Pumpout Fitting Size?

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David Rive

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Apr 13, 2015
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Canada
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currently boatless
Can anyone tell me the correct size for a fitting to connect to the holding tank pump out on a 1985 OA 38? I just pumped my new (to me) boat for the first time today and the marina person doing the pumpout said what I have is "slightly bigger than 1.5" so she had to use her universal adapter.

David
 
This may not be the right size, but I think this is the type of fitting you're looking for.

Pumpout Adapter

Ted
 
That's exactly what he needs. It comes in two sizes to match up with the threads in your own deck fitting...so buy one, but read carefully--even ask questions!--before you order to make sure you get the right one the first time.
 
This may help you determine the correct one. There is a diagram with instructions at the bottom of the page.

Pumpout adapter

Ted
 
Has anyone had one of these work with 1980's TT's?
 
Yes.

It will fit the deck fitting on just about any boat of any age as long as you get the right size and match for the thread count (pre-mid 1980s deck fittings had 16 tpi...then--for unknown reasons--they started making 'em all 11 tpi. Anyone who loses a cap to an older one has no choice but to replace the fitting 'cuz NO ONE makes caps to fit 16 tpi..
 
I spent way too much time trying to sort this out on my Grand Banks and again on my Nordhavn. The problem is that some boats (all probably get fittings from the same source in Asia) use standard 1-1/2" SAE pipe diameter, but with 14 TPI (threads per inch). The adapters that everyone sells are 1-1/2" 11.5 TPI which is the NPT (National Pipe Thread) standard. They don't fit. I have never found, anywhere, an off the shelf adapter for 1-1/2"-14.

I ended making my own with the aid of a machine shop. I had them cut 14 TPI into the end of a length of 1-1/2" Sched 80 PVC pipe. I then glued that stub via a coupler to a banjo fitting to mate with standard pump out hoses. I used PVC so I could position the coupler to create a ridge to retain an o-ring so the fitting would seal to the deck plate. That part worked well, but the threads did not cut well in the PVC. It wanted to chatter in the lathe, so the threads are rough and really don't mate well with the deck fittings. If I were doing it again I would probably use steel or AL. The problem is then figuring out how to get the retaining ridge for an o-ring so it seals. I originally priced having one machined and it was through the roof, which drove me to the PVC approach. Machining threads into a PVC stub is cheap, and I actually had a bunch made. From there you can glue it up to pretty much anything you want.
 
I'm surprised anyone needs an adapter at all. Around here the hoses used to pump out a holding tank are fitted with tapered rubber cones/nozzles at the end. You simply push the rubber nozzle into the boat's pumpout fitting and turn on the pump. You do have to hold the end of the hose to keep the nozzle from coming out of the boat's fitting.
 
Maybe where you are, Marin...but it's not true everywhere. The "Nozzal" is an inexpensive way to make sure you can pump out anywhere.
 
I don' TEEENK so, Bill.... That one is $140 (and is actually an adapter for the pumpout system on the dock. The SeaLand "Nozzall" is +/- $25 and is made for the boat.
 

That is, in essence, what is on the ends of all the pumpout nozzles I've seen up here. However the rubber cone is longer.

On the portable pumpout carts in our harbor the ends of the hoses that mate to the boat has this sort of device on it. Then when you wheel the cart to the "hangar" it's kept in you remove the rubber cone end and the fitting on the hose it mates to fits to the connector on the pipe that goes to the sewer line. You then run the pump on the cart backwards which empties the tank on the cart into the sewer line, then put the rubber-cone adapter back on the end of the cart's hose and it's all ready for the next person to use to pump out their holding tank. Very slick system.
 
I have written to OA to ask what size fitting I(e. TPI) is on my boat. Hopefully they can tell me. Headmistress (as usual) has the right solution IMHO. :)
 
I don' TEEENK so, Bill.... That one is $140 (and is actually an adapter for the pumpout system on the dock. The SeaLand "Nozzall" is +/- $25 and is made for the boat.

Maybe I misunderstood. Isn't the Nozzall a threaded plastic fitting?
 
I have written to OA to ask what size fitting I(e. TPI) is on my boat. Hopefully they can tell me. Headmistress (as usual) has the right solution IMHO. :)

Why not just get out a ruler, remove the cap...stick the ruler into the fitting far enough to cover the threads...and count the ones between two inch markers? That's what I did when I lost a cap --and also when I found out that I'd have to replace the fitting because 16 tpi caps were no longer made...which I considered a really smarmy way to boost sales of 11 tpi fittings.
 
Here is a less expensive camlock adapter with a cone that will fit any deck fitting.

Waste Deck Fittings & Adapters : Edson Pump Store

These work with any size deck fitting, but you have to hold it and maintain some pressure to keep a good suction seal. I think the threaded adapters are better if you can find one that fits your boat.
 
Yep, but it's not cheap flimsy plastic...it's just about indestructable. I've never heard of a failure in the couple of decades they've been on the market.
The listing on the Defender site has good photos of it:

SeaLand NozAll on Defender

OK that's what I thought. My point was that with your own tapered cone rubber fitting you don't have to worry whether you or the pump out station has the right fitting. :D
 
Greetings,
Tapered cones suck, or rather they don't. A threaded fitting fits your boat on one end and the standard cam lock used by any marina I've ever dealt with, on the other.
 
Owning an OA I fully agree that the 1-1/2 fitting do not work. They are too small. Some OA have a 1-1/2 for those that don't have the 1-1/2 what seems to work for me is similar to the Edson Item Number: 272QC-150. The one that has the yellow disk and or the 1-1/2" screw in style don't work for us.
Another company makes a cone / funnel that does not have ridges works very well on my boat. The pump out near me has one and I have to get the manufacture part number and order one to keep on the boat.
Some OA have a fitting size that is about 2" who makes one that size?
 
OK that's what I thought. My point was that with your own tapered cone rubber fitting you don't have to worry whether you or the pump out station has the right fitting. :D

True...but you have to keep a tapered fitting jammed tight into the fitting to keep a seal...whereas a "universal" threaded fitting will seal and will cam lock onto any pumpout hose.
 
My black-tank deck fitting is the same size/appearance as the six fuel and water inlets on the boat. Thankfully, they are labeled/engraved.
 
The state of WA sent me a free universal screw in adapter last year for the asking in order to get more boaters to pump out. Works great and way less potential for a spray than with the tapered nozzle.
 
True...but you have to keep a tapered fitting jammed tight into the fitting to keep a seal...whereas a "universal" threaded fitting will seal and will cam lock onto any pumpout hose.

I don't think anyone disagrees that the threaded adapters are preferred. The problem is that the commercially available adapters don't fit a significant number of boats that utilize different thread patterns.

The question that was originally posed was from one of the unfortunate with "different" threads on his deck fittings. For those of us in that camp, we have two choices; 1) fabricate a custom adapter that matches the deck threads, or 2) use one of the cone adapters and hold it in place while pumping out.
 
I'm surprised anyone needs an adapter at all. Around here the hoses used to pump out a holding tank are fitted with tapered rubber cones/nozzles at the end. You simply push the rubber nozzle into the boat's pumpout fitting and turn on the pump. You do have to hold the end of the hose to keep the nozzle from coming out of the boat's fitting.

20+ years boating in the Puget Sound and never needed an adaptor. In fact for the last 10+ years don't have a cap. The pump out and boats have the universal cone nozzel. The Everett marine has their employees pump the boats out if you call. We are set for every Thursday. :socool:
 
20+ years boating in the Puget Sound and never needed an adaptor. In fact for the last 10+ years don't have a cap. The pump out and boats have the universal cone nozzel. The Everett marine has their employees pump the boats out if you call. We are set for every Thursday. :socool:

Well then you're set for life. As long as you never cruise anywhere but there. :socool:
 
I spent way too much time trying to sort this out on my Grand Banks and again on my Nordhavn. The problem is that some boats (all probably get fittings from the same source in Asia) use standard 1-1/2" SAE pipe diameter, but with 14 TPI (threads per inch). The adapters that everyone sells are 1-1/2" 11.5 TPI which is the NPT (National Pipe Thread) standard. They don't fit. I have never found, anywhere, an off the shelf adapter for 1-1/2"-14.

I ended making my own with the aid of a machine shop. I had them cut 14 TPI into the end of a length of 1-1/2" Sched 80 PVC pipe. I then glued that stub via a coupler to a banjo fitting to mate with standard pump out hoses. I used PVC so I could position the coupler to create a ridge to retain an o-ring so the fitting would seal to the deck plate. That part worked well, but the threads did not cut well in the PVC. It wanted to chatter in the lathe, so the threads are rough and really don't mate well with the deck fittings. If I were doing it again I would probably use steel or AL. The problem is then figuring out how to get the retaining ridge for an o-ring so it seals. I originally priced having one machined and it was through the roof, which drove me to the PVC approach. Machining threads into a PVC stub is cheap, and I actually had a bunch made. From there you can glue it up to pretty much anything you want.


Twistedtree, this was an older post and I'm hoping there are more recent discovery's. I am faced with the same problem for my N35. I first had an attempt to pump out and their fitting would not mate. They tried to use a smaller diameter long tube but could not get enough suction. Maybe it was not full enough? It seems like there are too many Nordhavns and other Asian boats to have something off the shelf by now. Any ideas?
I will ask the same question on the owners group.
 
I have had very good results with this type of universal fitting. It seems to seal and b work well with a wide variety of boats.View attachment 134315
 

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