I carried the basic Rhino 3-inch hose kit in its box just in case I ever needed it. When I bottomed out my driver's side rear and broke the seal where the macerator attaches to the rest of the stuff back there, I was very happy to have that kit available. After someone helped me get the macerator out, I decided to just use the manual dump method until the next time I was in Elkhart, at which time I would decide whether to get a new macerator installed or simply continue with the low-tech method. After six months of manually dumping, I did not miss the macerator once. So when I did get to Elkhart, they helped cut out and dispose of the tubing and that way I could fit my Rhino hose in that compartment. (In addition, I have a 10 foot extension hose, if needed, although I have never used it. I do not camp hooked up to sewer, though. If you do, then that extension may well be helpful.)
Fast-track back four years to when I was exploring what RV to buy and what options to get, I was never a fan of the macerator. It looked like one more thing that could go wrong and that I could not fix and that would be really nasty if it happened to go wrong at a bad-black-dumping moment. Phoenix had it as a standard item, though, so I took it. In hindsight, I would have asked if it was possible to set the rig up for manual dump from the start. Just my two cents.
