compost toilet?

[GlennWest]

As I have mentioned planning on parking camper on my property permanently. At the high cost of sewer systems, odds are it will have to be an aerobic system, Think we could live with a composting toilet? Would have to sell DW on the idea also. Planning on running all off of solar and that also be one steady draw off of it also. I have never even seen one.

[Kirk W]

9 hours ago, GlennWest said:

Think we could live with a composting toilet?

While I have no experience with a composting toilet in an RV, I have been a volunteer in park locations that have fixed composting toilets and they produce material that you remove from it? In looking around the internet, I found this article on them from Gone with the Wynns that may be helpful.

EDIT: I just finished the Wynn's article and they don't address my main question either. My question is, what do you do with the liquid container waste and also with the compost that has been created, if you are on public lands or in some RV park? 

Edited December 26, 2020 by Kirk W

[ogaddcb]

IMHO I would not bother with the composition toilet.  Reason, two of my friends have composition toilet. They still must find a way to properly/environmentally correct dispose of the “urine bottle” portion composition toilet. Their Nature Head urine bottle holds only 2 ½ gallons. One of them is a family of 5 and he has said 2 ½ gallons is still a dump almost every other day.

After the loss of our primary residence from Hurricane Harvey, we moved to our bug out location in deep east Texas.  This location had 7K of solar, utility shed for the Solar equipment, water well and an 80/30 totally enclosed pole barn.  I will not dump my black water, even if it only 2 ½ gallons every X number of days and urine only on  my property . We were going to make this our new permanent location. We tried one month of a weekly dump to the blue tote and taking the tote to a dump station 15 miles away. After just one month of living in the trailer and trips to the dump station we paid the price and had an aerobic system installed. If you are going to permanently live on this property, I suggest a move of the aerobic system up on the project plan.

[GlennWest]

If you don't mind what did the system cost you? The more I researched composting toilets the more I was turned off. Now the one that incenerate I like but requires a lot of power. 

 

[Al F]

I found this video to be very informative about composting toilets:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vM71d8wMuUU

They had been using the composting toilet for about 1 year before making the video.  

[Al F]

3 hours ago, Kirk W said:

While I have no experience with a composting toilet in an RV, I have been a volunteer in park locations that have fixed composting toilets and they produce material that you remove from it? In looking around the internet, I found this article on them from Gone with the Wynns that may be helpful.

EDIT: I just finished the Wynn's article and they don't address my main question either. My question is, what do you do with the liquid container waste and also with the compost that has been created, if you are on public lands or in some RV park? 

Liquid container waste:  In a RV park, dump it down a toilet in the bath house.  Dry camping with vault toilets or pit toilets, dump it in the toilet.  Boondocking, take it 50-100 yards from where people camp and scratch out a hole about 6" deep (cat hole), dump it in there and then cover it up.   About the same if you were tent camping.

Solid waste.  You only need to dispose of it every few weeks and you just bag it up and dispose of it like any other trash.   

I believe the video I posted in the reply just before this one discusses the disposal issue.  

[Kirk W]

1 hour ago, GlennWest said:

If you don't mind what did the system cost you?

I believe that you are in Texas. While serving as president of our cooperative community near Tyler, I made contact for estimates from D3 Septic and while they may not work where your property is, here is some information from their website on costs. 

Quote

How much does an aerobic septic system cost in Texas?

A residential aerobic system ranges from $6000-$8000 depending on the application. Commercial conventional or aerobic systems could range from $4000 to Fifteen Thousand plus.

 

[lappir]

A single person and a very well acquainted couple could survive with a composting, incinerating or other type of non septic system, but any more than that would not do well in my opinion. There would also be the question of "What do we do if we have guests?"

I have been experimenting with various methods of solid disposal and all of them seem to work for me, but it's is just me. 

I have had virtually no significant odor issue, but you have all seen the "Nose Blind" commercial. I'm not sure I believe it completely, but I have been in homes that apparently the people living there are the reason for the commercial. 

I have yet to look into the rules of liquid waste disposal. I know my prior "Black tank" with a mixture of urine and grey water has only a strong ammonia odor in the summer time. I have had no noticeable "sewer" odor since the 3rd time I dumped after stopping all solids going into that tank. My grey tank for my shower and bathroom sink are connected to one outlet and I am able to back fill the black tank after it was emptied with the contents of a full grey tank.   I have done that since getting my trailer and determining the possibility.  The kitchen grey is the only tank that has more than the ammonia odor. I have been just filling my water tank and using it during this winter in Oklahoma. It's not cold enough most nights to worry about freezing, but I can go a full two weeks before running out of water and having completely full holding tanks. If I wanted to I could go for over a month, but that would require some special considerations. My first winter in Florida with my current trailer I had to call a "Honey Wagon" to empty my tanks. I got up to 5 weeks, but was connected to water and didn't use the fresh tank. I also parked in Iowa for an entire summer without having to empty the black tank. I didn't stay the weekends in the trailer but did do at least 4 nights a week. At the end I did wonder if I was going to make it. 

Long winded, sorry. 

 

Rod

I still stay at established RV parks with full hook up the majority of the time

[Randyretired]

When we set up our properties for our RV the first things we install is septic and water.  Even a conventional septic is expensive any more.  I have the equipment and do the work myself but the last septic was around $3,000 just for permits, engineering and supplies.  It was a simple straight forward septic.  Ten years ago I could do a septic like that for less than $1,000. The last water well was also crazy expensive but it is a lot of work to do without it.

[GlennWest]

I have county water now. 

[Lance A Lott]

Look for information on tiny house sites. I can't remember the name but one toilet can use a pipe for the urine. Urin is sterile and will not hurt you or your property it is beneficial to your plants when diluted. Solids are usaly just bagged and put in the trash, but I understand they can be composted as well I believe the term humanuer is used. Give me a year and I will be able to tell you better we are moving to our Arizona property in August and will be turning a shed into a house for our 20 year old son it will have a composting toilet.