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Sanitation System
Vacuflush Marine Toilets
Prima Vista has Sealand Vacuflush toilets and they work great – when you do a few simple things properly. The
valves, openings, and pumps may clog if you aren’t careful. If the toilet clogs, it is YOUR RESONSIBILITY! It is
important that every member of the crew be informed on the proper use of the MARINE TOILET.
TIPS:
1.
The wall switch in each head must be in the “RUN” position for the vacuum to charge after each flush.
2.
Flush solids first, then flush small amounts of toilet paper. Too much of anything at once can be bad news.
3.
Depressing the foot pedal all the way activates the flushing mechanism. Let the foot pedal “snap back” to
close the valve properly.
a.
Letting the pedal up slowly might leave a gap and the vacuum pump will keep trying to rebuild the
vacuum.
b.
You will hear the vacuum pump about 20-30 times to recharge the vacuum in the tanks after each
flush. If the pump keeps cycling, then there is a leak in the system somewhere and it cannot build a
vacuum. (Sometimes a bit of toilet paper gets stuck in the seal.)
4.
Make sure you leave some water in the bowl after flushing. Lift the foot pedal to add water.
5.
Ideally flush the head for small children to make sure nothing foreign is being flushed.
6.
At night or when you are away from the vessel, ALWAYS put the heads in SLEEP mode.
NEVER put paper towels, tampons, Kleenex, sanitary napkins, household toilet paper or any food into the marine
toilet. Use only the special dissolving marine toilet tissue provided by AYC.
Good news/bad news - The Vacuflush system draws fresh water from the tanks, not sea water. This is very
important to remember. You have a limited supply of fresh water; however, using fresh water is what keeps the
odor off the boat.
Troubleshooting
If the worst happens and you plug the toilet, try the steps in this link. (Be careful the toilet does not suck the plastic
bag into the system!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rC4-gQNXgOw
1.
If the bowl doesn’t refill with water but you hear a sucking noise, something is preventing the seal from
closing. If this occurs, make sure the gasket is free of toilet paper and depress the foot pedal and let it “snap
back” into position.
2.
At night, the toilet wall switches (in the heads) can be placed on “SLEEP” so that you don’t hear the toilets
recharging.
Waste Water Holding Tanks
There are two tanks – fore and aft - each sanitation HOLDING TANK holds approximately 40 gallons. Be aware of
the rate of waste production as overfilled tanks can break a hose, clog a vent, or burst the tank resulting in an
indescribable catastrophe and a very EXPENSIVE FIX to you. Watch the monitors carefully and pump out waste
tanks EVERY OTHER DAY or as needed to avoid this problem.
You can check the levels of waste in the tanks by:
Turn on the waste monitor switches in the DC panel and checking the level
gauge inside the medicine cabinets of each head. Each monitor has 4 lights
to tell you the current status.