No-Tox Antifreeze and a Healthy Black Water tank

If you want the microbe bacteria to thrive in a Black Water tank do you think no-tox antifreeze will hurt or help the microbes grow in the tank (I have been told that Pink No-Tox is essentially sugar water, although I have never tasted it)?

I will likely have 5 to 10 gallons in my otherwise empty blackwater tank (320 Gallon Tank) when we start up for the summer season.

Any Chemist or Biologist know if the microbes will love or hate the pink No-Tox?

Thanks
Norm

You should drain and then thoroughly rinse out the tank when prepping for winter or other extended layup, so there shouldn't be any "microbes" left in the tank to protect from antifreeze. They wouldn't survive the winter anyway. You'll flush all the antifreeze out of the system and start over with fresh tank product when you recommission the boat in the spring.

And btw...rinsing out the tank is actually pretty easy...you don't have to fill it. I've posted the instructions at least a dozen times in the years I"ve been here and also included 'em in my book (see link in my signature).

Wow...I am impressed with a 320 gallon black water tank!

https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/csem/csem.asp?csem=12&po=14
Propylene glycol is food safe, won't hurt-kill anything.

HeadMistress said:

You should drain and then thoroughly rinse out the tank when prepping for winter or other extended layup, so there shouldn't be any "microbes" left in the tank to protect from antifreeze. They wouldn't survive the winter anyway. You'll flush all the antifreeze out of the system and start over with fresh tank product when you recommission the boat in the spring.

And btw...rinsing out the tank is actually pretty easy...you don't have to fill it. I've posted the instructions at least a dozen times in the years I"ve been here and also included 'em in my book (see link in my signature).

Click to expand...

Ok you are saying rinse out the tanks prior to lay-up for winter which make sense. But now when winter is over and I have flushed the toilet 6 to 10 times during the winter (sometimes when you visit the laid-up boat during winter you got to go so you got to go), and flushed waste with No-tox (not water), in spring do I need to pump again?

Their are only a few gallons of waste and no-tox in the tank. If the No-Tox wont hurt the bacteria I could avoid the hassle of pumping out in the spring and just wait till later on when the tank is actually full.

Hope this makes my real question more clear!

Thanks
Norm


PS: I also bought the Kindle version of your 2nd edition book and look forward to learning more!

But now when winter is over and I have flushed the toilet 6 to 10 times during the winter (sometimes when you visit the laid-up boat during winter you got to go so you got to go), and flushed waste with No-tox (not water), in spring do I need to pump again?

Yes... In fact, holding tanks should be thoroughly flushed out 2-3x/season to get rid of sludge. Now when there's very little in the tank is actually the easiest time to do it because--as I said in my previous post--it's not necessary to fill the tank with water to do it. You'll find the instructions on page 43 in my book.

The downside to the red goop antifreez is if the boats FW system is not kept sealed , air will enter the piping and evaporate much of the goop.

What is left behind may take all season not to flavor the FW system.

Dont ask how I know about this,,,,