Getting Rid of Odiferous Aromas

If you’re a boater or have ever walked a marina dock, sat on the back deck or cockpit of someone’s boat, you’ve most likely had the occasion to inhale the odiferous and unpleasant aroma coming from the vent of a black water holding tank as someone flushed their business down the boat’s toilet. I came across a solution a couple of years back and I’ve just installed it on our Ranger Tug. It helps us, our guests, and dock neighbors not be bothered by disagreeable odors.

The product I installed is an inline, charcoal-activated, holding tank vent filter called SaniGard. To install you cut out a section of the vent hose coming from the black water tank to the exterior vent. The SaniGard (there are other brands on the market as well) is installed above the black water tank, where you’ve cut the vent hose away. Miraculously, the activated charcoal eats the odors away before they escape the exhaust vent.

Depending on usage, the filter is good for up to two boating seasons and can be recharged when it’s time to replace (and you’ll know this by the return of the annoying smell) or you can just replace it with a new one when the time is “ripe.”