Macerator Pro&Con

Those of you that use a macerator, what do you use for a power source? Do you run a line from the cab cig lighter plug? Rewire an external plug near the drain? Portable battery pack? Is there a problem with voltage drop?

I have a sewage cleanout slightly uphill about 20' away and I'm tempted to try a nacerator.

Norm

SoundGuy wrote:

fishhogg wrote:
Are they worth having? Do they empty faster?

ktmrfs wrote:
No, they are slower and
1) since the drain is slower, they don't let the tank flush as well as a 3" hose.

Seriously? :h This is what my FloJet output looks like once I'm done ...



As for "cleaning" my FloJet after use all I do is give it a quick shot with the garden hose and I'm done ... much easier than dealing with a gunked up stinky slinky, which BTW is called that for a reason.

that's still slower than the fast flush from a 3" slinky. 35 gallons only takes about 1 minute to dump through the slinky, but about 5 minutes through the macerator.

yes, cleaning the macerator is very quick, but I've found I need to run the in tank rotary flusher longer to get all the stuff out of the black tank since it doesn't dump as fast through the macerator.

cleaning the macerator is definitely much easier and more plesant than cleaning the slinky!!

bpounds wrote:

br549 wrote:
Mostly positive stuff here so I will post a situation a friend had last year. He was using his and a wad of "something" hung up just ahead of the blender and nothing would pass. He tried moving the MH, a plunger, already near full tank, etc with no success. He had to call a mobile serviceman and it was a messy and expensive job to remove and replace the unit in order to remove the clog.

Just one situation I would prefer to avoid. I guess they do have advantages as many have stated if you have a need for lengthy or uphill disposal.

Avoiding that would be as simple as using a twist-on blade valve right on the outlet, ahead of the macerator. Lots of us have added those valves for a variety of reasons. So I would not make that a factor in the decision.

yep, my thoughts exactly. IIRC they also make them clear.
bumpy

br549 wrote:
Mostly positive stuff here so I will post a situation a friend had last year. He was using his and a wad of "something" hung up just ahead of the blender and nothing would pass. He tried moving the MH, a plunger, already near full tank, etc with no success. He had to call a mobile serviceman and it was a messy and expensive job to remove and replace the unit in order to remove the clog.

Just one situation I would prefer to avoid. I guess they do have advantages as many have stated if you have a need for lengthy or uphill disposal.

Avoiding that would be as simple as using a twist-on blade valve right on the outlet, ahead of the macerator. Lots of us have added those valves for a variety of reasons. So I would not make that a factor in the decision.

SoundGuy wrote:

br549 wrote:
He was using his and a wad of "something" hung up just ahead of the blender and nothing would pass.

Hard to fix stupid :W ... ensure that only TP and the obvious ends up in the black water tank and no waste macerator should have any difficulty dealing with it. ;)

Hard to say. They are long time RVers, Good Same Lifers and still in their non-slide Country Coach. I do some repairs for them since he isn't as nimble as he once was. Just wasn't ready to tackle this one!

br549 wrote:
He was using his and a wad of "something" hung up just ahead of the blender and nothing would pass.

Hard to fix stupid :W ... ensure that only TP and the obvious ends up in the black water tank and no waste macerator should have any difficulty dealing with it. ;)

Mostly positive stuff here so I will post a situation a friend had last year. He was using his and a wad of "something" hung up just ahead of the blender and nothing would pass. He tried moving the MH, a plunger, already near full tank, etc with no success. He had to call a mobile serviceman and it was a messy and expensive job to remove and replace the unit in order to remove the clog.

Just one situation I would prefer to avoid. I guess they do have advantages as many have stated if you have a need for lengthy or uphill disposal.

I've considered getting one, because my home cleanout is too far to use conveniently. But after careful consideration, I decided that I really just did not prefer waiting and dumping at home. When we get home, usually it is after a long drive, and I just want to do the bare minimum to put the rig to bed. Dumping would have to wait, and then it is just another chore around home to get to. Compared to that, stopping at a dump station gives me a break in the drive, a chance for a cup of coffee, and sometimes combined with fueling up. Plus, dumping black waste that has been well agitated on the drive is good for a clean tank. Also less weight to tow home.

It would be different if we were creating waste at home. Meaning someone living in the trailer. Then the macerator would be a better alternative than laying in a sewer extension. For now, decided I just didn't need one.

fishhogg wrote:
Are they worth having? Do they empty faster?

ktmrfs wrote:
No, they are slower and
1) since the drain is slower, they don't let the tank flush as well as a 3" hose.

Seriously? :h This is what my FloJet output looks like once I'm done ...



As for "cleaning" my FloJet after use all I do is give it a quick shot with the garden hose and I'm done ... much easier than dealing with a gunked up stinky slinky, which BTW is called that for a reason.

fishhogg wrote:
Are they worth having? Do they empty faster? Thanks

No, they are slower and
1) since the drain is slower, they don't let the tank flush as well as a 3" hose.

So, why have one?
1) If you need to pump uphill, which I need to to dump at home. Just need to run the tank flusher longer to get it cleaned out.
2) you need to pump a long way, more than 30ft or so
3) easier to use with many home dump stations since you can dump to either a 3/4" hose or 1" pvc connection.