Pump Out Question

Phillbo

Phillbo

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I'm new to the pump out head thing so have a question. Spent a few days on lake powell and went to the pump out station at the end of the trip. Everything appeared to go as expected but I had a lot of air noise from my waist tank vent. I could put my finger over it and feel the suction. Is this the way it should be? I would assume the tank is not getting emptied if it's simply sucking air from the vent. Doesn't it need to create a vacuum?
 
That's what you want. If you had a vacuum, your tank would try to shrivel and implode your tank and unfortunately they sometimes succeed. Your pump out draws from the bottom of the tank. I'd suggest thinking of a soda cup with a straw, but nah..........eeew
 
Thats the way it should be. If the vent was clogged, your holding tank could collapse.
 
Thanks guys... The guy on the other side of the dock must of had a problem.. His was not making any noise.
 
Yes, normal if the pump out has good vacuum...
 
It's also normal to NOT make noise. Many tanks have a large, or even two vents and may not "whistle" no matter how strong the suction is.
 
Air has to go into a tank for the contents to come out. Fuel, water, waste, it doesn't matter. And, air must come out of a tank for anything to go in.

It doesn't have to make noise, noise is not normal. Your vent cover may be partially blocked with something.
 
Clogged vents cause vacuum when emptying and pressure when filling. Always stand clear of any individual who is in the process of opening that pump out deck fitting. The trick is to unobtrusively linger just outside of the target zone, but close enough to get good pictures. Whatever you do, don't laugh.
 
You should be fine as stated above that just means your vent system isn't clogged.
Bill
 
If you're new to pumping out, I have some free advice. On the ride over to the pumpout drop a few pounds of ice into the pumpout fitting. Sloshing around in there helps (IMHO) break up clumps stuck to the bottom and sides of the tank.
 
Urban legend... I ve never seen a tank with solid clumps causing issues... Plus how do drop a few pounds of ice in the tank, One ice cube at a time? And ice floats... If the tank is anything but empty your ice cubes will float at the top and do nothing to loosen those mythical clumps at the bottom of the tank.

Solids are ground by the time they get to the tank and diluted with water...
 
Perhaps that's true on Pascal's yacht, but my little boat only has an 8 gallon holding tank. Wave action bounces the ice up and down rather nicely going from my marina to the pump out a few miles upriver.
 
quote:
Originally posted by PascalG

Urban legend... I ve never seen a tank with solid clumps causing issues... Plus how do drop a few pounds of ice in the tank, One ice cube at a time? And ice floats... If the tank is anything but empty your ice cubes will float at the top and do nothing to loosen those mythical clumps at the bottom of the tank.

Solids are ground by the time they get to the tank and diluted with water...

Click to expand...


It works in RV's so why would it not work on boats?
 
How do you know it works? Do you open access ports and sample the bottom?

Doesn't ice float? Unless you tank is a few inches tall or empty, then it s a waste of time.

Now, if you have the patience to feed ice cubes one by one in the pump out fitting when the tank is empty, then yes, the cubes have a chance to actual hit the bottom of the tank, otherwise it's a waste of time to fix a non problem
 
quote:
Originally posted by PascalG

How do you know it works? Do you open access ports and sample the bottom?

Doesn't ice float? Unless you tank is a few inches tall or empty, then it s a waste of time.

Now, if you have the patience to feed ice cubes one by one in the pump out fitting when the tank is empty, then yes, the cubes have a chance to actual hit the bottom of the tank, otherwise it's a waste of time to fix a non problem

Click to expand...


Lets see. I have had stuck sensor probes giving flase positives. Droped ice in holding tank, and they worked fine.

I can also tell you from the dual flush system that the tank is cleaner when ice is used then when it is not.

I must be making it up though, because it must be an urban legend because Pascal says it is an urban legend, right?
 
Calgon in the holding tank works to help soften the sludge that collects on the sides. CAMCO makes a device called a "Tornado". It's a holding tank flusher. I believe GeeBee installed one. It's on my to do list but not a high priority.
 
Have you seen ice in a cocktail as you go through waves? It moves with the water - very seldom does it hit the sides of the glass with any appreciable force.

How does one "drop ice in a tank"? If you have easy access into the tank, the Tornado or a plain ol' hose would be more effective.

At least in some RV's with gravity toilets, there's an easy way to get ice in the tank in the first place. In a boat however, the ice will float in the pump-out hose unless you jam it in cube by cube. By the time a few pounds of ice have been pushed into the tank, much of it would likely have melted.
 
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