It does occur to me that there is a difference between those of us who keep our boats commissioned year round and those who don't. For those of us who use our boats constantly, you really don't want to rise "everything" out of the tank. Tanks stay sweet when they are maintained with the right bacteria and well aerated. Every time you dump, you want to keep enough "starter" bacteria in there to keep the science project going. You don't really want to completely start over and rinsing really does not help you. Boats that get used this way rarely stink.
However if a boat is going to be laid up for awhile, its typical that vent lines are not big enough to really exchange enough air to keep the science project going and can turn stanky. In that kind of situation, I do try to empty the tank and rinse it a few times with fresh water, but that means that I have to re-establish the science project to make sure it does not stink in getting going the next time.
If you can keep the system going, I think you are better for it. If you have to lay up, rinsing may actually have some merit. Some of this though is still just some kind of illogical fear of poop, not based on really having a valid reason for otherwise taking action.
my .02
However if a boat is going to be laid up for awhile, its typical that vent lines are not big enough to really exchange enough air to keep the science project going and can turn stanky. In that kind of situation, I do try to empty the tank and rinse it a few times with fresh water, but that means that I have to re-establish the science project to make sure it does not stink in getting going the next time.
If you can keep the system going, I think you are better for it. If you have to lay up, rinsing may actually have some merit. Some of this though is still just some kind of illogical fear of poop, not based on really having a valid reason for otherwise taking action.
my .02
