Cruising Sailors Forum Archive

Sanitation Hose Question

Tom Young reported in another post about his holding tank installation adventure and one of his comments ( "I broke it anyway trying to bend the stiff sanitation hose." ) prompted me to remember the following question. Last fall, I installed a new holding tank, made of GRP to fit the the odd shaped space I had available under a forward bunk. This tank has a pumpout fitting on top as well as a direct discharge fitting at the bottom of the tank. This will eventually be connected to the original thru-hull fitting formerly used for the same purpose. This is where I have a problem. Unfortunately, the fitting at the bottom of the tank is not exactly aligned with the location of the thru hull. Furthermore, this is a very short distance of no more than 12 inches, if that much. I attached one end of the hose to the bottom fitting and am now battling the opposite end, trying to bend it, so that it slips over the thru-hull fitting. Much easier said than done. I have tried several times but have not been successful. This makes me wonder now about 2 things. 1) How can I soften the hose enough to make it bend easily and 2) could I possibly create too much pressure (due to the mis-alignment which I cannot correct) to possibly break-off the copper thru hull fitting? Am I worrying too much? As for the hose, I was thinking about soaking a rag in boiling water and wrap it around the hose to let it "soak" for some time, in the hope, that the heat will soften the hose enough that it will flex just long enough for me to push the hose onto the fitting. Would this work?

Messages In This Thread