Homemade Macerator

[coffeeman]

I have need for a macerator for one time each year. I've seen the garbage disposal homemade units and I've looked at sewer solutions as well. I have the Camco Dual Flush Rinse unit Amazon.com: Camco 39062 RV Dual Flush Pro Holding Tank Rinser with Gate Valve: Automotive and was wondering if I used a cap with hose connection if it work work like the Sewer Solution? Not sure how much water pressure the Sewer Solutions creates. I've got an old disposal as well which I could build from. I just can't justify alot of $ for limited use. Anyone that has build one please share your thought.

[wa8yxm]

Two questions, 3 answers.

First: The dual flush pro.. WILL NOT work like a sewer solution.. So that's out.

Second: The sewer solution is very wasteful of fresh water, and puts an increased load on the sewer system as well. I strongly recommend AGAINST it.

Third: I have NOT tried converting a Garbage disposal into a macerator however.....

On one of the forums,, Either this family or the rv.net family (I forget which) someone HAS done exactly that and posted directions and pictures.. The poster was very pleased with the results... Basically you need to figure out a way to seal the inlet use a 3" hose long enough to just reach the ground, where you set the disposal, then 3/4 inch black garden hose to your sewer inlet adapter.. now that I have made.

I took a plastic flower pot (80 cents at Big Lots) cut a small (3/4 inch?) hole (Bit bigger) in the bottom and shoved a length of PVC through the hole.. Filled it with wet concrete and let it set, on the top end of the PVC I put a right angle and a hose adapter for the hose to screw into. Works great. Mine is actually a bit more complex than that since it also has a gray water gravity feed and a check valve to make sure there is no back splash.. (If I had to do over I'd use two 3/4 inch PVC pipes)

[Twomed]

Had to click on this...figured some guy was multi tasking with the blender or his trolling motor.

[coffeeman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Twomed Had to click on this...figured some guy was multi tasking with the blender or his trolling motor.

You should see the 5 gallon Margarita Machine I made out of a garbage disposal....seriously! I appreciate all the insite..I may just have too much time on my hands.

[Hikerdogs]

While I don't doubt a mascerator pump can be made from an old garbage disposal I doubt it would be cost effective. You can buy one for less than $70.00. The only additional things you'll need are some 1" hose and some 1 1/2" hose.

JOHNSON MACERATOR HEAD PUMP OUT 102445301 TA3P10-19 | eBay

I doubt you could convert the disposal for that price. We have a Jabsco marine mascerator that looks similar to the Johnson one in the picture. We only use it a few times a year but it has more than paid for itself. No muss no fuss, you just hook the power leads to the battery cables at the generator, start flushing the tank with fresh water and turn on the pump. It only takes a few minutes to empty a full 40 gallon tank.

[coffeeman]

Hiker I saw that earlier today on Ebay and decided when I do make it that is the route to go. Txs for sharing.

[smiller]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hikerdogs While I don't doubt a mascerator pump can be made from an old garbage disposal I doubt it would be cost effective. You can buy one for less than $70.00. The only additional things you'll need are some 1" hose and some 1 1/2" hose.

Excellent price, thanks for the link. How do you adapt the intake to a 3" bayonet RV outlet?

[free-to-roam]

Now, this is a gross question, BUT, if you connect he suction end of this machine to your 3" bayonette, and the intake is 1.5", well, do the math.
How do you deal with, well, er, the sold stuff that will not enter the grinder.
Does it create enough suction to pull ANY solid through???
Not trying to be gross....just wondering.
If you guys make one, be sure to post the details, looks like it could be an improvement on an undesireable chore......
Thanks...!

[Luv2go]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hikerdogs While I don't doubt a mascerator pump can be made from an old garbage disposal I doubt it would be cost effective. You can buy one for less than $70.00. The only additional things you'll need are some 1" hose and some 1 1/2" hose. JOHNSON MACERATOR HEAD PUMP OUT 102445301 TA3P10-19 | eBay I doubt you could convert the disposal for that price. We have a Jabsco marine mascerator that looks similar to the Johnson one in the picture. We only use it a few times a year but it has more than paid for itself. No muss no fuss, you just hook the power leads to the battery cables at the generator, start flushing the tank with fresh water and turn on the pump. It only takes a few minutes to empty a full 40 gallon tank.

Great price on the macerator pump, Hikerdogs

We also use the Jabsco which is similar, I plumbed it with a three way ell and a twist-on 3" valve plus an adapter to go from the slip fitting at the top of the ell to the threaded fitting on the pump (note the ell is almost horizontal on our current coach, it was at a 45 degree angle on our previous coach, the pump works fine with both setups):



Close the twist-on valve and you can empty the tanks with the pump. Open the twist-on valve and you can empty the tanks with the 3" "stinky slinky". On the new coach I adapted a 20' sump pump hose to the pump's outlet, much cheaper than the other hoses sold for this purpose.

And, yes, free-to-roam, the pump has plenty of suction to pump the solids through, never had a problem.

[Hikerdogs]

Ours is not a permanent installation. We use it primarily when comming home so we don't have to worry about finding a dump station (or refrain from using the onboard bathroom and sinks) on our last day on the road. We also use it the winter time when all the dump stations in our area are closed.

When I made the hoses for ours used a 2" hose on the suction end. I went to Camping world and got a sewer hose connector. Then took it to Home Depot and got a couple fittings to adapt it down from 3" to 2". I also bought a 2" union and adaptor fittings for the pump end. I installed half the union on the 2" tube and permanently mounted the other end with a 2" to 1 1/2" adaptor on the pump.

In 10 years of use there's never been anything that was so large it wouldn't fit through the tube and pump. The pump does build a fair amount of sction. It will suck a 40 gallon tank dry within about 3 minutes.

A 1 1/2" inlet is pretty standard across the industry. Some of the units sold specifically for RV use have a built in adaptor to make it easy to connect to the existing sewer port.

Xylem Inc - FloJet RV Waste Pump Kit - Drain & Flush Systems - Camping World

Others just use an adaptor that allows a 3" sewer hose to be clamped over the inlet with the openinig still being only 1 1/2" in diameter.

Flojet Waste Macerator Pump for RV - PPL Motor Homes

Make sure the hose you use on the suction end is sturdy enough that it won't collapse when you turn on the pump. The hose I used is clear (so you can see when the water is clear) and has some reinforcing material woven into the plastic so that it won't collapse. I bought several feet of suction hose so that it won't put a strain on the sewer port when attaching the hose to the pump.
Our discharge hose is 75' long and 1" in diameter. I can park the RV in the drive and run the discharge hose into a sewer adaptor below the sink in the garage.

[coffeeman]

Hiker do you have any pix of your setup? I looked at my Sightseer bay and the 3" ell wouldn't work as I have a 3" tee. However I'll be able to mount to my Dual flush and 12v power is right above to tap into. If you leave the grey water open will it trickle enough overnight to keep from being full?

[coffeeman]

I ran across this example. I had been thinking about using a termination cap as well for an adapter and his is well explained. RVing: Small House... BIG Backyard: 07/01/2011 - 08/01/2011

[Ragingbull]

Thanks for the link coffeeman!

[Hikerdogs]

Attached are a few pictures of the mascerator pump setup I adapted for our Winnebago Adventurer. Keep in mind this unit stays at home and is used to empty and clean the tanks after the last day of traveling or when weather forces the dmp stations in our area to close.

The first picture is the pump and suction side hose with an adaptor to fit on the RV sewage port. There's a union on each end of the hose but I've never taken apart the one at the port adaptor end. If I were to do it again I would eliminate this union

Picture 2 is a closeup of the Sewer port adaptor and union. It's held in the tube with a fitting that's bsrbed on one end and has screw threads on the other. I warmed the tube with a hair dryer so the barbed fitting would slide in easier.

Picture 3 is the union at the pump. This pump has a threaded end so all I had to do was screw the union on the pump.

Picture 4 is the complete unit with the discharge hose.