JABSCO joker valve, again!

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by ReMetau

What? A bad joker valve can not sink your boat if your system has properly installed vented loops.

Yep, you have to really watch what you read on Internet forums and this one contains a lot of incorrect "information". If your head is above the waterline, it's not going to sink the boat either.

While I'm sure it's great fun to replace joker valves and rebuild heads, you can buy the entire pump assembly for the low priced basic Jabsco head for just a few dollars more than the rebuild kit. This is not only faster and less messy, it gives you a brand new, lubricated pump cylinder. Except for the bowl and seat, you have essentially a brand new head.

[Mistress Sirena]

First item I buy with a new boat is a good electric head Raritan Elagance I would not live with another manual again leaks and smells no more.

[Captain Fred]

Don't feel alone. I've had the same problem. The longest I've ever had a Jabsco joker valve last is one season; the shortest, about one month.

Went into West Marine determined to get a 2" ball valve to put in the discharge line after the joker valve. The clerk asked me why I wanted to do that, and when I told him he said that Jabsco had come out with a fix for that problem. I just had to buy a new pump with a locking feature built into the handle - much cheaper than the $98 ball valve. The pump fits on the existing fixture.

So I did..and after a few months it still seems to be working. When you finish pumping, you push down on the handle and twist it. That closes off the discharge line and prevents backflow from the holding tank. The joker valve is still in the system but now I don't care if it is working or not.

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by Captain Fred

Don't feel alone. I've had the same problem. The longest I've ever had a Jabsco joker valve last is one season; the shortest, about one month.

Went into West Marine determined to get a 2" ball valve to put in the discharge line after the joker valve. The clerk asked me why I wanted to do that, and when I told him he said that Jabsco had come out with a fix for that problem. I just had to buy a new pump with a locking feature built into the handle - much cheaper than the $98 ball valve. The pump fits on the existing fixture.

So I did..and after a few months it still seems to be working. When you finish pumping, you push down on the handle and twist it. That closes off the discharge line and prevents backflow from the holding tank. The joker valve is still in the system but now I don't care if it is working or not.

See my post above.

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by rwidman

While I'm sure it's great fun to replace joker valves and rebuild heads, you can buy the entire pump assembly for the low priced basic Jabsco head for just a few dollars more than the rebuild kit. This is not only faster and less messy, it gives you a brand new, lubricated pump cylinder. Except for the bowl and seat, you have essentially a brand new head.

On ours, the pump assembly and the joker valve are two separate issues. The joker valve is a routine $2 replacement (although I've only had to change it once so far), and it's completely separate from the pump assembly.

I do agree about replacing the whole pump, though. When ours developed a leak and finally got loud enough to need addressing, I first tried the rebuild kit. Messy, but also didn't work perfectly, and didn't solve the noise issue. (Probably needed a new shaft seal, too, which wasn't part of the basic and very inexpensive rebuild kit.) Replacing the whole motor/pump assembly afterwards -- wasn't all that expensive, given lifespan -- not only fixed the leak easily and without mess but also brought the whole system back to "Quiet Flush" status.

I get the feeling there are other differences between the manual and salt-water flush systems and our electric/freshwater system, though. I mean not the mechanism and the water source, but rather the different symptoms, longevity (or not), etc.

-Chris

[sneuman]

One thing: I saw a video, if I recall, where some marine sanitation folks pointed out that joker valves are interchangeable between the Jabsco and the Raritan. However, the valves for the Jabsco are half the price and more durable.

Just ordered some of them and I'll find out if it's true.

[OldFrog75]

I've seen this problem more than once on club boats and it is typically a clog in the air vent causing too much pressure in the system.

[Greenhand]

Originally Posted by OldFrog75

I've seen this problem more than once on club boats and it is typically a clog in the air vent causing too much pressure in the system.

The latest update is that when the duckbill in the vented loop doesn't squeak, the bowl fills. As long as it squeaks, everything seems fine. And yes, it really, really is installed pointed down, into the loop.