# Coffee grounds?



## eherlihy (Jan 2, 2007)

In all my time on a boat i have made coffee and dumped the grounds into the sink, which discharges directly overboard. This keeps the sink drain from smelling like a drain, and the fish get a little "pick me up."

What do YOU do with coffee grounds?


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## RichF28 (Jun 17, 2015)

eherlihy said:


> In all my time on a boat i have made coffee and dumped the grounds into the sink, which discharges directly overboard. This keeps the sink drain from smelling like a drain, and the fish get a little "pick me up."
> 
> What do YOU do with coffee grounds?


We don't like anything even that solid going down the drain, so its straight overboard...


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

Certainly, that's not MARPOL compliant. Not that I think it's akin to dumping nuclear waste or the sort.


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## colemj (Jul 10, 2003)

We generally (and mostly) toss ours overboard. If in actual harbors with convenient trash receptacles ashore, then we put them in the trash. Definitely in the trash in a marina. 

Never down the sink - there is too much, and they are too dry, for that.

I can't imagine that coffee grounds are any worse than a handful of dirt thrown in the water, or tossing a stick in the water, or stirring up the bottom with your anchor. They are just ground up seed pods.

Mark


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## SanderO (Jul 12, 2007)

Coffee grounds and paper cone filters go in the trash.


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## eherlihy (Jan 2, 2007)

If in a disposable filter, they would go in the trash, but with our percolator or moka pot, all we dispose of is grounds. I believe that the grounds are less harmful to the environment than dish soap.


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## colemj (Jul 10, 2003)

eherlihy said:


> I believe that the grounds are less harmful to the environment than dish soap.


Coffee grounds ARE the environment. They are just ground up seed pods. Perhaps displaced, but otherwise they are just natural shore compost finding its way to the water like coconut husks or sea beans or any number of plant life decaying around the ocean.

Would it be any better or worse if one was land camping and buried them in the soil?

Plus, we always have an extremely pumped up barracuda under our boat...

Mark


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

I often toss lobster, clam or oyster shells into the water, under the same principal. That's where they actually came from and would have died anyway. I know there is an argument against, if the discarded shells accumulate in one spot and it's clearly not MARPOL compliant. I'm fine with a little logic around this, just be smart about where you do so.

If on a long passage, all organic material goes in the water to decay. Plastics were always retained. I think MARPOL now requires retaining metals too, even though it had been the expectation that they rust and decay, it reportedly takes too long. 

To be sure, there is absolutely no scientific difference between a recreational boat dumping it's holding tank 2 miles from shore, rather than 3 miles. Zero study on the matter that I've ever seen.


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## JoeDunn (Oct 27, 2017)

we use a French press for coffee so we get as much of the grounds in the trash bin before rinsing the press. I try to minimize any organics from going in harbors because it does increase the organic loading which leads to reduced oxygen in the water. Depleted or low oxygen limits shellfish populations and leads to other problems.


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## MikeOReilly (Apr 12, 2010)

_Over the side! _We also use a French press on board, so no disposable filter. The grounds get dumped, and the whole pot gets a quick rinse in seawater.

Most of the time all our organics go over the side. When on passage it's a simple dump over the side. At anchorage we save them up for later dumping.


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## MarkofSeaLife (Nov 7, 2010)

I can't believe you all waste them! 😳 

I put them in a tub on deck half shaded and put worms in the aft end of the tub. They eat the coffee and poop and piddle nutrients that grow Alfalfa, aft, middle of the tub is lettuce cucumbers and tomato's, the forward end of the tub is best with flowering shrubs and a few trees. 

Mark


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## Don L (Aug 8, 2008)

eherlihy said:


> In all my time on a boat i have made coffee and dumped the grounds into the sink, which discharges directly overboard. This keeps the sink drain from smelling like a drain, and the fish get a little "pick me up."
> 
> What do YOU do with coffee grounds?


I toss overboard. I definitely wouldn't put d the sink and risk a clog or waste the water it takes to wash down but thats me


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## MikeOReilly (Apr 12, 2010)

I've considered drying and then using them in my compost head.


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## contrarian (Sep 14, 2011)

Just substitute whiskey for coffee and you won't have to worry about the grounds, plus the residual remnants from the whiskey will make the barracuda think he's a shark. Coffee is for sissies.


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## hpeer (May 14, 2005)

As usual it depends. If in a marina then there is likely little water flow and lots of others doing worse. No need to add to it. If off shore or in remote anchorages with good water flow, it goes. Situational awareness. 
This reminds me of the poo discussions. We recently installed a Raritan Purisan so we now have 3 options; dump, treat or, hold.


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

hpeer said:


> We recently installed a Raritan Purisan


How does power usage work? They only draw when flushing, or is there a constant draw?


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## hpeer (May 14, 2005)

Power draw is not too bad. We have been sitting in a marina mostly since installation so have only used jt a few times. Limited experience.

It is essentially a 2 stage blender. Poo goes into first chamber, has solution injected, and is “blended.” Then it sit there until the next flush. The first load goes into the second chamber and is “blended” again while the second lad gets its first blending. Then in the third flush load kne hoes out, load 2 get the second blend, load 3 the first and so forth.

So it is like running 2 blenders for about 90 seconds (cant rightly recall) per flush. We use Lavac heads so the pumping is manual. There is a need for pressure water, but that is minimal.


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

Are the tablets any more complicated than chlorine?


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## hpeer (May 14, 2005)

We only used it for a week before putting into a marina, not lots of experience. Does not appear to he a big deal. 

However, the tablet dispenser and air pump/control module take up a fair bit of space. I was able to do it but the size really suprised me.


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

hpeer said:


> the tablet dispenser and air pump/control module take up a fair bit of space. I was able to do it but the size really suprised me.


I was curious about that too. I'd love to have a vacu-flush, but would need to find room for the pump.

I looked up the tablet's ingredients, which are a couple of forms of chlorine? It's interesting that bleaching a holding tanks contents makes them permissible to pump overboard, in some places.


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## eherlihy (Jan 2, 2007)

My Vacuflush pump is under the V-berth, with the holding tank. It uses less space than a 5 gallon tank. The holding tank can be smaller too, because it uses less water per flush.

If I can fit one on my 35, you can fit one on your 54!


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## hpeer (May 14, 2005)

Well we use Lavac toilets and it is just a manual bilge pump. 

It seems we have taken over to OP’s thread.

is there sufficient interest in a new thread about the Electrosan/Purisan/NDZ? Could start one.


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## hellsop (Jun 3, 2014)

Minnewaska said:


> Certainly, that's not MARPOL compliant. Not that I think it's akin to dumping nuclear waste or the sort.


It's food waste and smaller than 25mm, so if's fine if you're 12 miles out.


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## colemj (Jul 10, 2003)

Coffee and toilets seem to be closely related to me...

Mark


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## pdqaltair (Nov 14, 2008)

Minnewaska said:


> I was curious about that too. I'd love to have a vacu-flush, but would need to find room for the pump.
> 
> I looked up the tablet's ingredients, which are a couple of forms of chlorine? It's interesting that bleaching a holding tanks contents makes them permissible to pump overboard, in some places.


The function of type I heads (Raritan etc.) is to sanitize (kill germs) the waste, not reduce pollutant levels. Mxing with chlorine plus a reaction period does that very effectivly. They do not reduce BOD, nitrogen, or phosphorous. If the only conflict is a swimming beach, sanitizing is widely considered to be enough. However, if it is not, a ZDZ results (and that's where the political arguments start).


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## Barquito (Dec 5, 2007)

hpeer said:


> Well we use Lavac toilets and it is just a manual bilge pump.
> 
> *It seems we have taken over to OP's thread.*
> 
> is there sufficient interest in a new thread about the Electrosan/Purisan/NDZ? Could start one.


Most thread topics will eventually get around to discussing heads. It is just the natural lifecycle of conversation.


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## MarkofSeaLife (Nov 7, 2010)

Barquito said:


> Most thread topics will eventually get around to discussing heads. It is just the natural lifecycle of conversation.


Totally not true!

I was servicing one of the heads yesterday and when screwing the pump plate back down I explained to Marjorie how important it is to GENTLY screw the metal screws into the softer plastic. As I was showing her my screw cracked the plastic! ????

Boats! ???


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## pdqaltair (Nov 14, 2008)

MarkofSeaLife said:


> Totally not true!
> 
> I was servicing one of the heads yesterday and when screwing the pump plate back down I explained to Marjorie how important it is to GENTLY screw the metal screws into the softer plastic. As I was showing her my screw cracked the plastic! ????
> 
> Boats! ???


Actually, they usually drift towards anchoring!

A useful tip for replacing screws in plastic is to reuse the existing screw threads rather than cut new ones. Turn the screw backwards a fraction of a turn until you feel them, then start there. This helps reduce stripping and cracking.


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## MacBlaze (Jan 18, 2016)

MarkofSeaLife said:


> I can't believe you all waste them! 😳
> 
> I put them in a tub on deck half shaded and put worms in the aft end of the tub. They eat the coffee and poop and piddle nutrients that grow Alfalfa, aft, middle of the tub is lettuce cucumbers and tomato's, the forward end of the tub is best with flowering shrubs and a few trees.
> 
> Mark


Do you seriously have a vermi-composter on your liveaboard round-the world teensie sailboat? I have bee resisting one at home and here you are showing me up by having one on a boat! She is definitely not seeing this thread...


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## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

All this time i have been thinking that the title was about coffee grinder style winches.








Not ground coffee. I knew should have gotten my glasses on sooner.


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## Aquarian (Nov 8, 2010)

Minnewaska said:


> Certainly, that's not MARPOL compliant. Not that I think it's akin to dumping nuclear waste or the sort.


Yes it is MARPOL compliant. The placard plainly reads any food 1 inch or less cubed may be pitched overboard.


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

Aquarian said:


> Yes it is MARPOL compliant. The placard plainly reads any food 1 inch or less cubed may be pitched overboard.


The OP is currently on the intercoastal and I think the context of the question is inside the 12 nm zone.


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## John Nicholas (Aug 28, 2021)

JoeDunn said:


> we use a French press for coffee so we get as much of the grounds in the trash bin before rinsing the press. I try to minimize any organics from going in harbors because it does increase the organic loading which leads to reduced oxygen in the water. Depleted or low oxygen limits shellfish populations and leads to other problems.


Without wanting to disagree with your point of view I have a parallel thought on this. We currently remove millions of tonnes of carbon from the sea every year ie. fishing. We are not replacing that carbon. When you do this on farmland it creates a desert. Are we doing the same to our oceans.


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## JoeDunn (Oct 27, 2017)

John Nicholas said:


> Without wanting to disagree with your point of view I have a parallel thought on this. We currently remove millions of tonnes of carbon from the sea every year ie. fishing. We are not replacing that carbon. When you do this on farmland it creates a desert. Are we doing the same to our oceans.


I think that's a good question and perhaps I need more coffee to continue the conversation...but staying with the original post my thought was more about small harbors and bays where if we dump lots of organic stuff in the harbor it can affect water quality, shellfish populations, eel grass etc...For example, if we have 200 boats in a small harbor/bay let's say (less than 1 square kilometer) with only one inlet/outlet and everyone dumping 1 pound of small organic stuff overboard per day that's 200lbs per day that combined with other non point source pollution in the harbor we then have nutrient rich harbor killing off shellfish and fish populations due to low oxygen levels. So my point was simply if you are in a harbor and have a choice to throw organic stuff in the trash verses putting it in the harbor then put it in the trash and bring it to shore for proper disposal/composting. If you are offshore, say greater than 3 kilometer, then yeah dump it overboard...


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## SanderO (Jul 12, 2007)

JoeDunn said:


> I think that's a good question and perhaps I need more coffee to continue the conversation...but staying with the original post my thought was more about small harbors and bays where if we dump lots of organic stuff in the harbor it can affect water quality, shellfish populations, eel grass etc...For example, if we have 200 boats in a small harbor/bay let's say (less than 1 square kilometer) with only one inlet/outlet and everyone dumping 1 pound of small organic stuff overboard per day that's 200lbs per day that combined with other non point source pollution in the harbor we then have nutrient rich harbor killing off shellfish and fish populations due to low oxygen levels. So my point was simply if you are in a harbor and have a choice to throw organic stuff in the trash verses putting it in the harbor then put it in the trash and bring it to shore for proper disposal/composting. If you are offshore, say greater than 3 kilometer, then yeah dump it overboard...


interesting calculation.
How would lots of tide impact the calculation? If you have a bay with mean low of say 8' and an 8' tide range... a lot of water is flowing in an out,


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## P435 (Dec 3, 2015)

We have a very simple - and I am convinced - a very nature preserving rule on board: biological garbage, and only biological, goes back to where is comes from: nature.

Where do you think that coffee ground goes when you dispose it on land?

All other garbage is separted in plastic, glass, and plastic coated metal. Special part of the bilge is forseen for this garbage with separate, reusable bags.


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## SanderO (Jul 12, 2007)

P435 said:


> We have a very simple - and I am convinced - a very nature preserving rule on board: biological garbage, and only biological, goes back to where is comes from: nature.
> 
> Where do you think that coffee ground goes when you dispose it on land?
> 
> All other garbage is separted in plastic, glass, and plastic coated metal. Special part of the bilge is forseen for this garbage with separate, reusable bags.


I tend to agree with the concept. Organic stuff biodegrades. The issue is what impact does that have on the ecosystem of the bay?


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## P435 (Dec 3, 2015)

"Organic stuff biodegrades. The issue is what impact does that have on the ecosystem of the bay?" I appreciate your thoughts.

However, I get the impression that the effect of biodegradable coffee ground in a bay is less than the top 1 mm of an iceberg, called pollution of the seas with plastic.

Let me just put here a link which shows the pollution of the seas by plastic: The Ocean Cleanup

What I want to say is that I think it's better to first solve the big issues and the small/tiny/ maybe not even existing ones.


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## MikeOReilly (Apr 12, 2010)

Organics go over the side, but not if we're in a small, enclosed anchorage with low-flow, or one which is very crowded (the latter rarely has happened). In these cases we retain our compost until it can be dumped in open waters. On occasions, this has meant going for a long dinghy or kayak ride out of the anchorage.


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## MikeOReilly (Apr 12, 2010)

Organics go over the side, but not if we're in a small, enclosed anchorage with low-flow, or one which is very crowded (the latter rarely has happened). In these cases we retain our compost until it can be dumped in open waters. On occasions, this has meant going for a long dinghy or kayak ride out of the anchorage.


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## SchockT (May 21, 2012)

We will rinse out our French press in the ocean, but that is pretty much it. Other organics are disposed of on shore. 

I recall swimming in one anchorage with my son when we found ourselves swimming in a field of corn husks. Apparently one boat was preparing a dinner party and figured those corn husks were biodegradable. Sure they are, but they also float. If everyone threw their vegetable peels, corn husks, watermelon rinds, apple cores, and other organics into the water then the tide lines on the beaches would be one big compost heap. Floating waste tends to accumulate, and when I am enjoying nature I would rather not look at other people's trash, organic or not.

If I was offshore for long periods of time, I would probably feel differently, but as a coastal cruiser I can hang on to my waste until I am on shore again.

Sent from my SM-G981W using Tapatalk


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## Don L (Aug 8, 2008)

SchockT said:


> but as a coastal cruiser I can hang on to my waste until I am on shore again.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G981W using Tapatalk


I have coastal cruiser where have gone 3+ weeks without a place to dispose of trash. What's your plan for that?


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## SchockT (May 21, 2012)

Don L said:


> I have coastal cruiser where have gone 3+ weeks without a place to dispose of trash. What's your plan for that?


We just bag it and store it.

If you are at sea for 3 weeks without ever having the opportunity to set foot on shore, you must be in the middle of nowhere!

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## SanderO (Jul 12, 2007)

On passage in the ocean I toss all organic stuff over board and stow the rest for disposal when we make landfall.
What I do drop in the harbor are lobster remains... chicken and steak bones which do not float. Coffee grinds is done in Melita filters and goes ashore into a dumpster. Tossing anything that floats in a harbor is flat out wrong.

What do you do with rats and mice?


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

While I don’t throw anything into a harbor and only dispose of organic waste when well offshore, the math on depleting oxygen sounds dubious. Do literally tons of leaves falling into the harbor deplete oxygen?


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## Don L (Aug 8, 2008)

SchockT said:


> We just bag it and store it.
> 
> If you are at sea for 3 weeks without ever having the opportunity to set foot on shore, you must be in the middle of nowhere!
> 
> Sent from my SM-G981W using Tapatalk


Coastal cruising and going ashore does not mean you can dispose of trash. If you bag a 1-3 weeks of trash with organics rotting in it more power to you!


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## Don L (Aug 8, 2008)

SanderO said:


> What do you do with rats and mice?


Feed your scraps to them to reduce waste ;-)


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## John Nicholas (Aug 28, 2021)

JoeDunn said:


> I think that's a good question and perhaps I need more coffee to continue the conversation...but staying with the original post my thought was more about small harbors and bays where if we dump lots of organic stuff in the harbor it can affect water quality, shellfish populations, eel grass etc...For example, if we have 200 boats in a small harbor/bay let's say (less than 1 square kilometer) with only one inlet/outlet and everyone dumping 1 pound of small organic stuff overboard per day that's 200lbs per day that combined with other non point source pollution in the harbor we then have nutrient rich harbor killing off shellfish and fish populations due to low oxygen levels. So my point was simply if you are in a harbor and have a choice to throw organic stuff in the trash verses putting it in the harbor then put it in the trash and bring it to shore for proper disposal/composting. If you are offshore, say greater than 3 kilometer, then yeah dump it overboard...


Hi, Your description of a bay with 200 boats etc is a near perfect description of Islington Bay in Auckland on a holiday weekend. Do not like anchoring there myself.


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## SchockT (May 21, 2012)

Don L said:


> Coastal cruising and going ashore does not mean you can dispose of trash. If you bag a 1-3 weeks of trash with organics rotting in it more power to you!


We were just away for 3 weeks, went 2 weeks before we got to a place we could dump our garbage. We had 1 kitchen bag tied up and tucked away in an outdoor locker. I guess we just don't produce very much waste.

Storing all the empty beer cans and wine bottles is the much bigger problem!

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## colemj (Jul 10, 2003)

Box wine, crush cans.


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## MikeOReilly (Apr 12, 2010)

colemj said:


> Box wine, crush cans.


Beat me to it 😉.


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## SchockT (May 21, 2012)

colemj said:


> Box wine, crush cans.


We have done box wines but find we get tired of drinking the same wine all the time. My wife drinks white and I drink red, so I have to plow through a whole box before I get to try something else. (Unless I have multiple boxes on the go.) Last trip we had 2 cases of wine on board!

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## MarkofSeaLife (Nov 7, 2010)

I often throw a few truck tires overboard just to piss off Environmentalists. 


😊 

Mark


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## SchockT (May 21, 2012)

MarkofSeaLife said:


> I often throw a few truck tires overboard just to piss off Environmentalists.
> 
> 
> 
> Mark


Hey they sink so why not? Besides, they make great artificial reefs!

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## MikeOReilly (Apr 12, 2010)

SchockT said:


> We have done box wines but find we get tired of drinking the same wine all the time. My wife drinks white and I drink red, so I have to plow through a whole box before I get to try something else. (Unless I have multiple boxes on the go.) Last trip we had 2 cases of wine on board!


Two boxes of fine wine for three weeks... Can I come cruising with you 😍?


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## SchockT (May 21, 2012)

MikeOReilly said:


> Two boxes of fine wine for three weeks... Can I come cruising with you ?


"Boxes of fine wine" is an oxymoron, hence cases of bottles instead!

There is something about the ocean air that causes wine to evaporate very quickly, so you have to compensate for that phenomenon!

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## Zemurray (Oct 28, 2018)

We dont produce much trash. we can go about 10 days and only fill up an office size trash can. I just double bag it and store in the cockpit locker. In a month I dont think Ive had more than 2 or 3 bags. Coffee grounds go in the trash, mostly because I use an espresso machine and its a puck that i knock out. I don't like wasting water to try and rinse it down the sink.


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## jtsailjt (Aug 1, 2013)

In a harbor, organics that will sink goes over the side, as do coffee grounds from the French press. If we use paper filters to make drip coffee they go in the trash compactor. Aluminum Nespresso cartridges just go in the trash. Recyclable bottles and cans are few but those are rinsed and collected separately. But offshore everything organic goes over the side. I’ve never thrown anything plastic into the ocean. 

I bought my boat second hand and at first I thought it rather silly that a trash compactor was installed, but now I’ve come to appreciate it a lot because, since virtually all our trash that’s kept onboard is paper or plastic, it compacts very well so a lot more trash fits in a trash bag and it takes up less room in the dinghy until we next find a dumpster. Since there’s not much organic in it the smell isn’t offensive so storing it for several days in high temps isn’t a problem.


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## MikeOReilly (Apr 12, 2010)

On our boat the trash compactor is me. It's the only good thing about my added bulk . I can definitely see the value in one.

On our long cruises, we end up storing all our recyclables in the quarter berth. It all gets flattened and compacted as much as possible, but it can add up after a couple of months of being off the dock.

Again, all organics end up over the side. We too use a French press for coffee. Ground go over the side, and the pot is dip-rinsed in salt (and then in fresh).


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## hellsop (Jun 3, 2014)

SchockT said:


> My wife drinks white and I drink red, so I have to plow through a whole box before I get to try something else.


Compromise on a rosé.


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## pdqaltair (Nov 14, 2008)

I've found I can go 10 days without dumping trash easily.

Re-package and lose some of the cardboard before it comes aboard.
Food is eaten and scraps go overboard unless in harbor.
The rest is bagged, compacted FORCEFULLY into a sturdy cardboard box, and stacked. Wine boxes are small, but this is one used for them!
The trick is minimizing the trash and not placing food waste in it. Rinse contacted plastic and cardboard.


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## SanderO (Jul 12, 2007)

Typically when we are cruising locally we go a shore to walk the dog and take the trash. On passage it gets double bagged in plastic and stowed in an aft cockpit seat locker.

Those floating trash bins sure are handy!


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

The mark of a true sailor is being able to crush a beer can down to 1.5" tall. I insist upon it, from all guests. They're motivated, if they want another. You twist the can a bit, then crush, with the two ends twisting slightly as they come together. This has gotten easier as can walls have gotten thinner. No simply squeezing the middle and calling it crushed. Pro tip... be really sure it's fully empty. 

If we expect to find trash disposal at the next harbor, we may put the smelly bag in the dinghy. But don't store garbage there overnight, unless you like seagulls crapping all over your dinghy and spreading it around. Don't ask.

I've found garbage disposal to have gotten easier over the years. Mostly likely because munis have realized providing a receptacle keeps things cleaner. Just as noted above, people will chuck it in your harbor, if you don't make an alternative easy. Same goes for pumpout boats and facilities, I'm afraid. I've often radioed the Harbor Master and, even if there isn't some obvious public dumpster, they often tell us where to put the trash near their office. This summer, one actually told us to leave the bag in their skiff, which was tied up next to the dinghy dock, and they'd take care of it.


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## SanderO (Jul 12, 2007)

Shelter Island only accepts rubbish in the designated bags they sell and the public bins have opening too small for a typical plastic bag filled with trash.


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## jtsailjt (Aug 1, 2013)

MikeOReilly said:


> On our boat the trash compactor is me. It's the only good thing about my added bulk . I can definitely see the value in one.
> 
> On our long cruises, we end up storing all our recyclables in the quarter berth. It all gets flattened and compacted as much as possible, but it can add up after a couple of months of being off the dock.
> 
> Again, all organics end up over the side. We too use a French press for coffee. Ground go over the side, and the pot is dip-rinsed in salt (and then in fresh).


I've never been at sea longer than a week at one time so have never had that much build up. The first time the dinghy goes ashore at any enroute stop, the trash goes with it.

I like French Press coffee but it can sure be hard to dump out the compressed coffee grounds and it can make a real mess of the sink if I try to just rinse it there. But, like you have, I've found that a quick trip to the transom to rinse both the press and the container in salt water, then washing them with the rest of the breakfast dishes makes the morning clean up pretty easy. Underway we almost always use the Nespresso machine so cleanup not an issue.


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## MikeOReilly (Apr 12, 2010)

Minnewaska said:


> The mark of a true sailor is being able to crush a beer can down to 1.5" tall. I insist upon it, from all guests. They're motivated, if they want another. You twist the can a bit, then crush, with the two ends twisting slightly as they come together.


If you're trying to save space the best way is to squeeze it together, then put it down on a hard surface and step on it. I can get them down to less than a 1cm in thickness this way. Of course, you need to be careful where you do this. It's probably not wise to do it against bare gelcoat .


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

Stepping on them sounds effective, but there is no surface aboard our boat that is going to be allowed to happen.


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## Don L (Aug 8, 2008)

You can spend weeks in the Bahamas, go ashore every day, and still not have a place to dispose of trash. Last May I did a day in a $160 slip and one of the reasons was to get rid of 3 weeks of trash.


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## MikeOReilly (Apr 12, 2010)

jtsailjt said:


> I've never been at sea longer than a week at one time so have never had that much build up. The first time the dinghy goes ashore at any enroute stop, the trash goes with it.


Where we cruise we often don't touch a dock for months. Helps to have an empty quarter-berth ... at least empty at the start .



jtsailjt said:


> I like French Press coffee but it can sure be hard to dump out the compressed coffee grounds and it can make a real mess of the sink if I try to just rinse it there.


One thing I've done with our French press, which is aluminum, not the more typical glass, is have a thin line permanently attached to the handle. It wraps around when not in use. We use the line to dip the pot while standing at the shrouds. A few dips dislodges all that compressed coffee. I then use the pot as a bucket to haul up some water to rinse the presser screen/filter. It then gets a good freshwater rinse back in the galley.

At anchor, this is an easy manoeuvre. Underway, you have to be a bit more careful not to bang the side of the boat, but it avoids generating any coffee garbage.


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## SanderO (Jul 12, 2007)

Minnewaska said:


> Stepping on them sounds effective, but there is no surface aboard our boat that is going to be allowed to happen.


do it on a towel... won't do a thing to your deck.


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

SanderO said:


> do it on a towel... won't do a thing to your deck.


Get a towel out, every time someone needs to crush a beer can? This is more frequent than I think you are imagining. 

Not to mention, there is no way I'd trust that on either the teak and holly down below or the teak decking above. The only exposed gelcoat is on the coachroof. Not to mention, who is wearing shoes while drinking beer at anchor?

Captain's choice here. You crush them my way, on my boat.


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## SchockT (May 21, 2012)

I was anchored near a power boat that had a can crusher mounted on their aft deck.






Home Single Can Crusher | Home Hardware


Get the Single Can Crusher at your local Home Hardware store. View online and pick-up in store.




www.homehardware.ca





Sent from my SM-G981W using Tapatalk


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## MikeOReilly (Apr 12, 2010)

SanderO said:


> do it on a towel... won't do a thing to your deck.


I tend to do it down below on the corner of my rug which covers the teak/holly sole. But a towel would work just as well. To each his own, and no biggie either way. But if the objective is to make the can as small as possible, the foot-step works better than hand crushing.

I wonder if the trash compactor mentioned earlier would do an even better job?


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