Marine Toilet

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busby

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Am i correct in thinking that a marine toilet empties into a tank under the van. ?? Can you only empty them into a manhole or can you use a cassette? BUSBY:(:(
 
Correct.......fixed tank.

Yes you can use a cassette by 'decanting' via the dump valve and short hose into a waste carrier or, if suitable fittings are available, via a macerator direct to the drain/elsan/manhole..
 
Yes a marine toilet is a holding tank. You can then empty by dumping over a manhole or emptying bit by bit with a carrier like a waste hog. Normally a marine tank will be at least 6 times bigger than your regular cassette.
 
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Hi

I was not aware that you could have a marine toilet in a van . We have one holding tank on our sailboat and it can be a real pain. Usually you can empty it out at sea or go to a pump out station . The trouble is that whatever liquid you use to deodorise after a while they can start to pong since the smell permiates the plastic hoses etc and you have to replace them . Also marine toilet relies on flushing with seawater and in a van you would have to use fresh water . I certainly would not have one in the van preferring the cassette toilet any day which can be given a really good clean and emptied easily . In fact if I could I would have a cassette toilet on our boat but in marinas here everything is geared for pump out and emptying it would be difficult .
 
Most every American motorhome has a marine loo. Quite a few Europeans too. Some find them much more convenient than emptying a cassette. Certainly not hard to empty, very easy infact with so many sites catering for this style of dump.
 
A typical marine toilet, of the sort fitted to a typical cruising yacht will draw up sea water and use that to flush what you have produced directly into the sea. In some ports this is not allowed and you have to discharge into a holding tank. Few cruising yachts I know have these but in say the Mediterranean they are very common.

As already mentioned, these are not fitted to motorhomes, but as ever terminology is flexible and you could call a bucket a marine toilet - they are used commonly as such for dinghy cruising. "Bucket and Chuck it" is the term used.
 
DevonBeekeeper said:
A typical marine toilet, of the sort fitted to a typical cruising yacht will draw up sea water and use that to flush what you have produced directly into the sea. In some ports this is not allowed and you have to discharge into a holding tank. Few cruising yachts I know have these but in say the Mediterranean they are very common.

As already mentioned, these are not fitted to motorhomes, but as ever terminology is flexible and you could call a bucket a marine toilet - they are used commonly as such for dinghy cruising. "Bucket and Chuck it" is the term used.
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Mine is fitted with one . (y)
 
DevonBeekeeper said:
A typical marine toilet, of the sort fitted to a typical cruising yacht will draw up sea water and use that to flush what you have produced directly into the sea. In some ports this is not allowed and you have to discharge into a holding tank. Few cruising yachts I know have these but in say the Mediterranean they are very common.

As already mentioned, these are not fitted to motorhomes, but as ever terminology is flexible and you could call a bucket a marine toilet - they are used commonly as such for dinghy cruising. "Bucket and Chuck it" is the term used.
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But they are fitted to motorhomes...BUSBY.
 
busby said:
But they are fitted to motorhomes...BUSBY.
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If you always park by the sea they might even work! But I am sure you can fit a marine toilet to a MH but it seems a bit odd if it is the sort with a lever to pump the water and "stuff" about. They are designed to be used at all angles, a typical MH loo let's gravity take away your contribution to the environment.
 
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A marine toilet empties into a fixed holding tank no matter whether it's on a boat, a train, a motorhome or an aeroplane.

It's just a common term for a mobile toilet.

A cassette, on the other hand, is not a fixed tank.
 
Mine is a Thetford & has a 'water' lever on the side with a ' flush' lever over it. you can add water without flushing but flushing also operates the water lever. Their is a slide valve that opens on operating the 'flush'.
just empties into a fixed tank&is , or appears to be , all part of the toilet basin. Slide valve under for emptying via hose/bucket/container.
 
Much as I hate to quote the Black Eyed Peas, just pump it...

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You can get an adapter / flange that fits directly onto the gate valve on the tank that the standard thetford cassette slides onto. This means that if your holding tank holds 60 litres you can use a standard cassette to slide onto the flange and decant it of 3 - 4 times.
This means no pipes or hoses its just like the normal toilet and you can empty into any outlet even if you are nowhere near a manhole etc

Neil
 
DevonBeekeeper said:
If you always park by the sea they might even work! But I am sure you can fit a marine toilet to a MH but it seems a bit odd if it is the sort with a lever to pump the water and "stuff" about. They are designed to be used at all angles, a typical MH loo let's gravity take away your contribution to the environment.
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As said in a previous post...most R V s are fitted with them...BUSBY.
 
pappajohn said:
It's just a common term for a mobile toilet.
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Which was what I meant by terminology! To me a marine toilet has a mechanism to positively expel your produce be it to a holding tank or the ocean. A "portable toilet" just lets gravity do it.
 
Reading this I just have to ask the question. So that you don't have to empty as many times as you would with a cassette, is it worth, can it be done, is it a big job (excuse the pun) to adapt/change a cassette to one of these?
I guess it not a good idea because lots would do it, but would like to know.
 
Billy23 said:
Reading this I just have to ask the question. So that you don't have to empty as many times as you would with a cassette, is it worth, can it be done, is it a big job (excuse the pun) to adapt/change a cassette to one of these?
I guess it not a good idea because lots would do it, but would like to know.
Click to expand...
As BUSBY has said above, RVs typically discharge into a holding tank, it's not what I call a marine toilet but happy to accept the term if it makes things easier!

If you have the room for a tank and happy to either find a MH service point or use and subsequently store a hose to discharge your black waste go for it.

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DevonBeekeeper said:
As BUSBY has said above, RVs typically discharge into a holding tank, it's not what I call a marine toilet but happy to accept the term if it makes things easier!

If you have the room for a tank and happy to either find a MH service point or use and subsequently store a hose to discharge your black waste go for it.
Click to expand...

Yes I know that I can go for it, but I was looking for a bit more on the reason as to why it wasn't done. I know with money thrown at almost anything you can "go for it" but that doesn't make it a good idea.:)

So does anybody have experience of the practical side of fitting? And if so did they consider that it was worth it? And if it was worth it, what sort of challenges did they face.:)
 
The holding tank in an RV has always been called a 'Marine' Toilet. Not sure why, maybe only to distinguish it from a cassette toilet.
 
Billy23 said:
Yes I know that I can go for it, but I was looking for a bit more on the reason as to why it wasn't done. I know with money thrown at almost anything you can "go for it" but that doesn't make it a good idea.:)

So does anybody have experience of the practical side of fitting? And if so did they consider that it was worth it? And if it was worth it, what sort of challenges did they face.:)
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They are usually fitted by the manufacturer of the motorhome when new. BUSBY.
 
Billy23 said:
Reading this I just have to ask the question. So that you don't have to empty as many times as you would with a cassette, is it worth, can it be done, is it a big job (excuse the pun) to adapt/change a cassette to one of these?
I guess it not a good idea because lots would do it, but would like to know.
Click to expand...

Most Marine toilets are permanently vented through the roof. Retro fitting would be a challenge.
 
DevonBeekeeper said:
Which was what I meant by terminology! To me a marine toilet has a mechanism to positively expel your produce be it to a holding tank or the ocean. A "portable toilet" just lets gravity do it.
Click to expand...
Ok...let's call it an adopted term.

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Regardless of what you call it, when emptying the holding tank you need breathing aperatus.
Far more powerful than a cassette.

And if your dump hose has any holes you're in for a good time......liquid shite sprays a long way.
 
Our new-to-us Laika A class has come with a "marine" toilet. It's a bit of a culture shock after 25 years of cassette emptying, but am getting used to it slowly. Must admit though, I am grateful for the absence of the daily trip to the Elsan point, as on our last trip the tank took 5 days to fill
 
I thought they were just called black tanks, yes they can be retro fitted but it will depend on the individual vehicle, friends of ours had a price of about £2k to do it on a Flair. The wanted it as they did not like emptying the cassette so how they would have liked messing about with the contents of a black tank and decanting it into a bucket or cassette I am not sure.
 
EssexBoy said:
Our new-to-us Laika A class has come with a "marine" toilet. It's a bit of a culture shock after 25 years of cassette emptying, but am getting used to it slowly. Must admit though, I am grateful for the absence of the daily trip to the Elsan point, as on our last trip the tank took 5 days to fill
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How do you know when tank is full...BUSBY.
 
I would rather take a little plastic cassette every couple of days than have to take a 6 tonne motorhome every 5 days or so.

I think a light comes on when it's full just like a cassette.

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