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moabarch



Joined: 01 Jun 2008
Posts: 94
City/Region: Moab
State or Province: UT
C-Dory Year: 2007
C-Dory Model: 16 Cruiser
Vessel Name: Opus
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2010 7:11 pm    Post subject: composting toilet Reply with quote

I've read what I can find in the posts about the Airhead composting toilet, but don't seem to find a post anywhere from anyone who has replaced the factory toilet with one on a 25. Has anyone done that and if so, where to get that done?
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Tom and Nancy
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Jazzmanic



Joined: 07 Feb 2005
Posts: 2231
City/Region: Seattle
State or Province: WA
Photos: C-Dancer
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2010 7:15 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Pat and Patty Anderson, boat name Daydream, a 2005 25' Cruiser.

They remain very happy with their Airhead Composting Toilet.

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C-Dancer - 2005 22' Cruiser 2005-2017
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patrick and linda



Joined: 28 Mar 2006
Posts: 953
City/Region: somerset
State or Province: KY
C-Dory Year: 1986
C-Dory Model: 27 Cruiser
Vessel Name: "Fan-A-Sea"
Photos: Misty Seas
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2010 7:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

hello tom,
so, when i first read your post, i'm thinking, who wants to compost poo, and pray tell what would they do with all that compost poo?
i've looked at the installation of the airhead compost toilet and just can't see why one would swap out a perfectly functioning marine head for something like this. compost poo gets my thumb's down.
good luck with your decision.
best regards
pat
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DaveS



Joined: 01 Nov 2003
Posts: 3204
City/Region: Arlington
State or Province: WA
C-Dory Year: 2004
C-Dory Model: 22 Cruiser
Vessel Name: Sea Shift
Photos: Sea Shift
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 12:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

patrick and linda wrote:
hello tom,
so, when i first read your post, i'm thinking, who wants to compost poo, and pray tell what would they do with all that compost poo?
i've looked at the installation of the airhead compost toilet and just can't see why one would swap out a perfectly functioning marine head for something like this.
pat


When Pat & Patty sign on about the subject you will "hear" nothing but good about the airhead. If I were ever to purchase a vessel with a head the Airhead would definitely be my choice based on the satisfaction that Pat & Patty have expressed about theirs. It really seems to be no hassle and the elimination of a "through hull" is another plus.

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"Sea Shift"
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Pat Anderson



Joined: 02 Nov 2003
Posts: 8551
City/Region: Birch Bay, WA
State or Province: WA
C-Dory Year: 2005
C-Dory Model: 25 Cruiser
Vessel Name: Daydream
Photos: Daydream and Crabby Lou
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 1:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Indeed, the standard marine head is stinky and tends to spew ##!** all over owners sooner or later when something gets clogged. The stories about that here are legion. The fresh water flush tank under models are certainly better, but the problem is, sooner or later you have to pump it out, and it just might be full when a pump out is not convenient. And as to odor, ask David on Anna Leigh when we are side by side at the dock which one smells worse, our Airhead or his marine toilet. Not a contest really.

The Airhead design has a liquid tank and a solid container. It composts very well, we only need to empty the solids container about once a year. A year's worth of composted "poo" looks like soil, and is perhaps 3 gallons in volume. I probably would not dig it in to the vegetable garden but I would have no qualms about digging it in to a flower bed. The liquid tank of course we empty overboard when it is full, but actually urine is sanitary, and it is not a problem.

Getting an Airhead from the git-go was a great choice for us. I don't know how anybody could have an opinion about it without knowing anything about it...







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rogerbum



Joined: 21 Nov 2004
Posts: 5922
City/Region: Kenmore
State or Province: WA
C-Dory Year: 2008
C-Dory Model: 255 Tomcat
Vessel Name: Meant to be
Photos: SeaDNA
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 7:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Pat Anderson wrote:
<stuff clipped>
Getting an Airhead from the git-go was a great choice for us. I don't know how anybody could have an opinion about it without knowing anything about it...


To borrow a quote that Marty recently posted on another thread -

"You may have noticed that the less I know about a subject the more confidence I have, and the more new light I throw on it."
Mark Twain, "3,000 Years Among the Microbes", 1905

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moabarch



Joined: 01 Jun 2008
Posts: 94
City/Region: Moab
State or Province: UT
C-Dory Year: 2007
C-Dory Model: 16 Cruiser
Vessel Name: Opus
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 9:18 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

So is a retrofit doable without causing more problems than I'd care to deal with?
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YACD



Joined: 14 Sep 2007
Posts: 74
City/Region: Middle River, Chesapeake Bay
State or Province: MD
Photos: F. Silvestris
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 9:34 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

moabarch wrote:
So is a retrofit doable without causing more problems than I'd care to deal with?


You could always buy my 2008 TomCat. Yours for <$80k, Airhead included for FREE!!
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Pat Anderson



Joined: 02 Nov 2003
Posts: 8551
City/Region: Birch Bay, WA
State or Province: WA
C-Dory Year: 2005
C-Dory Model: 25 Cruiser
Vessel Name: Daydream
Photos: Daydream and Crabby Lou
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 9:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Don't know about that, we told the factory to leave out the marine head when they were building Daydream in 2005, which they did and gave us a credit. We bought and installed the Airhead ourselves after taking delivery. The only other C-Dory with an Airhead we knew of before reading the prior post was a 25 Cruise Ship that Marc Grove had in rental service at Wefings some years back, I suppose that must have been a retrofit, but you might want to PM Wefings about that. One recommendation I would have is to up the size of the fan and run it off a dedicated small battery like a motorcycle battery with a solar panel to keep the charge up. That fan runs 24/7, and it is OK if you are on shore power all the time, but if for any reason you lose charging and the fan keeps running, even at 80ma it is going to run the house battery down. That has happened to us, and I am eyeballing the Harbor Freight 15 watt panel to dedicate to the Airhead fan. Also I think a larger fan would promote even better composting.

moabarch wrote:
So is a retrofit doable without causing more problems than I'd care to deal with?


Last edited by Pat Anderson on Wed Aug 04, 2010 9:42 am; edited 1 time in total
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Captains Cat



Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 7313
City/Region: Cod Creek>Potomac River>Chesapeake Bay
State or Province: VA
C-Dory Year: 2005
C-Dory Model: 22 Cruiser
Vessel Name: Captain's Choice II
Photos: Captain's Cat
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 9:41 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hard to tell. How well do you deal with shxx? Cry

I would think the hardest thing would be removing the holding tank. Not sure how it's mounted in a 25, whether it is accessable. Of course you could always just cap it off and leave it in place. Be a shame to give up that room though. Be a lot easier to take out a holding tank head than to put one in where none existed before. No need to remove fittings, unless you want to..

JMHO

Charlie

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Captain's Cat II 2005 22 Cruiser
Thataway (2006 TC255 - Sold Aug 2013)
Captain's Cat (2006 TC255 - Sold January 2012)
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Pat Anderson



Joined: 02 Nov 2003
Posts: 8551
City/Region: Birch Bay, WA
State or Province: WA
C-Dory Year: 2005
C-Dory Model: 25 Cruiser
Vessel Name: Daydream
Photos: Daydream and Crabby Lou
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 9:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Our holding tank is under the motorwell between the battery compartments on either side. It has never had shxx in it, and another mod we need to make is to install a third vertical hatch cover and cut out the top of the holding tank, which would be a terrific large dry storage area. Just inertia has kept this from happening (and fear of power tools of course), have already bought the hatch cover. Otherwise perhaps sanitizing, capping off and leaving in place would be OK I would think.

Captains Cat wrote:
Hard to tell. How well do you deal with shxx? Cry

I would think the hardest thing would be removing the holding tank. Not sure how it's mounted in a 25, whether it is accessable. Of course you could always just cap it off and leave it in place. Be a shame to give up that room though. Be a lot easier to take out a holding tank head than to put one in where none existed before. No need to remove fittings, unless you want to..

JMHO

Charlie
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patrick and linda



Joined: 28 Mar 2006
Posts: 953
City/Region: somerset
State or Province: KY
C-Dory Year: 1986
C-Dory Model: 27 Cruiser
Vessel Name: "Fan-A-Sea"
Photos: Misty Seas
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 10:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

hi tom,
reading your original post you mentioned your goal was to replace the factory installed head. on the 25' i just assumed that would be a marine head, consisting of overboard discharge including a thru hull. with that in mind i didn't understand the logic in this swap out.
so, i guess the factory deal was not a typical marine head. at any rate, isn't boating great, it keeps us busy, helps us stay gainfully employed and allows us the opportunity to modify, create, repair and swap out what ever we want!
best regards
pat
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Aurelia



Joined: 21 Aug 2009
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PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 10:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I would install a third center hatch and plan to cut the tank out which is not a job I look forward to but with a quiver of sharp spinning tools It should be messy but relatively simple.
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JamesTXSD



Joined: 01 Mar 2005
Posts: 7444
City/Region: from island boy to desert dweller
State or Province: AZ
C-Dory Year: 2007
C-Dory Model: 25 Cruiser
Vessel Name: "Wild Blue" (sold 9/14)
Photos: Wild Blue
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 11:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Try that "dumping the urine overboard" in places like the Florida Keys, Yellowstone Lake, Lake Tahoe, and other great cruising waters that have some sort of "no effluent" rules... and tell us how that works out for you.

I have no beef with the Airhead, but it is the "right tool" for the weekend user, not necessarily the extended cruiser. Reports on cruiser forums that I've read have been less than enthusiastic about it for daily use over a long period. If I understand it correctly, you have a certain amount of space and you need time for the Airhead to do it's "work." Overload it and what are the consequences? Also, does yours use the "coffee filters" to separate the solids from the liquids? One more thing to deal with. And having been next to a sailboat with an Airhead, I can attest to the fact that there is some smell that comes from the solar vent they used on theirs.

Not dissing the Airhead, just saying that each system has its pros and cons. We all poop, and we all have to deal with it. I am NOT a fan of the vaccu-flush type systems that use sea water... almost a guarantee that you are going to have stink and crappy maintenance situations with hoses. I have no issue at all with a porta-potty other than capacity. And, again, some places (like the Keys and areas in Canada) require that you have it mounted AND some way to pump it out. It may depend on the length of your stay, as well.

For our use, the SeaLand set up that the factory used/uses(?) that operates with a fresh water flush has worked well. It's essentially a larger capacity, permanently mounted porta-potty. No sea water, no dead critters in the hoses. Put a ball valve on the fresh water hose to the toilet and you can greatly increase your time between pump-outs. Most marinas, marine parks, etc are equipped for boats with a pump out. Get offshore and you can turn on the macerator. We use the RV stuff (non-formaldehyde) to help dissolve and deordorize... pretty painless. Most of the time, I don't give a lot of thought to the potty process... a good sign that what we're doing works for us.

We all do it; even if you think yours doesn't stink, it does; and you find your best way to deal with it. It's a part of life... and cruising. To me, the worst thing would be trying to cruise and have NO place to potty. We have no bathrooms on the cruise boats that I am driving this summer. The cruises are 90 minutes in length, and we make SEVERAL announcements before we board passengers, with an emphasis on the fact that there are no bathrooms on the boat. Yes, it has been a situation that has had to be dealt with at times. So, pick the system you like and get out there! Very Happy

Best wishes,
Jim B.

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CD-25 "Wild Blue" (sold August 2014)
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patrick and linda



Joined: 28 Mar 2006
Posts: 953
City/Region: somerset
State or Province: KY
C-Dory Year: 1986
C-Dory Model: 27 Cruiser
Vessel Name: "Fan-A-Sea"
Photos: Misty Seas
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2010 11:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

hi jim,
aboard my boat we have a vacuum flush head, using fresh water only. has a 28 gallon holding tank and easily pumped out at the pump out station. wouldn't have it any other way.
can't understand the logic in no head aboard a cruise ship that has a 90 minute cruise. my bladder is the size of a golf ball and when i got to go, brother, i got to go, end of story. i have taken 90 minute trips aboard 40' pontoon type cruise ships, but they had provided a porta-potty type head, designed for people just like me!
hope all is trending well in your neck of the woods.
best regards
pat
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