A Bucket and Chuck It

[rorik]

The EPA is working on making all of Puget Sound a NDZ.
But they're not forcing the cities/counties (Seattle, Tacoma, etc) that border the Sound to update their sewage treatment plants so they don;t overflow into the SOund when it rains or the power goes out.
If they succeed in making PugetSOUnd a NDZ, you won't be able to use anything in the Sound other than a holding tank.

http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/nonpoint/CleanBoating/nodischargezone.html


These work OK in a car. Probably not so much longer term in a boat, except maybe as a backup.

http://www.traveljohn.com/1-1.php

[CharlieJ]

I really have no problem with a no discharge rule. I have the boat plumbed for pump out, and found it MUCH less hassle. And MUCH more pleasant to deal with. Have zero experience with composting heads, so others have to talk of  those.

I DO have a problem with the lack of enforcement of shore facilities who OOPS Overflow into the waters. And that happens more often than is admitted. And should be rigidly enforced. Don't hold your breathe though.

I've tried Wag Bags before and they are ok ( although they STINK) for weekend use. But for long term cruising, no way. Long term, they have to be stowed aboard- and did I mention? They stink!!

So I'm satisfied with pumping the head. Single hand, I get about 14, 15 days between pump outs. With two aboard 7-8 days. And that's with a 5.5 gallon setup, in a plumbed Porta Potty ( or as they all them- an MSD)

[Captain Smollett]

I DO have a problem with the lack of enforcement of shore facilities who OOPS Overflow into the waters. And that happens more often than is admitted. And should be rigidly enforced. Don't hold your breathe though.

I agree it happens more than people want to admit.

I lived at a marina with free pump-out for liveaboards (and maybe general slipped boats).  There was one other boat besides us that pumped out.  He was on a 42 ft trawler and would pump-out before and after his daughters came to visit or he went "out" for a few day cruise.

Yes, we had shoreside facilities.  Some of those folks were not seen off their boats for days or rarely seen at the shoreside restrooms...and I'm not the only one that noticed that.  I heard conversations..."I'm not storing THAT on MY boat!"

For boaters to be a population that claims to be so "green" and eco-friendly much of the time, too many of them sure seemed to have no issue dumping into the river.  Offshore...no problem.  Here in town?  Different story.

[Grime]

I'll put it this way. You wont catch me getting into the water at our marina. 3 women living on one boat and never use the marina restroom.

Need I say more.

[rorik]

I really have no problem with a no discharge rule. .....
I DO have a problem with the lack of enforcement of shore facilities who OOPS Overflow into the waters. And that happens more often than is admitted. And should be rigidly enforced. Don't hold your breathe though....

And, not to hijack this thread too much, but that's the nail on the "head"....  ;D

King, Pierce and Snohomish counties drop hundreds of thousands to a few million gallons of waste into the Sound each year but if you read the papers here, its all the fault of boaters.
And we won't mention all of the aging septic systems that are within a 1/4 mile of the Sound.......
Or Victoria Canada in British Columbia that thinks its OK to run their untreated sewage straight into the Sound because its in Canadian waters....

I've written to the agencies involved and to a couple of the papers that I think a NDZ is a great idea - but ONLY if its enforced equally.
So far, I've only heard silence.

And how do you deal with the drunks/addicts who "live" in the park at the other end of the waterway and daily use the waterway for all of their needs?

/rant off

FWIW, I prefer my Lavac and holding tank over a bucket, even under sail.
My marina will pump out any tenant, any time, as often as they want, for $5 per instance.

Time to go - I'm "pooped".

[Grime]

My marina will pump out any tenant, any time, as often as they want, for $5 per instance.

Pump out should be free because a lot of people wont spend the 5 bucks and just dump right in the marina.

[rorik]

My marina will pump out any tenant, any time, as often as they want, for $5 per instance.

Pump out should be free because a lot of people wont spend the 5 bucks and just dump right in the marina.

Sorry, should have made that more clear:
If the marina staff do it - its $5.
If you do it yourself - its free - pump your ass off.... ;D

[Grime]

I don't see the 5 bucks charge by the marina. They are already being paid and should do it for free just to know who is pumping and who is dumping.

Here it is free and no one uses the pump out. Just dump no body cares and the fish eat it.

[CharlieJ]

Coming around from Annapolis, some were free, some were self service, and some were $5 to $10. As a transient, I really didn't mind the fee. Wasn't that often I needed it.

One place tried to charge $25 for my 5.5 gallon MSD- I said no thanks. Up the coast another day, I paid $25 for a slip AND a pump out combined.

One thing to note. You should be keeping a log of when and where you do pump out. It can save hassle if you get checked.

Edited to add.

In many spots, the pump out was a part of a mooring, or dinghy dock fee. In DC, in Ft Myers Beach, in Sunset Harbor in Stuart, in Boot Key Harbor, they provided a weekly free pump out if you were on a mooring, or signed to the dinghy dock. There are others' but those pop to mind immediately.

Ft Walton Beach, Lake Yazoo (in Pascagoula Ms), and several spots in the Chesapeake had courtesy pump outs- do it your self places.

Virtually NO places set up for dumping a Porta Potti though. 

[Captain Smollett]

I don't see the 5 bucks charge by the marina. They are already being paid and should do it for free just to know who is pumping and who is dumping.

Here it is free and no one uses the pump out. Just dump no body cares and the fish eat it.

It does cost the marina money to run the equipment.  The pumps have to be maintained, etc.

Our marina did not charge customers of the marina (slip renters), but others...boats anchored out or passing by, for example, would have been.  Ditto marina across the river.

[CharlieJ]

That's what he meant JR. Just had supper on their boat ;D

Only fair for transients to have minimal fees

[PommyDave]

I have been told that here in Australia, if you pee or poop directly off the side or the back of your boat is isn't illegal. However, if your urine or fecal matter is captured by a bowl, a bucket or any kind of container before it hits the water, you are then breaking the law and can be fined thousands of dollars. (Not to mention, if somebody were to observe you and make a complaint to the cops, you might be convicted of "Indecent Exposure" and end up on some sex-offenders register!)  :o

[CharlieJ]

pretty much the same deal here in the states