Flush water swirls but wont leave the bowl

[Dave DeSalvo]

Lots of fun. Have replaced joker valve. Have run a snake up the discharge tube as far as I could get it. Have pulled motor out, cleaned macerator, cleaned rotating discharge fan, put new discharge kit components in, reassembled and still same issue. Motor runs great. Actually quieter than before. Any ideas about the discharge issue? Could it be that rotating discharge fan is slipping on the motor axel as it only is a plastic piece fitted on a flat part of the motor axel? 2006 vintage. Original discharge fan and plate assembly. Thanks in advance

[rickkremel]

We had the same problem, (#359). Tried all the things you did and problem continued.
Turns out the discharge pipe from the macerator to the top of the waste tank was clogged with mineral deposits. Almost like a white sand.
I replaced the line and we’re trouble free.
A recommendation from a sailing friend who lives on his boat in the Bahamas is to fill the entire line with vinegar once a month and let it sit for a week.
As mentioned, trouble free with these changes.
Good luck.

[Dave DeSalvo]

Thanks very much for your quick reply. Replacing the discharge hose is what I will have to do. I can get the panel in front of the top of the holding tank off but not out as the wood trim is in the way. Did you take the wood trim off or did you find some other procedure?

[KenKrawford]

Dave, that panel comes off without removing the wood handhold but it's a devil to get out. Mine had some caulk around it that needed to be cut free also. When I installed a new commode and hoses, that was the worst, most difficult part of the job !

[Dave DeSalvo]

Thank you, Ken, for the feedback. I have had the panel off. 4 screws. My panel has a soft, plastic foam kind of lining instead of actual caulk. I think it is stapled on to the panel itself. I may have to pry that off in order to get it past the wood handhold.

Dave

[Tim April IV]

Take a look at this write up I did from when I first got the boat in 2003. "Head Impeller Pin Replacement"

https://catalina350.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?p=87#p87

I think you may have hit on the problem when you guessed that the impeller isn't turning with the shaft. I found at the time that there was provisions for a cotter pin holding the impeller to the shaft, but no cotter was to be found. Installing one has kept the head working these past 19 years.

[TBOT422]

Another possible cause might be the tank vent. If the tank vent is clogged, the pump could run and create a swirl in the bowl, but the back pressure would not allow discharge into the tank. You may want to try removing the pump out cap and see if the pump then empties the bowl. You should be careful removing the pump out cap if this is the problem. If you have ran the pump unsuccessfully for awhile and the vent is clogged, the tank will be pressurized. When you remove the cap, the contents of the tank will erupt onto the deck like Mount Vesuvious. It could be a clogged discharge hose, as we have replaced ours years ago, but it is simple to confirm a clogged vent.

[NormSail350]

Hi,

There are a lot of good responses here. I had a similar issue, but I frustratingly found that I simply had a bad joker valve and installed a bad new joker valve (twice). Well, I think I had a bad "new" joker valve once (Raritan), then tried a Jabsco that jus would not seat properly. Tested a lot of other things and then put in another new Raritan (pink) joker valve and everything was good (at least until two years passed) and I am having the same backflow again (mine does not swirl) as of last week. Two years is a pretty good run on the joker valve so I have read/heard.

NormSail350
2003 #41
Miami