Tips on removing the holding tank and head in 1980 38ft

I put an airhead in my ‘84 38. One of my favorite upgrades by far. I use it as a Liveaboard no problem.

The old tank and head came out with pretty much no problem. I used a few bungs to plug hoses, trying to minimize how many I actually had to take apart. Still managed to make a bit of a mess. Nothing about it was pretty or fun. But again for me personally, I love not having the black water, nothing complex to break or fix, zero stink, and being able to empty everything out in a few minutes without leaving the dock, or hiring a mobile pump out.

I’m in Seattle if you ever want to take a look.

As requested, new Master Thread for toilet issues all models, including E32-3 specific.

I've replaced all of the hoses, holding tank, rebuilt the hand pump (twice) and even replaced the head (toilet) over the years and here is my best advice for doing the job.



FWIW: I originally used this image of me when masking first came out during COVID. Never thought I get to use it again for a completely different subject.

Just an upvote for going to a composting head. I battled odors for our first two seasons with the E38 - replaced all of the hoses the first year, removed the tank to bleach the inside, ran extra ventilation from the locker holding the tank the second year, tried all manner of tank deoderizers and etc. All of that reduced the odors, but didn't eliminate them. Finally I bit the bullet this past spring - installed a Nature's Head, and removed the old holding tank and all of the hoses. The odors went away immediately. And the composting toilet was odor-free all summer. My main conclusion is that after 40 years of use the holding tank was simply too saturated to salvage. My only regret with the composting toilet is that I didn't bite the bullet and go in that direction sooner. Suffice it say that my wife was much happier this past summer. If you are considering a composting head but having doubts, my advice is to go for it.

I’ve committed to the send on a tank, but curious if anyone else has gone AirHead in a 32. A little less room than a 38.

Cutbait61 said:

Replaced the original marine toilet on my E29 with a composting toilet last year. The vent/fan is crucial to top performance. No smell whatsoever. Dumping/changing the medium about every 45 days is easy. Again no smell or mess
I use the bricks of ground coconut shells for the medium. Also you can put the paper in as well. A case of the coconut bricks from Amazon last a year easily. I installed the "Nature's Head" brand ...not cheap but worth it if you choose to go that route. I'm on a lake and pump out facilities are not convenient. I empty the "bucket" into a large construction bag and throw it in the dumpster at the marina..I admit I was dreading the emptying the first time but it wasn't much different than fresh dirt.

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is it fair to say there's also no smell on deck when downwind of the vent?