Blackwater tank pump out -- aaargh!

[DCatSea]

A succession of "issues" - medical involving ER and admission, frozen river to pump out stations and windblown thin water at travel-lift meant that I was unable to a) get the blackwater tank pumped out before the freeze b) get boat out of the water ditto freeze. I put a ton of -100 antifreeze in the tank and hoped for the best; now I'm 100% again, the river has defrosted and I can get out of the water, but all local pump outs are winterized. I need to empty the tank!!
Has anyone used a wet-and-dry shop vac. to "do the dirty" and empty a small blackwater tank? If so, any life- or pride- saving tips would be welcomed.

 

[tiltrider1]

I think it will end in a disaster. I think you would be better off to buy a trash pump. If budget Is an issue than a manual diaphragm pump would be a better solution.

https://www.amazon.com/Whale-BP9005-Gusher-Urchin-Manual/dp/B00144AQDC/ref=asc_df_B00144AQDC?mcid=5fb8dbfeeeb2380885b75a662a988d36&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=693032873454&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=17715697296113689955&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9029752&hvtargid=pla-322443261514&th=1

 

[psneeld]

Hire a septic truck... pricey but if you can get close enough to the bulkhead.....

Other option would be to use a gulper type pump or vacu flush type and pump to a waste tote they use for RVs. May take a few trips.

My vote is for the septic truck.

 

[Comodave]

I would go with the trash or Gulper pump and certainly not the shop vac. How many gallons are we talking about?

 

[psneeld]

Better be a tiny trash pump as they tend to put out pretty good volume and pressure.

Have used all but the smallest to charge fire hoses and fight boat fires.

While corralling sewage, volume and pressure could get ugly quick.

 

[Comodave]

I wasn’t referring to a huge trash pump but maybe even a hand pump, maybe a diaphragm pump.

 

[CharlieO.]

I would try to find a septic pump truck to help out. Good luck!!

 

[alormaria]

I used a macerator pump mounted on a piece of plywood with temporary wires to 12V. I would pump into a 5 gallon gas can. Dump the gas can's content in one of the marina's heads or bring it home and dump into the septic tank.

 

[HeadedToTexas]

You’ve waited this long, why not just ride out the winter and wait for pump out facilities to open in the spring? How much worse can it get?

 

[tiltrider1]

You’ve waited this long, why not just ride out the winter and wait for pump out facilities to open in the spring? How much worse can it get?

Possible he needs to use the tank this week.

 

[Comodave]

Or work on it…. Always fun.

 

[HeadMistress]

How big is the tank? You said "small'...how many gallons? How full is it?
--Peggie

 

[nwh10]

Doug, yikes, sorry to hear you've gone through a rough time, and glad you've come out well on the other side.

Much as it goes against your grain, this does not sound like a fun DIY project especially after what you've recently been through. Hire the septic pump truck!

Nancy

 

[Antares]

The budget approach to me would be a Whale manual pump, some hose and the appropriate number of Home z
DEPOT 5bgallon buckets with lids. Fill the buckets to about 4 1/2 gallons then take them to a rest stop with a trailer dump for emptying. It would not be a pleasant task but the mess would be manageable and you would be done in a couple of hours. Use 1 inch hose and you should be able to go in from the top via the deck pump out hose. May it go well.

 

[boomerang]

I'm in the camp of obtaining a macerator pump and pumping your holding tank into a bucket & hauling it to a dump station. I'm not sure how a septic tank pumpout truck would adapt the hose, that normally gets tossed into a septic tank, to the waste fitting on deck.
If it were my project, I'd probably get an ELECTRIC waste pump with the standard 1 1/2" intake and 1" discharge, disconnect the deck pumpout hose at the tank, connect the intake of the pump in place of it and run the 1" discharge up and above deck for easy removal. With some thrifty sourcing, the system could be done for less than $200, I'm sure.
That $200 lesson will teach you to have your ducks in a row next winter!

 

[Bacchus]

I'm in the camp of obtaining a macerator pump and pumping your holding tank into a bucket & hauling it to a dump station. I'm not sure how a septic tank pumpout truck would adapt the hose, that normally gets tossed into a septic tank, to the waste fitting on deck.
If it were my project, I'd probably get an ELECTRIC waste pump with the standard 1 1/2" intake and 1" discharge, disconnect the deck pumpout hose at the tank, connect the intake of the pump in place of it and run the 1" discharge up and above deck for easy removal. With some thrifty sourcing, the system could be done for less than $200, I'm sure.
That $200 lesson will teach you to have your ducks in a row next winter!

I agree... If you have an elec head another (replacement/spare) pump would be useful as future insurance. A local waste cleaning service will likely have a min charge and might easily off set the cost of a stand alone pump.

 

[Mischief Managed]

Call a local portable toilet company. They have trucks with all the necessary bits to get you pumped out pretty easily and they run the trucks all day every day for toilets that are rented long term.

 

[Duvie]

DC, assuming you do not currently have any overboard pump out option. I have the Albin 27 sport cruiser and can just pump out with the macerator into a bucket placed under the hull.
If you have plenty of antifreeze in the tank I would just leave it as is until your launch in the spring.

You actually could use a wet vacuum. I use a wet vac all the time on restroom drain issues to clear them. Might get pretty smelly if you are stored indoors. You could always pipe the vac exhaust away from your work area too. I am not too sensitive working with sewer issues so may not be the right fit for some.

 

[Dougcole]

Go the legal distance offshore and dump it?

 

[Eagle Pursuit]

A succession of "issues" - medical involving ER and admission, frozen river to pump out stations and windblown thin water at travel-lift meant that I was unable to a) get the blackwater tank pumped out before the freeze b) get boat out of the water ditto freeze. I put a ton of -100 antifreeze in the tank and hoped for the best; now I'm 100% again, the river has defrosted and I can get out of the water, but all local pump outs are winterized. I need to empty the tank!!
Has anyone used a wet-and-dry shop vac. to "do the dirty" and empty a small blackwater tank? If so, any life- or pride- saving tips would be welcomed.

I have used a Whale Gusher diaphragm type hand pump to pull the holding tank contents out through the Waste deck fitting using a rubber nozzle designed for the purpose. The Whale Gusher will pull the contents up and out and is self priming. The trick then is to have a receiving container that can be carried away from the boat and disposed of in the proper manner.

 

[more]

Go the legal distance offshore and dump it?

what is legal distance in usa,in Croatia is 12 nm for small yacht,biger must have waste water treatment, only clean water.

in reality i eevry day when motoring slow pump,very slow if sombody see i be in big ****. marina with purpose broke waste pump station becouse smell,guest dont like bad smell. but in reality more new york in one day produce waste vs all yacht in world from beginig time sailinf to end our planet

 

[Comodave]

Go the legal distance offshore and dump it?

The boat is on the hard for the winter.

 

[ConejoBlu]

Why not put a barrel under your underwater outlet and just pump it out using your onboard system?

 

[Campo]

A succession of "issues" - medical involving ER and admission, frozen river to pump out stations and windblown thin water at travel-lift meant that I was unable to a) get the blackwater tank pumped out before the freeze b) get boat out of the water ditto freeze. I put a ton of -100 antifreeze in the tank and hoped for the best; now I'm 100% again, the river has defrosted and I can get out of the water, but all local pump outs are winterized. I need to empty the tank!!
Has anyone used a wet-and-dry shop vac. to "do the dirty" and empty a small blackwater tank? If so, any life- or pride- saving tips would be welcomed.

I used an electric transfer pump and filled up 5 gal buckets

 

[divert00]

A succession of "issues" - medical involving ER and admission, frozen river to pump out stations and windblown thin water at travel-lift meant that I was unable to a) get the blackwater tank pumped out before the freeze b) get boat out of the water ditto freeze. I put a ton of -100 antifreeze in the tank and hoped for the best; now I'm 100% again, the river has defrosted and I can get out of the water, but all local pump outs are winterized. I need to empty the tank!!
Has anyone used a wet-and-dry shop vac. to "do the dirty" and empty a small blackwater tank? If so, any life- or pride- saving tips would be welcomed.

I used a gulper pump successfully. There was a 7’ head from tank top to deck fitting.

 

[Lakeolynn]

A succession of "issues" - medical involving ER and admission, frozen river to pump out stations and windblown thin water at travel-lift meant that I was unable to a) get the blackwater tank pumped out before the freeze b) get boat out of the water ditto freeze. I put a ton of -100 antifreeze in the tank and hoped for the best; now I'm 100% again, the river has defrosted and I can get out of the water, but all local pump outs are winterized. I need to empty the tank!!
Has anyone used a wet-and-dry shop vac. to "do the dirty" and empty a small blackwater tank? If so, any life- or pride- saving tips would be welcomed.

Yes, we were on the water and could not pump over and there were no pump out stations working in the area. Consequently, we used a shop vac. It wasn't a pleasant job, but got us through. Only suggestion would be to use a respirator if you have one.

 

[omoore]

A succession of "issues" - medical involving ER and admission, frozen river to pump out stations and windblown thin water at travel-lift meant that I was unable to a) get the blackwater tank pumped out before the freeze b) get boat out of the water ditto freeze. I put a ton of -100 antifreeze in the tank and hoped for the best; now I'm 100% again, the river has defrosted and I can get out of the water, but all local pump outs are winterized. I need to empty the tank!!
Has anyone used a wet-and-dry shop vac. to "do the dirty" and empty a small blackwater tank? If so, any life- or pride- saving tips would be welcomed.

A succession of "issues" - medical involving ER and admission, frozen river to pump out stations and windblown thin water at travel-lift meant that I was unable to a) get the blackwater tank pumped out before the freeze b) get boat out of the water ditto freeze. I put a ton of -100 antifreeze in the tank and hoped for the best; now I'm 100% again, the river has defrosted and I can get out of the water, but all local pump outs are winterized. I need to empty the tank!!
Has anyone used a wet-and-dry shop vac. to "do the dirty" and empty a small blackwater tank? If so, any life- or pride- saving tips would be welcomed.

You can significantly reduce the AARGH factor by adding a gallon of bleach. That advice is based on personal experience.

 

[Rclaggf4u]

A succession of "issues" - medical involving ER and admission, frozen river to pump out stations and windblown thin water at travel-lift meant that I was unable to a) get the blackwater tank pumped out before the freeze b) get boat out of the water ditto freeze. I put a ton of -100 antifreeze in the tank and hoped for the best; now I'm 100% again, the river has defrosted and I can get out of the water, but all local pump outs are winterized. I need to empty the tank!!
Has anyone used a wet-and-dry shop vac. to "do the dirty" and empty a small blackwater tank? If so, any life- or pride- saving tips would be welcomed.

I had a similar issue. I bought a fitting that screwed into the pump out connection and a suction hose then connected that to a 55 gallon barrel. Pulled a vacuum on the barrel with a vacuum cleaner and siphoned it right out into the barrel.

 

[Kent33]

Get a portable cassette toilet (camping , caravan or RV type) then wait for pump out. Always useful as a spare in case of emergencies or failure of main heads.

 

[Kenthefenceguy]

A succession of "issues" - medical involving ER and admission, frozen river to pump out stations and windblown thin water at travel-lift meant that I was unable to a) get the blackwater tank pumped out before the freeze b) get boat out of the water ditto freeze. I put a ton of -100 antifreeze in the tank and hoped for the best; now I'm 100% again, the river has defrosted and I can get out of the water, but all local pump outs are winterized. I need to empty the tank!!
Has anyone used a wet-and-dry shop vac. to "do the dirty" and empty a small blackwater tank? If so, any life- or pride- saving tips would be welcomed.

I used my 3 gallon shop vac to suck up oily bilge water, suck out a plugged head, and all kinds of nasty things, then disposed of the contents properly. Of course I wore gloves and washed everything thing, and changed the filters. It was a little gross but got the job done. I’m sure it would work on black water. Just pretend you are a guy pumping out porta potties and septic tanks.