[C320-list] Fragile water lines

[Jeff Hare]

I'd tend to agree that Jabsco is lower end.  With that said, our head will
be going into its 18th season next spring.  Teen age girls and all.  It is
all stock from the factory, never had a rebuild and still pumps smoothly and
easily.  We only use fresh water flush, always have and tend to use a lot of
water.  We also occasionally drop in a table spoon or two of canola oil and
run the pump twice when we're leaving the boat. We use an enzyme head
treatment to keep the good bacteria growing (even though the oil may tend to
counter that somewhat). We oversized the hull vent & hose for better tank
ventilation. In the winter, we run a gallon of RV Antifreeze through it and
pump that out and it is super smooth operating in the spring.

I'll say that if you find that it pumps really hard, that's a sign that you
need to lubricate it.  Just using it like that will likely cause the rubber
seals to break down and wear extra fast.

We do have a head rebuild kit on board that we figured we'd need to install
about 7 or 8 years ago, but there's been no reason to.

-Jeff Hare
#809

-----Original Message-----
From: C320-list <c320-list-bounces at lists.catalina320.com> On Behalf Of John
Morrison
Sent: Tuesday, October 23, 2018 11:12 AM
To: C320-List at Catalina320.com
Subject: Re: [C320-list] Fragile water lines

If U R thinking of replacing the head stay away from Jabsco. The Head
Mistress recommends the Raritan as the best manual head ever. I agree and I
had published a MainSheet article on how to install it. The original head in
my boat, a Jabsco, required an $80 service kit every other season. The
Raritan has been service free since installation!
JEM
1999#574

Sent from my iPhone

> On Oct 23, 2018, at 9:29 AM, Doug Treff <doug at treff.us> wrote:
> 
> Jack,
> 
> It could have been mineral deposits. If you flush a urine and salt water
mix and leave it standing in the hoses (not a long enough flush), it will
crystallize into a cement-like substance. Calcium carbonate (found on
seawater) and urine crystals are a natural combination that will produce
this problem.  So, probably not malicious, just poor (or no) maintenance.
> 
> See the link below... Peggie Hall - the "Head Mistress" is amazing in her
knowledge of all things marine head and sanitation. Her answer to the
question in this forum post is almost word-for-word what you described.
> https://forums.sailboatowners.com/index.php?threads/salt-buildup-in-ho
> ses.23417/
> 
> --
> Doug Treff
> doug at treff.us
> 
>> On Mon, Oct 22, 2018, at 9:06 PM, Jack Brennan wrote:
>> 
>> The head rebuild is another chapter of my growing repertoire of 
>> stories about the p.o. I thought it was a bad joker valve and decided 
>> to replace everything. It turns out the hose between the head and the 
>> holding tank was clogged solid.
>> 
>> I mean really solid. As in someone seems to have put cement into the 
>> head. After I removed the hose and whacked it onto the parking lot, 
>> some cement-like chunks fell out. I suppose it could have been an 
>> accident, but ...