

 

 

 

 

 

 

Points to Ponder - It is down to personal preference - we have gone for the Saniflo C43 from Lee Sanitation. We heard arguments in favour of the Vacuum (smaller water quantity, fewer pump outs). We heard arguments in favour of the Cassette & PortaPotti - you don't have to pay for pump out, sanitary stations more readily available than pump outs, less chance of the loos filling up and no opportunity to empty them.

We will have a remote holding tank, along the centre line of the boat, so how will we know when the tank is getting full? (Hopefully no list and we won't be able to look into the tank like you can with a Dump Through). We're having a gauge fitted which should show us how full the tank is.

With our Dump Throughs on Scimitar, we put 'Blue' down the loos to aid the fermentation and disintegration. Talking to Lee Sanitation about the remote holding tank, they recommend that no chemicals at all are put down the loo and that natural processes are left to take their course! Cleaning agents recommended for the ceramic bowl are natural products like white vinegar or lemon juice.

With thanks to Lee Sanitation - for more information on even more types of marine toilets, visit their web site by clicking here