Vacuum Flush

[Sea Bandit]

Just purchased a 1988 300 Weekender and 5 days into purchase vacuum flush system does not create vacuum, any ideas or thoughts are appreciated

 

[Asureyez]

The vacuum pump has 4 duck bill valves, check'm and change'em. Mucky but simple. Could be user error, if you and the crew are new to vacuflush heads.

Lots written here on vacuflush, do searches.

 

[mwph]

As Chad mentioned, use the search feature & you'll tind tons of information. Before you do that though some simple starter questions.....
1.) does the pump run but create no vacuum?
2.) does the bowl hold water?
3.) Did it work for the first few days then quit?
4.) The switches are on & they have power right?

 

[wileecoyote]

Just purchased a 1988 300 Weekender and 5 days into purchase vacuum flush system does not create vacuum, any ideas or thoughts are appreciated

Before you get really hammered by some of the guys on the board. General rules here, 1) do not post multiple times on the same subject (especially on the same day!) 2) put your boat info in your sig so everyone knows what you have, Engine, trans, genny, year, model, etc.. Also add location, someone nearby may have local knowledge. 3) Always use the search before hand, just to be sure there isn't a topic on the subject already.(Gary (four suns) has a really good post on the duckbills by the way).
Welcome to CSR and hope you find all the answers your looking for. Also look in the Pre-Clintonites thread, lots of 80's boat and boat owners there with lots of experience with this kind of thing.:thumbsup:

 

[Sea Bandit]

Thanks for the advice, sorry about multiple postings, 1st day.

Some answers to some questions.
The pump does not seem to be running. But did for 1st five days and shut off after creating vacuum and did not leak.

The bowl is holding water

The vacu flush system worked great for 5 days

All switches on and have power, light does not light up for top switch for pump, but did not earlier when it was working.

Thanks
1988 300 Weekender
Twin 260 HP Mercruisers
Generator was remove

 

[mwph]

I am certainly no expert so hopefully some of the more experienced guys will chime in in the morning.

Since the pump is not even running... Does everything else electrical still work? Test to be sure you still have power @ the pump. If not trace down a fuse or breaker. If you still have power maybe the motor just died.

 

[Half Off]

I just chased down a problem on my system last weekend. Toilet did not flush, nothing happened when peddle was depressed, just blue water in system (put in weekend before). I shut off the breaker to system then got a funnel to a bucket ready with old towels stuffed everywhere to catch anything that might come out of the hose I was about to disconnect from the vacuum pump. Well to my surprise I had suction built up at the pump but nothing at all came out of the hose. So now I reconnected the hose to the pump and turned the system back on and the pump built up pressure, but still no action when I depressed the peddle. So now I'm thinking I obviously have a blockage in the hose between the bowl and pump. I went to the hardware store and bought one of those cheap hand snakes but couldn’t get it to go down the hose after repeated tries. Now here comes the fun part, I put on a latex glove and stuffed my hand into the bowl, now this displaced most of the "blue liquid" in the bowl rather quickly- shooting it all over my legs, shoes and bathroom walls. Now I'm feeling around and find a clump of toilet paper in the bottom of the bowl, with a little persuasion, swoosh, the blockage cleared and problem was solved. I was pretty happy at this point that I didn't have to tear anything apart that I let my wife clean up the bathroom while I cleaned up and had a beer.

 

[Four Suns]

Why/how do you have blue chemicals in a vacuflush system?

 

[Asureyez]

<scratching my head> What Gary said?

You didn;t put blue chemical in your house water did you?

 

[Pseudomind]

Why/how do you have blue chemicals in a vacuflush system?

<scratching my head> What Gary said?

You didn;t put blue chemical in your house water did you?

If I liked popcorn... about now is when I would go for it... so since Asueyez is <scratching his head> I will scratch my chin... I will not even attempt to ask what Gary might be scratching, but yes...

Let's hear some more about this Blue water? From where? :huh:

 

[mmcguire2002]

FYI - next time, use your faucet to fill the bowl with extra water, then try flushing. If it is just a little TP that is blocking it, that usually creates enough pressure to push it through. Much better than latex gloves and fishing around in there with your hands.

No comment on the blue water...but can't wait to hear your response to the inquiries.

 

[Presentation]

Why/how do you have blue chemicals in a vacuflush system?

Gary, I don’t understand what you are questioning.

Let’s assume I just pumped out the holding tank, back flushed and re-pumped, OK?

The fresh water is clear, OK?

What is the very next thing we do?

We take one packet of holding tank treatment, we prefer the dry blue powder but it sounds like others like the blue liquid.

We take the packet, press the foot pedal on the head to open it and toss in the packet. Next we flush.

How do the rest of you that are questioning this get the blue holding tank treatment into your holding tank? Do you not treat it?

 

[Half Off]

The blue chemical I was referring to is the holding tank treatment that Presentation referred to. We put it in at the end of the weekend before we head home for the week. Same stuff you would put in an R.V., might not be advisable to everyone but I don't see where it hurts anything.

Michael, it was a pretty good wad of t.p. I had already hit it with a plunger multiple times with no luck at all.

I'm not going to get into a *** for tat over what I did to solve my problem, just responding to the original poster's question.

 

[Sea Bandit]

After troubleshooting the system I have found if I braek the seal of the vacuum switch the vacuum pump kicks on, telling me the pump is OK, now I notice an adjustment can be made with a turn knob for spring tension, should I adjust, if so which way? The previous owner installed a new switch in 2006, is it time for a new one or just an adjustment?