How to recharge holding tank vent filter -- w/pics

Also remember to use reinforced hose because the pump-out pulls air from the vent. If you don't use reinforced hose it'll collapse when the pump-out pulls a vacuum. This is a BAD THING. That pressure will then start pulling against the tank itself and all the other fittings. So make sure you get the right hose.

Dealing with rebuilding a filter is pretty simple. If you've ever changed a baby's diaper you've dealt with a MUCH messier job. $80 plus shipping seems like a waste for something you can make yourself with less than $20 total.
 
We could calculate that. We need to know a few more items though. How much volume of gas is in a typical fart and how much volume of gas passes through the filter. I assume that as the tank fills, the gas is pushed out through the vent so if you have like a 60 gallon holding tank, you push out 60 gallons of gas if you fill it to the top. Assuming that a fart is like "1/4 of a cup" (we've all had the full cup farts though but that is not the average), that would mean that there are 64 farts per gallon so a holding tank would expel about 3840 farts filling up.

Now Frank W. says he has not changed his filter in 9 years... so I'm guessing he may have over 100K farts that have passed his filter by now.... and he says it still works.

From reading this thread though, it seems that if the filter gets wet (i.e. a wet fart), it doesn't work that well.

Just catching up on this old thread. That is really funny. Thanks for the levity.
 
Regarding cutting the filter in half and putting in charcoal into the filter. I spent last night researching this, and as much as I read about it saves you money to cut it in half and refill it. I read a few people saying that this wouldn't be acceptable and you could risk having issues when you go to pump out the next time. The charcoal not being breatheable, etc...

So, bottom line, is it safe to cut the existing filter in half and refill it with charcoal as described in this post? If I need to spend the $60 bucks for another filter I will, but sure would like to go the cheaper route if possible.

Anyone seen a 3rd party manufacture make an already pre-built one that you can replace the charcoal?
 
I haven't done it yet, but from the credibility of those who have, I plan to do it.
 
The member that did this initially is a friend of mine...kenpcfl.....and I will assure you that it was thoroughly researched and that he has successfully done it on his own boat before he posted anything at all about it.
 
Ok, I went and got the charcoal and the fitting parts. I got to the boat, looked at where this is located, and I just have to ask. How in the heck am I suppose to climb my butt way up in there to access this filter?

I have a 2001, 290DA. Even if I open the engine hatch, and remove the smaller decking on the starboard side, the filter is still located on the other side of the hot water heater and it's a good 2 feet in there, where I can't access it from above. Sorry, I don't have a picture, but it is located way back in there and on top of it, the filter is located towards the outside wall, so you really have to get in there to access the filter.



Anyone change this before on a similar boat? I see some screws sticking down, and I am thinking, well I will scratch the crap out of my back, as well as once I get in there, it wouldn't be easy to back out of that area, unless I was the size of a smurf.
 
This same subject came up a year or so ago. Our old cruiser, not a Sea Ray, did not have a filter so I made my own, it worked great. Heres the link to my project.

http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/album/558327481qFuVlb?vhost=home-and-garden

I used the push-on fittings rather than threaded for this project, but for the SR applications substitute a threaded 5/8" male fitting on each end.
 
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Ok, I went and got the charcoal and the fitting parts. I got to the boat, looked at where this is located, and I just have to ask. How in the heck am I suppose to climb my butt way up in there to access this filter?

I have a 2001, 290DA. Even if I open the engine hatch, and remove the smaller decking on the starboard side, the filter is still located on the other side of the hot water heater and it's a good 2 feet in there, where I can't access it from above. Sorry, I don't have a picture, but it is located way back in there and on top of it, the filter is located towards the outside wall, so you really have to get in there to access the filter.



Anyone change this before on a similar boat? I see some screws sticking down, and I am thinking, well I will scratch the crap out of my back, as well as once I get in there, it wouldn't be easy to back out of that area, unless I was the size of a smurf.

poormonkey, yes I have changed it. I remember it was just another "Not much fun" job. I seem to remember having to work with 1 hand. When your done I hope you will have a greater appreciation of a marine technicians daily challenges. Mike
 
poormonkey, weather you recharge or replace the issue of accessing the filter is the same.

I did the recharge route and it worked for me. Our 280 Sundancer had easy access to the filer.

Sorry to hear about your situation.
 
Ken! Great post! Thank you for sharing.

I have also just finished my recharge filter…. I did run into trying to find the Pelletized Carbon you used, all the places I went had the granules…. But found the Pellets at Petco finally. I can’t wait to put it back in place this weekend.

I also have some photos of it on my blog. I also had to do this off center for my tank and will add photos of it on the boat soon. http://www.reelitinpanaroy.blogspot.com

Thanks again for saving me some cash for gas! I think I will make a kit of this and sell it to the rest of the folks at my marina!
 
I've found bagging the new charcoal in nylon stockings works very well.

I bought 10 knee highs at Walmart for a couple of bucks, put one in each half, toe end 1st, drape the excess over the tube, fill remembering to compensate for loss of volume when you assemble, fold over the excess & screw the two halves together. I always blow (not suck) thru the assembled tube to insure good air flow.
 
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The previous owner installed a Jabsco toilet, holding tank, with macerator but no vent filter. I plan on doing this tomorrow since my vent line is old and kinked. Without having to remove the vent line for a couple hours and stinking the boat, can someone tell me what size is the vent line?

thanks!!!
 
This thread stinks..... loved reading all this stuff.. On my third Searay, from 96 to 08, never had to change the filter, no odors. Must mention that we have free pumpouts at our marina, so we do it regularly. Keep up the good stuff...:smt038
 
My holding tank did not have a vent filter. Went to HD and made my own from scratch. I had to modify a bit though. I put a 90 degree elbow in the middle so it would not stick out over the sides of the tank. I also used a an elbow for the end piece that hooks up to the vent line reducing the bend and amount of pipe used.

FWIW. My old vent fitting was corroded (cheap chrome steel?), the pipe was kinked and full of GUNK!. Hope fully this remedies my stinky boat and burping toilet. replaced vent fitting with a new stainless piece from whitecap.

Sorry I didn't take pics...
 
I'll be adding one of these to my new holding tank installation, but it seems illogical to mount it directly onto the tank. There is sure to be some contamination when underway even half full. Mine will go inline a short distance away and uphill from the holding tank.

Set up a a spot in your ER where you can ty-wrap your new DIY filter up to the underside of the floor above. That will keep it well above the holding tank to avoid splashing from the tank into your new filter. Ensure that the vent line that leaves the filter keeps running uphill & does not dip to form a sump where water/condensation can pocket & create a trap or the tank will now have difficulty venting itself. Having said this, you will want to make sure that this new filter location is not situated above the thru-hull vent fitting location. Normally, "s_it" runs downhill, but in this case, we must think uphill for the vent to operate freely..

~Ken :smt024
 
We installed a fresh "stinky filter" a month ago, and we are already having stinky flushes again. I guess with 3 kids, and spending 3 days at a time on the boat each weekend, not to mention, no pump out station at our marina, we are going to have issues like this.:wow:

I just ordered our second filter in a month, and am going to try recharging the one we take out this time. If it works, I'll do the same with the new one (when it's done) so we will always have one at hand, and we can spend the money on something else.

I just wish the filter location were easier to access.. :smt013
 
I just completed building and installing a couple home made units based on the great ideas from Kenpcfl. When I tried to buy the charcoal pellets he used, I discovered that nobody had them in stock, not even the places I checked on the web. So I ended up buying "air activated carbon charcoal CTC-60" which is what is used in industrial air scrubbers. I could only find it by the pound and didn't know how I needed, so I bought 10 pounds. Turns out that a 12 inch tube of 2 in ABS tubing with fittings on the ends only needs about 1 pound of the stuff. So I have a lot of refils left in that bag :grin:.

Anyway, it worked great once I discovered a little trick. If you mount the filter flat, the pellets will settle a bit and create an air space along some or all of the top edge of the tube. This will allow air to pass over the pellets instead of through them. Air like water will take the path of least resistance. I discovered this because I installed one flat and the other on a slight angle. So I adjusted the flat one, and it works much better now. Only a slight angle is needed, maybe as little as an inch drop on one end will do it.

When I was researching tank filters I looked at the Big Orange filter. It has a bypass valve to prevent tank collapse during pump out. I thought that was a good idea, but went one step further. I bought and installed a TankSaver relief valve from Dometic/Sealand on both tanks. Super easy to install, just a 3" hole saw is required. This device basically provides a way to pull air into the tank even if your vent line is completely blocked. To me it seemed to be cheap insurance considering the consequences of a tank collapse.
 

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