Lectra San/ Holding Tank

jeff · Post by **jeff** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 8:20 am

Has anyone replaced their Lectra San with a holding tank? Is there a ready made tank that will fit a '77FBC? I have not checked with High Tide yet. Does anyone have a line on a good Lectra San without haveing to spend BIG $$$ for new one? I could replace the electric motors in it, but it is so old it just does not seem worth it. Any ideas? Jeff Now and Then

Rick · Post by **Rick** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 9:12 am

Return your existing Lectrasan to Raritan. They will rebuild it, the last I heard, they were getting about $300 for a rebuild. Rick Ticket 85 SF Falmouth, MA

IRGuy · Post by **IRGuy** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 10:06 am

I ditched my old inoperable LectraSan unit and installed a new manual head and holding tank shortly after I bought my boat. I know some here swear by LectraSan, but mine was old and I want to be zero discharge since I feel that is the way many areas are going. I prepared a summary of what I did, including some sketches. If you want a copy drop me an email and I will send it to you. Frank B - IRGuy@aol.com "Phoenix" 1983 FBC Wilmington, NC

lobsta1 · Post by **lobsta1** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 12:05 pm

Jeff, You're 77 is the same setup as my 78. If you still have a Crown head. it will pump about one gal. per flush. If you want a holding tank, I came to the conclusion that a 25 gal. was the minimum size. Without taking out the sawsall, I could not figure any place to fit that size tank. That is after going through every single tank in the Ronco Plastics catalog & speaking to their reps. One possibility would be to cut the small bulkhead aft of the water tank. Take out the tank & then figure out what size tank would fit in the bilge going all the way fwd under the steps. Then get a new water tank to fit over the holding tank & then just glass the bulkhead back in place. When I did NITES OFF over, I just put a new Lectrasan in. Al

retman · Post by **retman** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 1:41 pm

Jeff, I just pulled the lectasan from my 33 FBC. I am going to a holding tank this year and Vacuflush next year. Vacuflush is pricey but no odor and uses very little water so you can get away with a smaller tank. I believe the lectrasan unit functions ok but I don't have much experience with it. Where I use the boat on Cape Cod is all 'no discharge' so keeping it in is not a option. Drop me a line if interested. Bill Arnold 1988 33 FBC 'Retriever'

Rick · Post by **Rick** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 1:58 pm

Bill, Where is there no discharge zones on the cape ? Rick Ticket 85 SF Falmouth, MA

Post by **dougl33** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 2:46 pm

I know Nantucket is a no discharge zone. Of course, its all bullsh!t as what comes out of your lectra san is cleaner than what comes out of treatment plant. Regards, Doug L. 1986 33 Bertram FBC Queen Elizabeth Marblehead, MA [img]http://www.bertram33.com/photogallery/p ... sabeth.jpg[/img]

IRGuy · Post by **IRGuy** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:04 pm

I bought a standard Ronco tank with half the bottom sloping and installed it aft of the head on the port side back toward the hull. I think it is 30 gal but I can't recall for sure. Frank B - IRGuy@aol.com "Phoenix" 1983 FBC Wilmington, NC

jeff · Post by **jeff** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 5:35 pm

Thanks for all the input everyone. I will try to respond to everyone with this. First of all I would rather keep the Lectra San system I just don't want to spend $1000.00+ dollars. To Bill I would be interested in your take out (I would pay extra if you clean first). I did replace the old Crown Head with a manual flush a few years ago. When I repowered with diesel I moved the new generator into the engine room. It sits crossways behind the water tank. With that and the longer in-line Cummins there really is no way to get another tank in the engine room. If it were easy to mount a tank under the v-berth I would consider doing that, otherwise it's back to the Lectra San. Jeff Now and Then

smanni · Post by **smanni** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 5:58 pm

What did you do with the area the generator used to be - I want to turn that into a fishbox eventually

gskill · Post by **gskill** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 2:41 am

Jeff I recently had my Leta San serviced at Raritan and found them to be extremely straight forward. I dealt with an employee who I met at the Fort Lauderdale boat show last year named Sergio and once he understood that I was not interested in upgrading to a new electronic unit he was very helpful. They will rebuild your unit however they give estimates based on what is wrong. You may want to asked about used or rebuilt units as well. They no longer have parts or service the older manual controller/timer located next to the head and the new electronic control is extremely expensive. It appears that the Letra San Units are still somewhat the same for both the old and new. I used their Fort Lauderdale location. If you would like to call and talk to them, the link is: http://www.raritaneng.com/contact_us/index.html I would suggest that you talk directly to one of the employees who work on the units (Sergio) rather than a sales rep. They also will ship parts if you know which motor is not working. If you have the old style controller, make sure that your fuse/s are not blown within. George Skillas 33 FBC Destiny - 1983 Deerfield Beach, Florida [img]http://www.bertram33.com/photogallery/p ... estiny.jpg[/img]

retman · Post by **retman** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 5:10 am

Jeff, Drop me a line at bill@hharnold.com about the Lectrasan unit. Rick, use this link for the no-discharge zones. www.epa.gov/ne/eco/nodiscrg/ It covers all of Buzzards Bay, Longs Island Sound, Rhode Island, Plymouth Harbor, Nantucket, and some harbors on the south side of Cape Cod. I guess the only place you can flush is Martha's Vineyard. That should make Ernie Boch Jr. happy. Plus no matter how clean the discharge is I prefer not to swim in it. Bill Arnold 1988 33 FBC 'Retriever'

jeff · Post by **jeff** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 4:34 pm

[quote]Originally posted by smanni What did you do with the area the generator used to be - I want to turn that into a fishbox eventually smanni, I have been useing it for storage. I have a SCUBA tank and my dingie motor and some fenders in there. I am sure it could be better used...I use a big Igloo cooler for a fish box it has been full of Dolphin a few times. Jeff Now and Then

Rick · Post by **Rick** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 11:08 am

Thanks Bill, I'm still safe but it looks like that it's just a matter of time before I need a holding tank too. Another lovely winter project ! Rick Ticket 85 SF Falmouth, MA

IRGuy · Post by **IRGuy** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 5:06 pm

Rick... The same offer I posted above to Jeff applies to everyone here.. if you want the info I compiled let me know. Frank B - IRGuy@aol.com "Phoenix" 1983 FBC Wilmington, NC