Holding Tank Capacity

[Stephen Butler]

I have read in several places that 5 gal of water per day, per crew member is a good benchmark consumption number.  However, I have never seen a number for the expected fill rate (gal/crew/day) for a holding tank.   Is there a rough estimate for this?  It seems that holding tank capacity is more critical than water capacity for many owners. Just wondering.

[Ron Hill]

Steve : Don't think you'll ever get an estimate :

Because of the number of flushes per crewmember which then = the number of gallons per pump which = the number of gallons per crew member X the number of head visits per day divided by the male/female factor X the length of each pump stroke "differating" the difference in the bore diameter of each head pump manufacturer -- make it an unsolvable equation !!     

[Stephen Butler]

Agree with you completely.  Just looking for a rough rule of thumb.

[noworries]

http://www.maritimesanitation.com/maritime.php?ID=22
Maritime Sanitation field experience has shown the average adult produces 0.7 gallons (2.6L) of waste per day.
YMMV
Not affiliated, just googled and found it and passed it along

[Peggie Hall]

I dunno where Marine Sanitation gets that number unless they only count output of body waste, without any flush water added.  Nor do I know where they get 1 gallon as the average flush water/flush...'cuz if you check the specs for every toilet mfr, they all estimate an avg of .5 gallon.

But they did get one thing right: the average adult does use the toilet 5x/24 hrs... But the real life numbers work out to:

Average flush, including flush water: .6 gal.   Which comes out to an average of THREE gal/day/person continuously aboard.  So if you have 4 people continuously aboard (no swimming, use of the lee rail, or shore leave), they'll put approx 12 gal/day into a tank.  Judicious use of "dry bowl" can reduce that to 10 gallons...but if you want to be sure that you have enough capacity to last a whole weekend, 25 gallons is the minimum tank size for a family of four.

This also illustrates why a tank level indicator is indispensable...not one that only lights up when the tank is about full, but a gauge that lets you know how much is in the tank at any given time, so you know whether you have enough room to head out for the day, or need to stop by the pumpout on your way out.  And the best bang for the buck in gauges is the Profile series: http://ferriellosales.com/

[Ken Juul]

Ferriello Sales advertises on our market place page and occasionally comments on posts.  He offers a discount to Catalina owners. 

several owners have also echoed Peggy's comments on the quality of the Profile system.

[Stu Jackson]

General Activities, C34 Marketplace:  http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/board,43.0.html  Scroll down to the bottom

Thanks for the reminder, Ken.

[Peggie Hall]

While we're on the subject of maximizing holding tank capacity...  Adding a couple of cupfuls of water to the bowl ahead of solids (use a cup from the sink!) will GREATLY reduce the amount of flush water needed to rinse the bowl and system.  And if you also learn to use the "dry" mode to do more than just push the last of the water out of the bowl, you can double the number of flushes a tank can hold.  We've had previous discussions about how to do that...a search should find one.

[Bob K]

I second the plug for Dennis Ferriello's Profile gauge.  Have had it for several years, and it has worked flawlessly.  In addition, Dennis was very helpful in answering  my installation questions.   A great product at a good price from a small business - what's not to like? 

[mtullier]

Federal law says that untreated sewage (even if it's been dosed with a deodorant product) can NOT be discharged in inland or coastal waters. This means the sewage from a portable toilet or a Type III holding tank can not be discharged unless you are in the ocean more than 3 miles offshore.  May not be an issue depending on where you are and personal opinion / preference on this type of thing.

[Peggie Hall]

You're confusing two entirely separate issues. There's no argument over
whether it's legal to dump a tank in inland waters...it's not. It's been illegal
for vessels to discharge raw sewage in ANY US waters for 30 years.  Lake
Champlain and the Great Lakes been "no discharge" waters (holding tanks only,
no onboard treatment devices allowed) for even longer.

The ONLY argument is over the acceptable means of securing the
system in Lake Champlain. Federal law (33 CFR 159.7) spells out in
detail the acceptable methods of securing a system...they do NOT include
the need to disconnect ANY plumbing. However, state law in NY ONLY
accepts disconnected plumbing on ALL vessels on Lake Champlain, even on
transient vessels. The only argument is whether they can legally
enforce THAT on a navigable interstate waterway.

States MAY enact stiffer requirements for vessels on non-navigable
INTRAstate lakes that are entirely under state jurisdiction, but
navigable interstate waters are under federal jurisdiction...and
Federal law (CFR TITLE 46, Subtitle II, Part B, CHAPTER 43, section
4306) sayeth:

"Unless permitted by the Secretary under section 4305 of this title, a
State or political subdivision of a State may not establish, continue in
effect, or enforce a law or regulation establishing a recreational
vessel or associated equipment performance or other safety standard or
imposing a requirement for associated equipment...that is not identical
to a regulation prescribed under section 4302 of this title."

That makes it pretty clear that federal law trumps state law.

However, as someone else has previously noted, anything is enforceable
until it's successfully challenged in court...and so far no one has seen fit
to do that.

[mtullier]

I'll let this rest with the above response.