There are no pump stations in Hong Kong, as it is not compulsory to have a holding tank on boats.
But it is a good plan actually, I am sure that the boat guys will not be impressed with the purpose for which I will be using one of the club's water pumps though.....:D

As for the GFCI outlets, I cam see why the confusion after looking at some photos on the web. Out power outlets are different here, thus I dont have any GFCI on my boat. I'll go for plan B, get the electrician.

Regards
Andres

Here are some images from my project of replacing the pump. It was not as bad as it appears.
I have more images - if you would like to see them I can set-up a FTP site for you to download the images. One change I made on the new pump - was to rotate its 1" exit by 90 degrees. It helped to clear other hoses.
I would recommend to go to the pump-out then remove the holding tank hose so that if there is any more liquid that spills into the bilge - you can add water into the bilge and pump-out the bilge several times. You will eventually have to clean the bilge with Clorox and water.

Andres, when I lived in HK there was a Canadian scientist on the government staff who was quoted in the HK newspaper as saying something to the effect that HK harbor was "a sewage pit". I certainly would not have wanted to fall into that water, although in Aberdeen I once saw a young boy, maybe 7 years old, dive off of a junk into a solid debris field. He popped up, head above the trash, with a big smile on his face.

Plaineolde

what pump model are you getting?

Baysailor

thanks for the photos, it has given me a few ideas to tide up that part of the boat

Larry

according to the old seawolfs here the waters were crystal clear 10 years ago (compared to the state now...)

cheers

I don't see the original message about why someone is replacing the macerator pump, and they are an item that fails regularly, but, before you do...

My pump wouldn't turn at all and popped the circuit breaker. I took a pair of pliers and turned the axel that comes out of the side of the pump. After that, the pump worked fine. If you problem is the same as mine, you might want to try that first.

Hi Pierview

This thread has been segregated from a different one, but basically some dropped a tampon on the toilet and it seems to have blocked the pump, as it stopped turning :(

So I need to dissemble the system and clean it or replace the pump

Regards

Thanks Gary

yes, I guess that it is one of those jobs that nobody looks forward doing ;)

actually, I need to see if I can turn the shaft manually and get it to run freely

Regards

Andres - I purchased the pump from
JAMESTOWN DISTRIBUTORS
17 PECKHAM DRIVE
BRISTOL, RI 02809
401-253-3840 Fax 401-254-5829

Here is the pump model and part number.
ITT-185902092
JABSCO MACERATOR PUMP 12V DC Model 18590-2092 $ 131.21

The reason that I replaced mine was because one of the bolts that holds the impeller housing to the motor was broken and it was leaking. If I had to do it over again I would just replace the bolt and the gasket. Now I have a spare Macerator Pump !

baysailor2000

Thanks for the information, I need to find some time (courage) to get with this job though. It is not as much as a lack of time but the mental strength to face the task at hand....:p

Regards
Andres

Hi Guys

Question:

If I was to use a macerator pump from outside the boat to empty the septic tank from the deck cap, would the 12V pump have enough power to suck the content?
Or it does need to be installed right next to the tank?

I am asking as it seems that in HK there isn't a single facility to empty the tank and the current macerator pump is not working :(

Thanks

Andre,
I had seen it done and I did it one time with my 30' Catalina. Using a hand pump the type that looks like a tire pump. You can place the end on the pump out deck fitting. I was able to place the pump and it fit perfectly without any adapter. It sealed well enough for me to pump out the holding tank. Than just rinse the pump out with sea water after. You might have to fabricate an adapter or purchase.
[url]http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=9343...

You might be able to use your manual bilge pump as well but will need hose and adapter as well......just some thoughts to ponder!

Andres, my holding tank (same model year boat as yours) has an elbow at the top for the vent hose. I have opened that up a few times. Perhaps you can insert a hose in there with a pump. It could be a lot easier than trying to lift the contents up to the deck fitting, but the challenge is the smaller hose diameter.

Good luck.

Hi all

I did look at opening the elbow at the top of the tank, but had to postpone that idea as I could see the breathing hose full of 'water'....

I ended up pumping by hand, similarly to Gary's advice, hopefully I got 3/4 of the tank empty as I was pumping for a couple of hours, although the size of the pump was not quite what I would have asked for.....it was the size of a hand held bicycle pump.....

I am planning on opening now the tank from the top and washing it fully before removing the macerator pump

Cheers