Plumbing Wonder Fix for Our Boats

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Byrdman

New member
Well, every now and then ya just see something that sends your mind over the edge thinking about the endless possibilities... Well, below is a pic of one of those type items. I will give the "uneducated/novis" version.... post the picture, and then let my Brother Mike go from there on a later post.

Bottom line, this "T" fitting is just one of the many "basic" fittings, elbows, couplings, caps.... etc.. that can be assembled/disassembled in seconds...with it's little handy dandy "snap ring" gizmo (the orange thing in the pic).. It just snaps over the pipe used (many options), pushes in the compresion fitting gizmo,,,, let go... and presto... you have a new compresion fitting....that can be taken apart just as easy and quickly...

Now... just think... In the size of a small shoe box or tupperware container,,, you could store your shower sysetem for your boat, pop it out, pop it together, use it, take it apart, stow it again till next time.

No more dedicating a bunch of room just for a shower and it's needed plumbing. Just snap in place a few fittings, run a flex hose back to the swim platform, soap up, shower, rinse, leave the soap and gunk in the water...not in your boat.... and no thru hull needed for the drain.

Hot or cold water pipe options, snaps into/out of place each fitting over 1000 times each!!... Now... they do not have the big "M" on them, so you can still get'm pretty cheap...

Is this neat or what???

Sorry for the poor focus on the pic... could be the light, could be me shaking, could be the caffene....could be batteries about to go out cause the little red light is flashing and I can not find my battery charger yet and that is the best picture your gonna get right now... :mrgreen:

plumbing_004.jpg
 
Patrick-

Your idea has some merit, but I'm thinking that one of the primary reason folks buy a larger boat with an enclosed head and shower is due the the insistence of the familly Admiral on having some privacy in those matters. Showering on the swimstep won't find many advocates among their ranks.

However, a number of folks do use a purchased or improvised shower stall in the cockpit with or without a complete Sunbrella enclosure. Here you may be able to make some inroads. Setting up a convenient convertible/removeable shower on a CD-22 with a hot water source (such as a Zodi propane heater) would be a great addition, it's convenience and ease of use being the determiner of it's success.

See yall in Seattle!

Joe.
 
Showering on the swimstep
Click to expand...
I picked up a Zodi Tank Shower( replaced a Zodi battery pump style) last year and use it on the swimstep. It IS a cold proposition in the winter but beats not showering by a mile.
 
Hey Joe!! Looking forward to seeing you in Seattle for sure.

My idea of the shower was just one of the many things that could be done with these things.

Come on over in the summer months when our humidity is running in the 90% range all day long, and you are on a 3-5 day cruise..on the rivers...and the importance of a nice clean shower becomes clear. Now folks just doing day trips, or marina hopping with showers available may not have the need for such a gig...

Not to mention all the little shade areas, temporary towel racks... temporary cooking hold that racks.... the uses are endless. They are quick disconect compresion fittings. You really do not have to even run water thru them..

My brother Mike will pop up soon with all the differant types of pipes that can be used....but, I am thinking it is ANYTHING with a 5/8" OD size.
 
hi ya'll!
brother pat is excited about these "sharkbite" fittings. and they will fit cpvc, polybeutelene, pex. copper, and polyethelene piping. they are capable of being assembled / disassembled as many as 1000 times. lots of boat manufacturers use the above materials for their water systems and most of the time use a "crimp ring", non-reusable fitting. a quick repair is what these fitttings are designed around. 5/8" o.d. tube is what they fix but they are a little spendy. couplings, 90's tees, caps, male pipe thread as well as female pipe thread adapters are available. then you have reducers in couplings and adapters. just a "nutshell" description. :D
c u later
mike
 
Thanks Mike!! Sure thought these would draw more talk from our fix-it-uppers on the site.... I guess unless you actually held one in your hands and saw how really easy is just snaps together.... quickly with no tools other than the little c shaped gizmo.... ya can not appreciate it. So... I'll do some work on my ol 18angler... and see what I come up with for the spring/summer 07 river runs.

Yall stay clean now...ya hear.

Byrdman
 
Mike and Patrick-

Bring a few fittings to theBoat Show/CBC in Seattle for some of us to see, and you may get a better reaction!

Is there a website where all the fittings are displayed and priced?

I like anythng like that or PVC pipe and fittings---sort of like a full sized "Erector Set" that can be used to build a lot of structural things as well as plumbing, of course.

Could use something like that in stainless steel! (Above and beyond the tubing and fittings already available for rails, etc.)

Joe.
 
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