Hey folks,
Just starting a thread to share details and photos of my planned conversion of my old compartment for the DC generator that was available in the 70s to a fancy waste center where a macerator hose will be stored and controls will be available to open and close new electric dump valves.
The compartment has been little used so the plan is to clean it up and line it with FRP (fiberglass reinforced plastic) material. I'll caulk the corners to keep water and smells contained and out of the interior.
Here's the compartment as it stands... And I am just assuming that this is what was once the DC generator. It is 12d x 15h x 14w (I think that is right, from memory).
I just found this motorized hose reel and I just can't see how I can pass up buying it. It fits well... The reel is 11.5 inches deep which is a bit tight for the 12 inch depth of the compartment, but it should work if I stow the handle at the top or bottom front of the reel. If I had more depth, the mechanism is setup to feed through a little hole to keep the install really clean and professional looking.
RV Black/Gray Water Hose | Technology Research Corporation
The hose on that reel is only 3/4 inch but that should be fine. The pump would work less if it were an inch. The hose free wheels when you pull it out and a motor reels it back in.
There is plenty of room to the side for the controls -- switches will be there for the grey water valve, black water valve, macerator pump and then the motorized reel. I will likely have a diversion valve and garden hose spigot there as well so I can use a very long hose to dump far away as an alternative to the hose on the reel. I have purchased a 100 foot 3/4 inch hose for that purpose and it will live in a tub under the bed. The main drawback to the reeled hose is that I don't think I will want to try to remove it to add to the long hose when it is in use. I may need a separate fitting or hose for that purpose.
Since I have a center bath, my dump valves are conveniently located just below this compartment. I want to preserve my existing 3 inch stinky slinky outlet while also installing a macerator to feed the reel in the compartment. So I can use either outlet.
The photo below shows how I think that I will have enough room to insert a branch to the macerator pump at the end of my dump valve plumbing if I replace a long sweep sanitary tee off my black valve with a shorter radius tee. I will install a blade valve just after this and before the bayonet hook up for the stinky slinky so that will divert to the macerator system when closed.
I am converting to valterra valves and bayonet as part of the project. The electric actuators will just bolt up to standard valterra valves and are also available for thetford. I looked at the electric valves made by valterra and also flexible cable actuated manual valves but the system from barker I chose is the most compact and should present fewer issues in installation.
I am still trying to decide where I want to install the jabsco macerator pump. My documentation says it will prime up to 4ft dry or 5ft wet. I am assuming that is referring to lift on the intake side of the pump. It seems like my currently preferred alternative is to put the pump inside the closet shared by this compartment. The lift should be less than a foot and the pipe or tube run should be less than 2 or 3 feet total.
I have thought about trying to install the pump within the belly pan but I kind of want it to be accessible in case it clogs or needs to be turned by hand if it cruds up. The main issue with the lift is that it may be hard to get the last little bit out of the tanks because when air starts coming through the lift action will stop. I may try to angle the branch off the end of the regular dump valve downwards slightly to make it more effective for the last little dribbles. I hope this will work.
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