Composting Toilet

[jackhartjr]

I guess my question is this, how does this system handle the large amount of urine?
And for those that don't know, the 'other stuff' is about 90% or so water anyway.  Not a whole lot of actual 'waste' once the water is evaporated.
Jack

[Old Scool Bus]

some models have a urine trap built in to catch the urine, you just have to adjust your aim differently if sitting rather than standing and maybe adjust for blessings or lack there of from your maker 

[47FLXclipper]

the envirolet has a liquid overflow outlet [good for those beer parties] which can be routed directly to the graywater tank - urine is sterile, unless you happen to have a urinary tract infection of course ... and the 'other stuff' isn't 90% water, but it does lose 3/4 of it's volume from the microbial action of  aerobic composting if it doesn't dry out, as desiccation will quickly put the brakes on the composting process

yes it does work well - how long til it needs emptying depends on usage and what volume of other organic waste is added, but with 2 'full time' users can be 6 months or more, and all ya need is a flower bed out the door that would benefit from regular fertilizing .... not cheap, but they do have seasonal price specials - a couple years ago I got mine for just over $1400 CDN [that's like 14 US isn't it? ] including shipping

Bill

[jackhartjr]

Now urine would not go into a greywater tank...but a blackwater tank, right?
Not trying to rain on a parade...just trying to understand all of this.
I keep seeing that the reason for this is to eliminate a tank...however...if the urine has to go into a blackwater tank...doesn't that kill that idea?
Jack

[47FLXclipper]

why does urine have to go in a black water tank? it's yellow

a blackwater tank is needed to take care of solids, particularly bacterially active solids, as in fecal matter - as I said above, urine is sterile, it's about 95% water, the rest being wastes such as urea and organic salts - it's high in nitrogen, good fertilizer [about value of urine]

Bill

[Old Scool Bus]

Thanks again Bill, Think I will go with that unit as it opens up a ton of bay space.

I can build my cover for it to give me the appearance I'm looking for.

[John316]

why does urine have to go in a black water tank? it's yellow

a blackwater tank is needed to take care of solids, particularly bacterially active solids, as in fecal matter - as I said above, urine is sterile, it's about 95% water, the rest being wastes such as urea and organic salts - it's high in nitrogen, good fertilizer

Bill

Hate to mention it, Bill, but now we are really talking about breaking laws. Dumping straight gray water is one thing. However, dumping body fluids, on the ground, is really breaking the law....

As for me, I want, and will have no part of it.

God bless,

John

[Old Scool Bus]

Again, nobody said anything about dumping it on the ground.

But urine is good fertilizer. I am looking into ways of getting rid of both urine & gray.

My urinal will have a 10 or 15 gallon removable tank that could be dumped in a toilet if need be.

Be advised urine or human compost should be used on non edible plants only.

[cody]

John up here the guys that pump out the septic tanks and clean out the outhouse tanks take the tank full of stuff they just sucked up and spray it onto a field for natural disposal, they are licensed to do that and the fields are inspected, I would think thats pretty much the standard disposal method in a lot of places, I was curious about that before and asked, the response I got was that the field was monitored for PH and other things but that their may be laws governing how but very few against it at least in michigan.  When you think about it, a septic tank just holds and starts a process of microbial disintergation of the solids and urine before a drain field takes it a puts it into the ground.

[John316]

John up here the guys that pump out the septic tanks and clean out the outhouse tanks take the tank full of stuff they just sucked up and spray it onto a field for natural disposal, they are licensed to do that and the fields are inspected, I would think thats pretty much the standard disposal method in a lot of places, I was curious about that before and asked, the response I got was that the field was monitored for PH and other things but that their may be laws governing how but very few against it at least in michigan.  When you think about it, a septic tank just holds and starts a process of microbial disintergation of the solids and urine before a drain field takes it a puts it into the ground.

Yup, you are right, Cody. I know those guys up there, do it legally. However, when one is RVing, and they dump straight gray water on the ground, then that is one thing (still might be against the law). But, dumping what the law would consider sewage, on the ground, that is what I am referring too.

YMMV .

God bless,

John

[47FLXclipper]

you're making a sweeping assumption John, that having a compost toilet with urine diversion necessarily means dumping urine on the ground .... which of course, none of you guys have ever done 

Bill

[cody]

The first question that comes to mind is if anyone here has stood behind a tree lol.  I'm not sure I'd like to be the one explaining that to my cellmate at the big house after he tells me of the long history he had of being a murderer and daddy raper and litterbug.

[JohnEd]

Can anyone tell me how I could treat my grey water so that it didn't smell so bad?  Not perfume chemicals but somehow to promote natural processes.  Does the soap I use inhibit composting of the liquid?

In Southern California way back in the mid eighties we had a severe water shortage.  Everybody got the "green" bug.  There was this thing about plumbing untreated gray water into your flower bed and veg garden or spraying the lawn.  Didn't stink and it worked. Did you know that puttin g diluted soap on the ground was a good thing?  Seems it enhances the grounds ability to absorb water so whatever you do sprinkle will last longer and do more of the stuff water is supposed to do in a garden. Now I don't know if that is still legal or even if it actually ever was, but, that experience was what led me to conclude that grey water was something less than a weapon of mass destruction.  I carry two 25 foot sections of garden hose to dump the grey away from the RV if I am dry camping in the woods and stay too long.  In 18 years I have only had to use it a few times and the circumstance was unusual.  I honestly didn't think it was against the law....I know better now and I will still carry the hose for emergencies which is what I used it for in the first place.

I was once stranded by a BIG rainfall while visiting with friends on their farm.  As luck would have it my black tank was near full when I got there.  Well, during a lull in the torrential rains I backed the Winnie up to the creek and dumped my black tank straight into that raging torrent of what was a gentle stream without rain.  The bridge was torn out by the flood.  Straight in that creek without so much as a fair-the-well or a proper blessing.  My host,the guy that helped me, then asked if I had any conscience about my foulevil act?  I said hell no and he reminded me that that water flowed into the bay eventually.  I reminded him that I was a Sewer Commissioner and had some inside information about "that bay".  Seems as though every time it rains for more than 15 minutes in that town the sewage treatment plant overflows due to rain water being diverted into the sewage system by homeowners that didn't want to pipe their storm drains all the way to the street.  Sad but true and it overloaded the system all the time and the water that overflowed was untreated sewage.  Straight into the bay.  I had the pleasure of going about the neighborhoods and dropping smoke bombs in the sewers and watching for smoke commin out of the rain gutters on people roofs so I did my part even considering my evil act.  Must have eliminated tons of rain water...at least diverted it to the proper channel.

So, what can I do to make grey water less offensive?  Smell wise, now.

John

[boogiethecat]

John, pour a little of this stuff in it.  I LOVE the stuff. it keeps both my black and my grey tanks really nice, and it's not nasty poison!!!

http://www.eco-save.com/products-frame.html

I use the  "original formula" liquid stuff

Cheers
Boogie

[jackhartjr]

JohnEd, I use some stuff I get a WalMart that is more or less a purfummy type thing, it works pretty well.  I will try to see what it is tomorrow and post back.
Without it I cannot beleive the smell!  (Just the Galley tank, not the shower tank.)
Jack