Thinking about a composting toilet?

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Gary RV_Wizard

Gary RV_Wizard

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If you are thinking about getting a composting toilet - and miraculously not having to deal with dumping tanks or smells - you will find this video discussion enlightening.  It's an honest review done by a very down-to-earth fulltime RVer couple who are willing to make some extra effort to gain its advantages but are also willing to [very frankly] discuss what is not-so-good about it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vM71d8wMuUU
 
I watched that video about 6 months ago and it totally talked me out of ever wanting a composting toilet. Not that I ever did, but...  :eek:
 
I loved the part about the great advantage of having no water into or out of the toilet. Did they forget about carrying out the urine bucket every day?

Once again the old adage is proven:  If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!
 
It has been a few weeks since I last watched that video, but as I recall they did not address the legality of dumping their "composted" waste.  The legality of which may vary from state to state, and is a completely separate point from the bio-safety of the resulting compost.
 
Years ago I installed a composting toilet in a getaway cabin I built back in the Adirondack woods. It replaced an outhouse that continued in service as the dump site for the composted waste. Yep, it was a bit of a PITA maintaining the thing, but when it was 10 deg. F outside, it sure seemed worth it not to have to use the outhouse in the middle of the night. :)
 
Isaac-1 said:
It has been a few weeks since I last watched that video, but as I recall they did not address the legality of dumping their "composted" waste.  The legality of which may vary from state to state, and is a completely separate point from the bio-safety of the resulting compost.
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I thought the same thing. 

I mean they are throwing their plastic bagged feces into a public trash can.  Next person throws anything that punctures the bag.  We now have open air feces in the campground.  Not to mention, not everyone will tie the bag tightly. Transporting feces via plastic bag is just not sanitary.

Let's say they need to get rid of the feces while on the road.  Do they dump in a grocery store trash can??  I mean this is just not right to the people around you.

It is no joke that modern sanitation saves lives.  This is a step backwards.
 
KandT said:
I thought the same thing. 

I mean they are throwing their plastic bagged feces into a public trash can.  Next person throws anything that punctures the bag.  We now have open air feces in the campground.  Not to mention, not everyone will tie the bag tightly. Transporting feces via plastic bag is just not sanitary.

Let's say they need to get rid of the feces while on the road.  Do they dump in a grocery store trash can??  I mean this is just not right to the people around you.

It is no joke that modern sanitation saves lives.  This is a step backwards.
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If that's a worry for you, consider the number of dirty diapers and bagged dog droppings that get tossed in the trash every day.
 
I agree in the sentiment that I don't want a composting toilet in my RV.  That said, in my future off-grid cabin I'm starting to think that is WAY easier than a septic system when you have limited water available.  Dump the solid tank into my compost heap for gardening and let the liquid mix with the grey water disposal process.

Someday.....
 
Rather than haul around hundreds of pounds of water in one tank just to put it in another through the toilet, I'm looking out for that clever individual or company that figures out a "waterless toilet" that simply collects waste directly, then is emptied and actively flushed clean at a dump station.  Now your fresh water tank could be that much smaller, or last that much longer.  Solves a number of attendant problems trying to use static pressure and water volume to deal with solids. 

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM
 
There is a certain difference in volume here
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In my opinion the volume is irrelevant. It makes little difference whether there are 1 million germs on a diaper or 100 million in the composting bag.
And while feces in a waste can is a YUCH! thought, there will surely be plenty of other nasties in there that are loaded with germs of one sort or another. Including whatever diseases the people around it may be harboring. Worrying overmuch about germs in a public setting is an exercise in futility. Wash your hands and get on with life.
 
Look up recirculating toilets. We had a Thetford in our Travco 50 years ago.

Mark_K5LXP said:
Rather than haul around hundreds of pounds of water in one tank just to put it in another through the toilet, I'm looking out for that clever individual or company that figures out a "waterless toilet" that simply collects waste directly, then is emptied and actively flushed clean at a dump station.  Now your fresh water tank could be that much smaller, or last that much longer.  Solves a number of attendant problems trying to use static pressure and water volume to deal with solids. 

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM
Click to expand...
 
If throwing a bag of crap in the dumpster is that bad...it makes me wonder what the San Francisco City sanitation crews do with all the feces they scoop up every day ? 
 
Mark_K5LXP said:
Rather than haul around hundreds of pounds of water in one tank just to put it in another through the toilet, I'm looking out for that clever individual or company that figures out a "waterless toilet" that simply collects waste directly, then is emptied and actively flushed clean at a dump station.  Now your fresh water tank could be that much smaller, or last that much longer.  Solves a number of attendant problems trying to use static pressure and water volume to deal with solids. 
Click to expand...

Thetford had their Thermasan system back in the early 1970s that would pump a motorhome's holding tank contents into the exhaust pipe for disposal while it was travelling down the road.  They reasoned the heat would effectively incinerate the waste before it passed out the end of the pipe.

Only lasted a couple of years before it was removed from the market.

http://www.amphicar.net/library/thermasan/thermasan.html
 
Lou Schneider said:
There was a device back in the 1960s that would pump the holding tank contents into a motorhome's exhaust pipe while it was travelling down the road.  They reasoned the heat would effectively incinerate the waste before it passed out the end of the pipe.

Only lasted a couple of years before it was removed from the market.
Click to expand...

Thank you for tonight's nightmare!  :eek:
 
Chakara said:
. . . . Dump the solid tank into my compost heap for gardening and let the liquid mix with the grey water disposal process.
Someday.....
Click to expand...

I don't know about using human feces in the garden for edible plants.  Even if it has gone through the composting process.
 
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