School me on the topic of toilets ;)

[nobueno]

Hi

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I'm told the "bucket", listed in the blurb as 23 litres, will last 8-10 weeks, just because its bigger than other manufacturers.
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The Natureshead brochure doesn't say how big their container is. Anyone know?
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the natures head bucket is 29 liters. obviously you can't fill it completely full though. i wonder if the separette can be filled more?

the big advantages i see:
-two weeks between dumps if used consecutively.
-you don't have to dump every time you use it, ie you could go out for a whole summer of long weekends and not have to dump it because it has time to decompose between.
-uses no water. so i'm not wasting water and i'm not carrying around extra water weight in black tank.
-i can continue to compost in my compost at home. no hoses. no going to an rv dump.

 

[DiploStrat]

Ding! Ding!

...
-you don't have to dump every time you use it, ie you could go out for a whole summer of long weekends and not have to dump it because it has time to decompose between.
...

We have a winner. This is one of the less understood advantages to a composting toilet; you don't have to do anything between short (one week or less) trips. As long as you are not getting excess water inside, it happily keeps reducing the volume of composting material. You do, however, have to dump the urine bottle between trips to avoid salt build up. For long term storage I add a bit of vinegar and water.

 

[Neil]

What a great response. I know know what they are all about and have been well and truly educated.
Thanks

Neil

Www.cloud9isborn.blogspot.com.

 

[grizzlyj]

the natures head bucket is 29 liters. obviously you can't fill it completely full though. i wonder if the separette can be filled more?

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Thank you for the info
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The Separett has no handle, no stirring required so you could fill the bucket right up if its not then too heavy to lift out! So maybe you can fill it fuller than a Natureshead, or just don't bother turning their handle anyway?!
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I had no knowledge of it before, but there is a big debate in the gardening world as to should your home compost pile be turned, with arguments going both ways but at the end of the day both ways still end up with compost.
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What the Separett does do is rotate the bucket 3 degrees every time you sit on it to give a more even sprinkling
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And they do a small urinal, the loo itself has no urine tank built in so you can connect it to its own tank/bottle etc.

 

[Ramdough]

So, I read through many options over the last year and have settled on the Separett Villa 9010 over the other options.

I eliminated a conventional black water tank system from the start. I did not want to haul that much black water or depend on dumping stations.

The cassette toilets were eliminated because I did not want to dump as often.

I selected Composting....

The Natures Head was eliminated because I did not want to handle the urine bottle. For one, I would need to dump it often or it will stink horridly when dumping if it was allowed to incubate in a hot camper for a while. Also, the removal of the compost looked to be inconvenient (disassembly?). I did like that it looked really solidly constructed.

I selected the Separrett because it had a large capacity. The "buckets" can be swapped without much effort. You can use biodegradable plastic bags to hold the waste. Which makes handling and disposing on the road easier. Urine goes into a standard tank, which I plan to have a dump valve on for draining. That may be dumped while driving in remote areas. It has a fan that continually pulls from the fecal tank to remove odors and dehydrate the poo.

The only thing that I am a little concerned about is the durability of the toilet. It does not appear to be overly thick materials. Maybe it is sufficient, but pictures and videos do not show it to be as solid as the Natures Head.

These are all my opinions based on reviewing internet data and videos. I plan to buy one once I start my build. I am simply posting the insights I used for my decision. Please feel free to comment on my statements if you have better information.






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[IdaSHO]

Thanks for the tip on the Separrett.

Certainly looks to be a great option if considering Natures Head

 

[Coachgeo]

For me I'm considering over time adding a second bathroom of sorts to my house that will have a compost toilet..... but my Expo build..... Id rather leave composting to a stationary situation like the house. So in the rig am thinking of going with an incinerating toilet set up. Not sure how yet... but I want to burn it till it has zero life.... no microbes.. no bacteria..... just dry bulk that is inert that can be dumped anywhere. Urine... burn it out in the exhast; same with kitchen sink and other water waste.

example... this one can be purchased with either electric, diesel or propane burner. NOT cheap though. http://www.ecojohn.com/ecojohn_sr.html

Im thinking of experementing with using exhaust and or coolant heat as part of the system.

 

[dwh]

example... this one can be purchased with either electric, diesel or propane burner. NOT cheap though. http://www.ecojohn.com/ecojohn_sr.html

I believe that's incorrect. IIRC, the smaller SR-5 is propane only, and the larger SR-12 can be had in either propane, natural gas or diesel.

The electrics for the fan and control circuits can be had in either 12v, 120v or 240v, but there is no electric burner option for the oven.

Both are, I think, around 40" front to back, use 6" or 8" chimney pipes, and the SR-12 weighs over 200 pounds. In other words, enormous.

The access hatch on the oven to suck the ashes out with a vacuum is on the back, so you'd need access to the back of the unit.

The propane versions burn a LOT of fuel.

That link you posted has a menu option for Technical Info.

 

[Ramdough]

the natures head bucket is 29 liters. obviously you can't fill it completely full though. i wonder if the separette can be filled more?

the big advantages i see:
-two weeks between dumps if used consecutively.
-you don't have to dump every time you use it, ie you could go out for a whole summer of long weekends and not have to dump it because it has time to decompose between.
-uses no water. so i'm not wasting water and i'm not carrying around extra water weight in black tank.
-i can continue to compost in my compost at home. no hoses. no going to an rv dump.

The Separrett does not use any filler material (sawdust or coconut husk, etc...). So, that adds to useable volume. It is supposed to dry out the poop in the toilet. You can then dispose of dry poop (which smells less), or external to the toilet mix it with dirt or fillers. The composting is supposed to happen outside of the toilet. The instructions say to use the extra buckets as compost bins that can be used elsewhere.

They sell biodegradable bags. My plan is to use the bags, compost at home when not on my travels. Carry one extra bucket and several bags. The key is that you can go a month without swapping out poop buckets. Unless I am on a really long trip (more than 2 months), I would not have to dispose of anything on the road. Even then, I could bury or dispose of the bag in a dumpster without feeling too environmentally irresponsible.

My only two concerns about of the Separrett is how durable it is and if I have it adjacent to my shower, do it need to cover it to keep water from getting into the poop chamber. Does anyone have personal experience with this?


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[javajoe79]

I am seriously considering building my own composting toilet. I can make it package better and I would like an external pee bottle mounted under the camper. It would be a simple box with a lid that seals when you close it. A simple crank and stir mechanism, a fan and a funnel to catch pee. You can buy the funnel piece and the rest is fairly basic fabrication.

 

[dwh]

True composting toilets generally have both a fan and a thermostatically controlled heating element. The heating element is usually optional.

Most of the horror stories I've seen on the net, where the waste didn't break down and built up until the toilet had to be cleaned out, seem to be from those who opted to forego the heater.

The aerobic bacteria require both adequate oxygen, and adequate heat to do the job efficiently.

 

[javajoe79]

Yeah I'm well aware of the ongoing debate about composting toilets and if they actually compost or not. You're right though, there won't be complete composting going on without the heat but I am not concerned about that. I will either empty my container in a pit toilet, bury it or complete the composting process at home in TN during the humid and hot summer time. Or maybe one day I will add a heating element of some sort.

Most likely the pee bottle won't be used where I plan on camping mostly so I will have a ball valve to divert it to ground for camping where it's appropriate to let the pee drain out. Also I plan on rarely using the toilet in the camper myself. It will be mainly for my girl.

 

[dwh]

http://www.sun-mar.com/prod_self_mobi.html

 

[Ramdough]

I talked to the Separrett people today. They told me that most people use the disposable bags and rarely use a second bucket. They just pull the bag and then either burry the bag directly or mix in some dirt then burry it. That makes things very easy.

The current design in a wet bathroom may need a cover to prevent water from entering the toilet. The only downside is that the poop may become wetted and slow the drying process.


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[javajoe79]

Yeah no thanks on a $1700 Toilet. I don't think anyone needs a completely composted product for a camper either.