Posts: 493
Threads: 82
Joined: Mar 2013
Considering creating a homemade/ occasional composting toilet on back 40. Can’t see spending $$$$ for store bought. Would like a summary of concerns/ requirements for composting humanure. I have read/ watched ALOT and there are (so many) contradictions (which may be geographic IDK). Specifically, wet or dry (ie urine diverting or not). Ratio of air, moisture, mulch (green & coconut coir/coffee.), and time/ heat necessary before layering on “pile”. Any other concerns or variables to consider. Would love to hear from someone who has been successfully doing this; I’ve kind of got the theory down...
(I am battling with spell check and a need for glasses so excuse any errors I’ve missed.)
Posts: 3,204
Threads: 108
Joined: Jun 2010
You can probably do a lot worse than the Humanure Handbook. Scroll down the page and you can download each chapter for free:
https://humanurehandbook.com/contents.html
Posts: 493
Threads: 82
Joined: Mar 2013
Yes, thanks. Got that, but was curious about people who have practical info on Puna- related issues, heat, humidity, lava, epic fails, etc. thanx again.
Posts: 2,483
Threads: 10
Joined: Feb 2008
I find the concept of diverting urine actually freakish. Don't play with the stuff. Build a box with a seat over a 5 gallon bucket. Start a regular compost heap. Periodically dig a hollow spot into the compost heap where it is nice and hot and empty the bucket there. Rinse the bucket out there to complete the emptying process then cover with regular compost. This compost heap should be somewhere that you are going to plant something eventually like a tree. It is hard to ensure that the poop gets thoroughly heated so I rely on a year or two of curing time to kill off stragglers. If you do everything right though you can theoretically put humanure on food crops. I think that most problems arise from the pressure to get the manure back into the fields quickly in developing countries or anywhere that corners are cut really.
Posts: 3,204
Threads: 108
Joined: Jun 2010
06-15-2021, 03:56 PM
(This post was last modified: 06-15-2021, 03:59 PM by randomq.)
Back when I was doing it I found everything broke down pretty quickly, but you do have to turn the pile. I did not divert urine, other than peeing near trees and pineapples when applicable. Keep the pile covered so water doesn't leach all the bacteria and/or nutrients out.
ETA: if you have a significant other, consider making a separate, nicer box and bucket for nighttime/indoor peeing and "monthly" usage.
Posts: 493
Threads: 82
Joined: Mar 2013
Thanks, considering initial toilet to be in metal trough, with seat and a stairs, in part to heat buckets. It’s long enough to have a bucket cure, an active one, and one for plant materials (what do you call coir or sawdust?). It seems like heat would not be a problem, but Can a compost be too hot?
Posts: 2,483
Threads: 10
Joined: Feb 2008
06-16-2021, 02:27 AM
(This post was last modified: 06-16-2021, 02:32 AM by MarkP.)
When done on a farm/commercial scale the piles are turned regularly. There are many reasons but one of them is to distribute excess heat. Compost heaps do occasionally catch fire however this only happens under very specific conditions and is basically unheard of at the backyard/homeowner scale.
Your compost heap getting too hot is not something to lose sleep over. Getting it hot enough will be your problem.
I have a bagging lawn mower and the lawn clippings are what I use in place of sawdust. Lush green clippings can mat down and go anaerobic. The coarse weeds and small woody shrubs that pass for my lawn don't give me that problem. My lawn is always partly mowed since I largely just mow it on an as needed basis. When I need more materials for my toilet, I mow a swath or two. I have a 6' x 6' piece of fiberglass window screen I put down and spread the clippings out on in the sun so that they dry a bit which makes them keep better and makes them more absorbent when needed.
My bucket/loo is indoors like a regular toilet. There is no smell if you use enough cover materials.
Posts: 7,734
Threads: 686
Joined: Jun 2011
They have toilet lids that snap onto 5 gallon buckets:
https://www.amazon.com/Container-Distributing-Emergency-Bucket-Toilet/dp/B0881Y9F36?dchild=1&keywords=5+gallon+bucket+toilet+seat&qid=1623811759&sr=8-6&linkCode=ll1&tag=pw016-20&linkId=c4824e8189b45172a8e0692d7449d922&language=en_US&ref_=as_li_ss_tl
A 5 gallon bucket and regular lid can be had at Walmart for under $5.00.
If it were me, I'd fertilize the trees with #1 and when bucket was almost full of #2, snap on bucket lid and dispose with trash. I doubt the bucket toilet seat lid would do much for smell, sawdust could fix that. Just curious, if throwing away and not composting, would kitty litter work better?
Posts: 573
Threads: 46
Joined: Jun 2020
What plants are best for me to go #1 on?
Puna: Our roosters crow first!
Posts: 14,116
Threads: 424
Joined: Aug 2012
What plants are best for me to go #1 on?
Urine needs to be diluted (some say 10:1), so it works great in areas with high rainfall. Anything with flowers will make good use of the phosphorous. I focus on a patch of ohia, and they all bloom like crazy compared to the surrounding jungle. Flushing it down the toilet seems like a waste.
