Far too often people in the industry overlook the importance of chemicals in the treating of waste in their marine sanitation devices. It seems to be very common for people to lose sight of what needs to be done to keep the system working properly and one of the easiest things to overlook is the chemicals used to do so. Biological systems require chemicals to make “the magic happen.” The magic described here is the treatment of waste within a type 2 wastewater system or MSD as it’s commonly referred to. Bacteria is the source of waste treatment in these types of units.
Most commonly, the system will be treated with a powdered aerobic bacteria that is flushed down the toilet which makes its way to the system and begins working. To understand why this is important one would have to know what aerobic bacteria is. Aerobic bacteria are used in treatment plants (msd/wastewater systems) that are aerated and are rich in dissolved oxygen which are vital for the respiration of the bacteria. They use the oxygen in the water to degrade the waste in the incoming water into energy they can use to grow and reproduce. If the bacteria is not added then the system will not work as intended and will lead to many issues such as excessive sludge, vile odor, and eventually a possibly messy clean up. In order to help keep these bacteria thriving, and to reduce the minor smell that comes with a biological system, a bacterial enhancer may be used.
This product will essentially act as the “steroids” of the system and give vitality to the bacteria. Another key feature of these types of products is the odor reducing effect of the product. A enhancer will have a very pleasant smell that will often neutralize any odor given off from the system. One of the biggest pitfalls of any aerobic system is cleaning products and solvents. Far too often people who have a MSD on board will use anti-bacterial cleaners and solvents on toilets, sinks, showers, etc. This seems like a no brainer for usage, but it can possibly cripple a system. The main issue with these cleaners is the fact that anti-bacterial products are just that, ANTI-BACTERIAL. They will find their way to the system by means of flushing, rinsing, and overall draining of sinks, showers, toilets and they will get to the bacteria rich body of the system and can often kill and neutralize the bacteria present.
These are a big no-no that is often over looked. This is why there are cleaning products offered to negate that negative effect but yet still clean the surfaces needed and not be a detriment to the system. Lastly, an often misused and misunderstood product is chlorine tablets. These tablets can be quite costly in comparison to the other products and this can cause customers to try to take shortcuts. Although many tablets including pool tablets look just like sodium hypochlorite tablets that are used for wastewater treatment, they don’t work the same way and can be harmful to both the customer and the equipment. Pool tablets have harsh chemicals that can rust out, and cavitate the inner walls of a wastewater system that can lead to catastrophic failure. The outcome could be quite messy and require the purchase of a new system. All in all, the chemicals necessary to run a system correctly are almost more important to the viability and function of the system than the actual maintenance performed. Hopefully this was helpful to you, and if you would like to learn more about things such as chlorine and what to use and what not to use, check out the link below. If you want to learn more about a monthly maintenance kit and how it helps alleviate these possible worries, make sure to check it out at the webstore listed below.