Fresh Water or Salt Water to flush the toilet?

[Catamaranbliss]

Heard and experienced benefits of fresh from people I trust not trying to sell me anything, but also naturally from people selling water makers! Great question my cruising brothers and sisters.

[Oceansailor]

Originally Posted by windlass79

A friend mentioned that they used fresh water to flush the toilet on their boat. He believes it helps to reduce the odor coming from the holding tank.



I'm curious do you use fresh water or salt water to flush?



Cheers,

Rob

I changed to fresh water flush after I changed the hoses the first time.

Smelly hoses is common and is many times caused by seawater that sits an rot. A typical sign is that it smells directly after you flush. If you keep the boat in a polluted marina the odor can come quite quick.

Fresh water flush do reduce the odor coming from hoses and holding tanks. But even with fresh water flush you will eventually have to change the hoses. Even the best quality hose will let odor thru.

Fresh water flush also reduce the scaling problem in hoses and tank.

If you have a metal holding tanks it will also last longer.

[jjorgenson3]

Changed to fresh water last year for the head and the smell went away. Just need to plan a little more to keep the water tanks full.

[a64pilot]

Washing machines on board and fresh water flush heads pretty much require a watermaker. You have it have enough water that throwing away a considerable amount isn’t important.

It’s actually very easy to convert some heads to fresh with approved and safe kits. I certainly wouldn’t pass on a boat to buy because it didn’t have fresh water flush or electric heads, both are an easy install.

[winschwab]

Fresh water. We have a very small holding tank and use minimum amount of fresh water to flush (cup filled from vanity).