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Chapter 24

Waste & Water Services

(Full Text & Partial Photos)

Design

In South Australia, when building for recreational purposes, as far as I was able to ascertain no regulations apply/exist to the construction of the boat, so it is totally up to you what you do and what materials you use. In the absence of regulations, the guidance they provide equally is non existent.

Farrier's design layouts provide a number of layouts as well as a suggested scope, but I got most of my ideas from magazines (as to what the norm is) and books, in particular, Capt. Gandy's "Boating Manual" and John Payne's "The Marine Electrical and Electronics Bible".

After finalising my layout I resolved the plumbing needs and these consist of:

In finalising my requirements and compiling the budget I became very frustrated at the number of systems in existence and the incompatibility between the different ones, so I resolved where it was possible to use Australian Standard plumbing systems to ensure the availability of spare parts in future.

Also some of the lines become very in-accessible as things progress and I didn't think the standard hose and clamp option very suitable in this situation. Most of the runs are straight and so I used pressure PVC tube in these situations. The pressure PVC has the fittings available that allow you to switch to hose and clamps where required.

The installation is covered in the chronological sequence that I adopted.

Holding Tanks & Waste Lines.

The system I adopted was inspired by what I'd seen at a fellow boat builder who was building to Survey. The system transfers all waste water, black and grey, to separate holding tanks from where it can be pumped out or discharged by gravity thru hull in a controlled manner.

In the system I adopted, both tanks can be used for black, whilst one can be used for grey which can be tanked or by pass straight to the thru hull

Early on I decided to utilise the space under the walkway adjacent to the Port mid hull head for the holding tanks. At that stage I was concerned about the permeability of composite tanks so I opted to go for the marine grade aluminium I was using for the diesel day tanks.

To get the right fit, I set out the floor and steps and then made vertical templates of the front and back of the tanks. Once the tanks were welded up they were a reasonable fit, but the room for plumbing was far more restricted than I'd realised.

To avoid further coordinating problems I decided to shape the foam panels in conjunction with the plumbing. Here the foam for the walkway and the top two steps is positioned as is the Port diesel tank. The holes are for sealable inspection openings.

The main drainage/pump out line and tank waste valves/connections were installed with the tanks.

From then on I fitted the pipe in layers, at the same time shaping the foam for the risers and landings. It became quite a puzzle at times especially as PVC is too tight fitting to allow trial assembly. The photo shows the black waste lines/valves to the tanks (upper set) and the alternate grey waste line into the rear tank (line coming up)

Here you can see the completed pipework, including the bilge line and toilet flush & waste lines after removal of the foam panels. These panels were then laminated in the shed.

The photo shows the laminated steps/risers re-positioned, as was the toilet pan at which stage I was able to determine the access hole (to operate the valves) location.

After the holes were cut, edge filled and finished the steps, risers and landings were taped into place. In hindsight, whilst I am confident in my PVC plumbing ability, I should have taken time out and devised a water test of the system as leaks will be a major problem to fix.

In Hindsight:

To our surprise the pressure of the pump out of the electric toilets causes one to partially backfill the other, most unpleasant. I will introduce Non Return valves in the 25 mm dia outflow lines and hope it doesn't present a maintance problem. The lines should be kept separate up to the holding tanks, in fact separating the tanks would be better still with the control over Tank>Thru Hull located next to toilet

Bilge lines

To avoid thru hull penetrations and minimise pipelines I decided to utilise the same pipe lines for both the auto bilge pumps and the manual system.

The minikeel structural support cores provide ideal sumps for the bilge pumps.

Getting the lines from them to the manual diaphragm bilge pump took quite a bit figuring, especially since I wanted to limit the manual pump to one (as hopefully it will never be used).

Locating the manual pump in a position from where it can be operated properly without being an eyesore was a further challenge that eluded me for quite a while.

This is the SB mini keel core in which the bilge float switch is located in the front, followed by the shower/grey water sump and then the bilge pump. The drains, discharge lines and conduits are positioned prior to the fixing of the sole. Ensuring everything can be got at, removed, serviced from the access hole in the sole needs to be considered. This is a far as the installation proceeded at this point (to accommodate the fixing of the soles)

The bilge lines were revisited when it became necessary to run the SB bilge line across the floor at the cabin bulkhead. All the services here are tightly packed and will only fit in the available space by installing them in sequence. In the photo you can see the bilge line rising along the SB steps (in freezer insulation space) and then running along the bench upstand, the black fitting is the non return valve.

This illustrates how the services are packed in along the sill. All this needed to be done to run the engine control cables, needed to commission the engines. In the foreground are the valves used to bring the manual bilge pump into service.

The manual bilge pump is located in the space under the cockpit seating and is accessed / operated by lifting the Port side seat.

Composite Tanks (Water & Diesel)

As I wanted to have a level floor in the hold the space under was a natural for tankage, as was the under bed space in the port forward cabin. To maximise the volume I decided to go with composite tanks and FGI provided me with the specifications. In essence it comprises a 8 mm wall thickness build in layers out of E-glass, CSM and coremat. The tank volumes are 2*400 litres water + 1*220 litres of diesel.

I obtained some automotive senders and made the provision for fixing them in the tank lids before assembly of the tanks. (In hindsight I'm keeping my fingers crossed with regards to the senders in the water tanks as I don't know whether they will corrode).

The baffles were fixed to the underside of the lids so as not to interfere with the flow of fluids in the chambers.

The lids were trial fitted, after which the water tanks were coated with a food grade resin (to avoid a resin taste in the water) and the diesel tank with epoxy.

The tanks lids were then glued and taped into place and the hatches installed to avoid dirt getting into the tanks. As you can see I also constructed the anchor winch platform at this time, ahead of the positioning of the front deck. How people do this in reverse order beats me.

Basin moulding

The basins on offer in the marine chandleries are far to small for my liking, nor was I able to source a suitable one commercially. In my home I had a ceramic basin in a bathroom which had a perfectly sized bowl, so I decided to copy it.

I started by making a plug of the bowl and was relieved when it stripped out without doing any damage. I used a PVA releasing agent as well as wax.

The plug was glued to a base and the surround was formed in situ. The first attempt at moulding a basin was a failure and after consulting with Glen (FGI rep) I was able to produce 2 successful products. In hindsight and after all the time spend in buffing the plug, repairing etc. I wouldn't recommend this as economic solution.

Fresh Water Feed / Transfer lines

Both tanks are fitted with a drain valve at the bottom and an outlet valve 50 mm above there. The supply lines to the pressure pump are 20 mm dia PVC and to work out the fittings I initially sketched the solution, studied the runs in situ and then after purchasing the fittings I laid them all out in sequence on my temporary work bench. What you see laid out is the system under discussion and when I was satisfied it would work I progressively fixed the lines in position.

On the left of the pump both the feed lines come together before the hose connection. On the right the hose connection is missing and following that is the pressure line connection, with the first of the fittings, followed by the tank transfer line. (The green line is gas)

The transfer lines runs back to the water inlet system and you can see it joining in below the deck fill and before the tank inlet valves. This system allows me to transfer water from one tank to the other using the water pressure pump.

Pressurised Fresh Water

This photo shows the addition of the pressure water piping which I did in the Hepworth system. 12 mm dia for cold and 10 mm dia for hot water.

The clear hose, connected to the waste is an effective way to measure the water level in the tanks and if I had thought about it earlier I would have probably avoided buying and installing the senders. The other lines, black, the large one is the grey discharge from the shower sump and the small one the main fuel supply. All this stuff will disappear under the bottom shelve of the pantry cupboard.

The Truma hot water system is fully pressurised and can operate from gas or 240 V, controlled remotely as is the temperature. The unit is only 14 litres, but at 70 dC will give a short shower. For those, me, that want a long shower a recirculating system will be set up in the SB head which will also combine with a solar bag. Setting the HW unit up in this location requires the provision of a gas detector unit in the engine compartment, to actuate a solenoid in case of a gas leak.

Note: This little unit has been brilliant and has proved capable of providing 2 showers in succession. Plus it provides the luxury of HW on tap at no charge in the marina.

Of the additional conduits I ran in the aft beam space one has been put to use to house the hot and cold supply lines to the Port hull. The rear of the deck shower fitting can also be seen.

Waste Connections

The galley has been fitted with a domestic 1 3/4-bowl SS sink. The normal P trap was not used and the waste can be send thru hull (left > down > valve > hose > TH) or to the shower sump (right > valve > shower-sump). The waste coming down on the left is from the washing machine.

The SB basin also has a twin system, the TH to the left and the shower sump to the right. The water connections and gas line are also visible.

Salt Water Supply

Non pressurised salt water is used for toilet flushing and the future desalinator. The salt water will be pressurised for deck wash outlets (2#), waste tank flushing, anchor chain wash. The salt water pressure pump is also the back up unit for the fresh water unit. The pump is located in the Port hull against the mast BH in a cupboard, the tank flush valve is located next to the unit.

Note: After limited cruising I have concluded that a SW outlet at the galley sink is a must in order to preserve fresh water. We are all too used to having unlimitedwater available for rinsing, etc. and our usage was way yo high to be able to sustain on an extended cruise

As part of plumbing the WC pans I decided to test how they functioned and discovered that the supply pump is a flow thru type and the waste isn't. When after installing the SB side pan I found it was taking a long time to pump in the flush water I soon worked out what was causing this, the water was running back thru the pump, installation of a non return valve in the supply line fixed it.

Fitments

This is the in board side of the galley and shows the 1 3/4 bowl sink as set into the formica benchtop. The overhead unit behind contains the gas oven and the microwave. The freezer, HW and gas controls are located in the white panel.

The SB vanity basin is located forward of the mast bulkhead opposite the pantry. The vanity top, 300 wide, comfortably accommodates the basin and the low-pressure mixer tap.

The SB head is located forward of the vanity/pantry area and contains a WC and shower. The pan can be covered during a shower by folding down the flap sitting against the bulkhead. It also serves as a seat during showers.

The shower is a standard handheld on an adjustable bracket, with mixer tap and the re-circulating switch located under the tap. Preliminary testing has been successful, longer term will test whether the contamination in the waste water will cause blockages.

The washing machine has only been provided with coldwater and I had to locate the tap in the cupboard top adjacent to the machine, as it wouldn't fit inside the available space.

I think the provision of a deck shower will be very beneficial as it will allow showers with minimal water usage and avoid the wiping down of surfaces. The shower can be turned on and off by turning the head.

The Port basin taps/faucet also provide the showerhead as it pulls out and can be mounted on a bracket. This head has been kept very simple to minimise maintenance problems that could otherwise be created by un-informed passengers.

Gas Supply & Appliances

This aspect is strictly regulated by the Department of Transport in Sth Aust. and at first glance not very boatie friendly as the regulations apply to traditional craft and vehicles. To do your own thing is not advisable (besides being illegal) as without the "Certificate of Compliance", issued by a licensed gas plumber, it will be hard to get insurance, access to marina's etc.. Luckily I have a friend who has the qualifications and he did the installation for me with me assisting by running the pipe thru all the hard to get to places.

As strict compliance with the code as written seemed impossible I met with Transport SA inspectors to discuss the installation. My intended installation of a gas detector and 2 sensors saved the day, as they felt that with the provision of these some of the other requirements, no pipe joints in engine rooms (HW service), could be waived.

This collaborative meeting was very beneficial as they helped resolve how I could legally install 2 # 9 Kg gas bottles in the SB bow compartment, in a separate compartment.

The compartment is sealed, has a separate thru hull drain and besides the bottles contains the gas regulator and solenoid valve actuated by the gas detector.

Pipework is 12mm copper with a plastic lagging and all the fittings are the compression type, as required by the Code.

The burner we selected is a 3 burner type and it will allow 3 reasonable sized saucepans to be used. It has flame failure safety cut off devices which take a bit of getting used to as you have to hold the button in until the flame warms the detector up, or it goes out.

The oven / grill has electronic ignition and flame failure detection. Location above the sink makes access easy and is what, Ann, would have liked in our home kitchen.

The remainder of the gas service is to the hot water service, pictured earlier and the bayonet fitting in the rear face of the aft beam for the BBQ .

The gas detector/solenoid control is in the galley from where the gas can be turned on / off.

The sensors are located at, low level in the galley and the in SB engine compartment.

In Hindsight

• I did not realise at the time I ordered the engines that coolant heated HW systems require the engine to be a freshwater coolant type. In my case it would not have cost me a great deal to have this type and it would have saved a lot of bother sorting out the alternative, gas heated supply. Having the option to heat the water gas or electric is a plus, as when the sun has been kind we'll be able to generate hot water without the use of fossil fuels.
• The senders for the fuel and water tanks could probably have been omitted as a clear plastic hose connected to the drain valve gives an adequate indication of state of the tank. And in case of the diesel tanks an opportunity to drain any water in the system.
• Both pressure pumps, Whale brand, supposedly quiet, are very noisy and could probably have been located in less annoying locations.
• I'd locate the holding tanks as I did, but would probably make the mid landing and steps removable as I now think all services have to be accessible no matter how well installed.
• Having the mini keel sumps to locate the bilge and shower sump pumps saved my skin. I would however provide much bigger (full width) access hatches, as although the installations are serviceable, it is very hard to get at as the space above is restricted as well once the fitout is done.
• I have provided an alternative fresh water supply, via the drain valve, to the deck wash pump, to rinse the salt off the windows.
• The electric toilets which look nice and clean, and although they functioned well during testing, may prove to be a pain for maintenance as getting at the works requires a lot of work in tight spaces.
• The shower reticulating system has not been successful as the pump provided in the shower sump is not powerful enough.
• In Australia ensure that all gas pipework, fittings, valves and fixtures are AGA approved and that the item comes with the appropriate stickers or that supplier can provide the approval #'s before you purchase. I had a major hold up because the "Approved" solenoid valve supplied by a major marine supplier BLA, was not.

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