Fitting a holding tank to SO32 (2003)

[Troubadour]

Has anyone field fitted a holding tank to an SO32/32i please?
Can you get a kit of parts from Jeanneau? I believe one was available as a fitted option.
Where does it go - is it below the basin?
Thanks.

[MalcolmP]

This shows the OEM tank in the SO34.2 (circa 2000)

www.jeanneau-owners.com/hintsandtips/342watertankadd.html

Whilst it may be different in the SO32 the principle is probably similar. Newer Jeanneaus have rotomoulded plastic tanks, which would be better as the S/S ones have a nasty habit of the welds corroding over time. In the UK you could get a plastic one fabricated to your pattern by Tek-Tanks (Making a cardboard box template is a simple way of making sure it will fit and maximise space available)

You should try to get the tank as high as possible -  Is there any space in the cockpit locker behind the head? that way it is a gravity discharge, which makes things simpler and cheaper than having pumps etc. Also most new Jeanneaus will have the tank inline with the heads always, rather than a  diverter valve. IE all waste goes to the tank. Discharge is then by opening the main seacock (hopefully when well offshore..)

Malcolm

[tedp]

The normal place to put a holding tank in the SO32 is in the cabinet in the stern cabin. If you use half the cabinet you have about 50 litres of waste storage. This is way above the waterline. Make sure the outlet is straight below the suction plug in the deck - if you have a blockage, use the handle of the swab to push it through.

I haven't installed a tank in my boat and I'm not yet sure whether to do it. There is a lot of trouble with holding tanks. What could help is use a larger diameter outlet than the standard 2".

In the SO36 I sailed in Turkey, the holding tank kept backing up. The best way to get it going was to shake the outlet hose vigorously, so don't fix it like the SO34.2 photo shows.

[Troubadour]

Thanks tedp

When you say the normal place do you mean that was the Jeanneau factory fit or the easiest way to do it later? Hadn't thought of that location.

Don't talk to me about blocked ones. 3 days crossing Biscay in a Bavaria with it slopping around the floor of the heads .....

[tedp]

I'm not sure if holding tanks were factory fitted but I heard of tanks being retro fitted into the cabinet. If you take half the interior out of the cabinet and allow enough space top and bottom, it is possible to pass the toilet outlet pipe through the bulkhead and connect it to the top of the tank. The outlet of the tank can be passed through the bulkhead again and into the area under the sink in the heads. The suction pipe can pass through the top of the cabinet and the deck.

Having been in a boat with a constantly blocked tank I'm not very keen on them. Unless you can fit a bypass to prevent the trouble with the Bavaria you describe! Must have been a smelly trip.

[sailbleu]

Cleaning your tank with a chemical toilet product during the winter, preferably the type that contains formol, will disolve all nasty lumps.If you can leave it in there for a month or so.
Or better yet , install electrical toilets as I have done , that way you never get blocked tanks or diverter valves anymore.
Provided that you, on a regular base , also threat the installation (tank , hoses and so on) with vinigar do get rid of the urine muck that builds up after a while.

Regards

[richy]

I have the same question for a SF37 (2002); how much of what's posted above remains valid?

[Deleted]

Why fit a holding tank. I am glad my SO37 doesn't have one. It's a waste of money and space, at least that is what I think.

[dbostrom]

Where we sail we'd have to remove our toilets and use a bucket in order to avoid massive fines, if we didn't have a holding tank. Doesn't even matter if you've got a wax seal on the lid and swear to the USCG boarders that all crew are wearing corks. Permanently installed toilet=holding tank, per regs. 

[Deleted]

Allright, so some laws in the US actually contribute to the environment better then in Europe.