How to Maintain a Tiny House Composting Toilet
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- Опубликовано: 30 сен 2024
- 'Home Diagnosis' co-hosts Corbett and Grace have gotten hundreds of questions about the bathroom in their tiny house on wheels, and 'how it all works'. This. This is how it works. Feast your brain on some serious pee and poop management demonstrations. Not for the faint of heart.
More about this amazing house and the first TV series about building science at: HomeDiagnosis.tv
Good content. However, viewers, do your research. It is 100% safe to pee and poo in a 5 gallon bucket IF managed properly. NOT at all like the “ raw sewage” you showed in the portopotty. Raw sewage and portopotties are hugely problematic because of the imbalance of pee to poo, but LARGELY has to do with the water and other chemicals that are added that make the situation anaerobic, breed bad bacteria and cause problems. Typically the problem with the 5 gallon bucket is that an individual produces too much urine vs. feces and have an unbalanced system. However, there are countless ways to manage this situation. I urinate in 1 vessel and poo in a 5 gallon bucket with coconut coir with NO ODOR, NO PROBLEMS. I bag it and dispose of it in the trash but It also can be composted on-site if left to “ cure “ for roughly 1 year. Then you have priceless compost to use in your yard. People refrain from talking about it in case people dump raw sewage or a compost toilet system gone south directly onto the soil. Yes, this would be a problem. Do your research viewers. Content creators, you have half the information. To really propel this movement forward, let’s dive a bit deeper into the subject. It’s a huge subject. A huge problem and we can tons of progress can be made if it was known $1,200 doesn’t have to be spent on a composting toilet that has a fancy handle to turn and you don’t have to cut a hole in the side of your home to vent. Just a good old bucket and some good information.
I don’t have the skills to make this complicated compost toilet and would find it difficult to spent 1,000 on one. so I appreciate your input. I need to make one as there are 3 of us adults in one home and we always need to poo at the same time. Will a toilet seat fit right on top of a bucket?
I pee outside b/c it brings joy to my life. LOL!
He did say life and not wife didn't he.
2:51
Just don't pee in view of any neighboring houses. I pee behind a barn or shed and surrounded by bushes.
I subbed just because of that sentence.
Haha, thanks Bryan!
you cant make your own?,,,i think the homeade 20 dollar bucket system is better , easier than that expensive thing and way less hassle,....,thats some high maintenance sh*t
not sure what you meant by "you can not diy a composting toilet ." .Maybe a vid on diy composting toilets vs manufactured /pros & cons . 🚽🧻
As someone who is considering one of these, and as someone with IBS where diarrhea is a weekly occurrence, what steps should I personally take?
I too would like to know the answers to this question
Ah yes, the problem here is moisture. But like managing any compost you need to find balance. So pine pellets that you can get in bulk from a feed store or at a local pet store is your answer to helping balance the compost and keep you from a soupy mess. If you keep a mason jar of it nearby you can sprinkle a few in with each BM. Be sure to agitate and monitor if you need to add more of less. You will probably need to fully change the mix more regularly but the pine pellets should help you find balance.
great video - very useful content. I've always wondered about the "maintenance" part of having a composting toilet. Maybe watching this video will change her mind. Thanks for sharing.
BTW - I'm anxious to see what you do with the eaves on the house.
Thanks as always
I actually really appreciate the honesty, I’m starting my journey to building a tiny home and I wasn’t sure what step I wanted to take in this situation but now I know. Thank you!
Rock on. Please do check out our course on designing the performance properly, it’ll save you heartache later.
You expkained so well detailed and with such a clear voice , instructions that you deserve my attention and like from now on . I like people like you . Thanks for sharing yourself with others. 👍
Thankyouverymuch Ricky
When asked why I pee outside all the time I respond with I advocate for water conservation
Your micturations are saving the planet
@@HomePerformance That's a $10 word there.
I learned it from the big lebowski
@@HomePerformance ruclips.net/video/TCgeaNfcw-w/видео.html
The coco coir has a high carbon footprint because its grown on the other side of the planet, why not just use sawdust or something similar? Also wouldn't leaving some poop in the bucket make it so that there's a bit of the beneficial bacteria already present and make it unnecessary to add "compost starter"?
I was going to ask if/say that using coconuts was sustainable. Thank you.
@@odd_shoes I use vacuum shredded Bay leaves otherwise a nuisance as take an eternity to break down they also prevent smell
Thank you so much 🙏 I definitely wanted to see this before moving, as the place I'm getting has this system, and you have actually taken away my doubts and fears about using this type of bathroom fixture.
Hooray
Truly informative. Well done. To the point and no fluff. I love videos like this. Thanks for not making me listen to how your kids are, how many you have, etc or some loud obnoxious music. Those things are ok if I am looking for entertainment. This time I was looking for information. Thanks again.
Happy you found us, Steve- hope you stick around for more.
Thank you for that honest and complete and amusing tutorial :) You have been extremely helpful :)
Wonderful to hear, thx
Brilliant. Thanks for letting us know how to deal with our waste. This is the first video I've watched that actually showed that you just dump the bucket somewhere away from your regular compost..
👍🏽👍🏽
Soooooo why would I use this..... it uses electricity and I need to buy coco coir.... if you grow shrooms, this would be a God send, but no I rather just use water and a septic tank its only 5 grand for a septic sometimes cheaper
I like the military method better...A piece of plywood and a bobcat bucket...💩💩💩
Great Video thanks I have been researching composting toilets its good to get an unbiased review are you going to use composting toilets in your new house
Absolutely not in our new house- too much work if you have proper plumbing. But for an off-grid tiny house or sailboat, it’s a billion times better than a sewage tank.
One night a tiny house video popped up on my RUclips. I’ve watched 100 of these videos on Tiny Houses with these types of toilets and never really knew what a composting toilet really is. I’ve watched this video and now I know. I’m never getting a tiny house or a composting toilet. However, this info is top tier.
Hey, thanks very much! High praise from someone who’s done so much research elsewhere on YT!
While there is good info here don't listen to this guy for a second where he says 'no you can't' make your own...Yes you can and for under $100, you also don't have to empty a piss bottle everyday like this $1000 design makes you do. Depending on how handy you are its not even hard to make, if your not handy then go pay a fortune, if your not hand and broke then be willing to muck around a bit to get it right but the essentials are a bucket, a toilet seat, some hosing, a fan and what ever covering material available to you and a bit of time to work out how to put it all together....
right , i didn't get that part either tbh . the concept isn't hard to grasp
Guys, the central concept here is to SEPARATE the liquids and solids. A bucket you pee and poop in for less than $100 is called an OUTHOUSE. You should not have these microbes or this chemistry indoors.
@@HomePerformance Like I said, I divert it to my grey water tank. A simple funnel and a hose going to the tank and a bucket with a plastic bag with saw dust in it. Then you build a box around it all with a toilet seat on top. I use a computer fan to suck the smell outside and now it smells less than any normal toilet Ive ever used. Quieter too because there is no flush sound.
You don’t have a graywater tank anymore- human effluent makes it blackwater, totally unusable for anything. I’ll reiterate that you are not describing a composting toilet.
@@HomePerformance 'Totally unusable for anything' ? Urine diluted to 10% is useful in the garden everywhere. 'Not a composting toilet'? if the medium breaks the poo down then its a composting toilet, very conservative outlook given the subject matter.
1:20 i know you say it's not a litter box but it still feels like a litter box with trap doors to me. In fact, when i eventually get my own tiny house, i am going to put a little sign on the bathroom door. Instead of the man/woman symbol, it will say "litterbox" 😂 and then, whenever i see that sign, I'll laugh and pee myself a little before i can make it to the toilet. That would bring joy to my life!
Laughing anf peeing yourself is a special joy. We only live once, we should all pee in our pants a little more.
yay! I love this for you! Do litter boxes have trap doors? lol pretty fancy. you should have a water station and scratching post too!
I wish I watched this video before I put them in my mouth.
NOOOOOOO
Àwesome job! Most ppl don't realize how backward our "modern" sewer systems are. Thank you so much.
Rock on, Kate. Thanks for watching.
"See these filters don't put them in your mouth." Where did that even come from? Really no no umm...."poop" ! LOL
As the saying goes, "Common sense is no longer common". That is why on all non-edible produces sold today, they all say "do not put this in your mouth", that's so when they eat it and try to sue the company, they can say "we told you so" …...sad but true...…. LOL
Just covering my bases, like Charles says
Just covering my bases, like Charles says
Bravo, well done. These practices should be taught to everyone at some point in their lives, if not for future need or use, then for common sense education. When it comes to such practices, I like the old saying "Don't Panic, its Organic". Thanks again.
As with anything you should do your own research and testing because they've got the humanure composting all wrong. you don't just dump your turds on the ground and walk away. your turd pile should be kept at the correct moisture and temperature level for at least a year before it can be considered soil. furthermore, the whole thing about medications in the compost should be tested fully. if a substrate is fully composted then those medications should have been broken down into soil. these people talk a good game about their 'scientific methods' but I'm not seeing a whole lot of science here.
Thanks for sharing, that was very helpful. What happens if you forget to add the compost starter at the end?
you cant make your own?a diy 20 dollar system is way easier than that expensive high maitenance waste of money
Good overview! Did I hear correctly you only empty the solids once per month, between two adults? And which model toilet do you use? Cheers from Niagara Falls!
Hey Trevor- Yes, and Airhead. Niagara Falls rules (Canada side).
No, no, so much no!
...I disagree with several of your pieces of advice / ways of doing this, sorry man! As just a for instance: you don't even dig a hole to dump your #2 waste?? You just dump it on the ground? 🤨
Also, diluting urine! Is a good idea. Just to mention a couple. Also, ppl-- buy the Humanure Handbook. 👌🏽 Good point about meds tho. If you ingest that kind of stuff.
Free to disagree, but this has been our only toilet for years, and I’m sure about it
Look at Elk and Deer and other wildlife they poop and pee out in the fields. Also cows and horses poop out in pastures our manure is no different than animal manure. It just rots in the ground anyway and makes the soil more fertile.
You’re a wild man, Robby
@@HomePerformance We have good water here in the City of Buckley comes out of south prairie creek. I just hate to flush good water down the toilet when I think of the work and money the city spends to treat the water for it to just end up in the septic or sewer system. Why can't they save that water for watering gardens or lawns.
Good point bud
We use composting cat litter and it makes things SO much cleaner and easier! This doesn't look much different as far as maintenance goes, and I can vouch for the fact that compost does NOT allow odors to escape. Thanks for the video! I'll subscribe and watch more that comes in from you.
I use wood pellets for my cats litter box. It turns into sawdust with humidity. You may be able to get away with using sawdust directly. Sawdust is cheaper and a renewable resource. Cat litter has to be mined and will not decompose wherever it ends up. 😁
Sadly cat litter in nature is 5x more harsh in smell over human waste, aside from rabbit urine, they need to be taken out more often, unlike human waste in a composting toilet. It also depends on what they are fed as well, feeding them fresh foods produces less smelly waste over store bought and process foods. Most human waste doesn't smell in a composting toilet, unless people eat too much processed foods, and with coco coir substrate medium and a turnable composting bucket, with an exhaust fan running while you are doing your thing, it shouldn't smell, unless your power goes out, there could be a small odour.
You are fantastic for giving us the true facts thanks so much
With pleasure, Carol, glad it helps!
How do you get a month out of it? Partner and I go maybe twice a day for number two. I'd say we'd get a week in a bucket that size
Maybe eat less
This was so educational and hilarious- thank you!! 😂
You’re welcome, so glad you enjoyed it
I loved the video information.....except the last part with you sitting the toilet on the counter next to your kitchen sink and stove.
Don’t worry, there was nary a poop or pee in sight
Thanks for this...I think this will be fine for the hubby and me. However, I am still concerned about when we have guests over especially having to tell men to sit down to pee without it seeming weird. How do you handle educating guests who aren't into tiny house living and are used to regular toilets?
Tell them to go outside and water the plants, Christina. Most visitors are very excited/very anxious to use this toilet. Be the tiger mom and tell your male guests exactly how and where to point their peepee. They will appreciate and obey in 99% of cases, and the other 1% you can kick out and never invite back.
Excellent video, thank you for being so straightforward with your delivery of information. Can I ask what model of toilet you're using? I live on the Big Island of Hawaii and I have not been able to find an affordable model. Home Depot is the only store here that carries any and they only carry one complicated type for $2300. I'm hoping I can have one shipped here, but don't know what brand or type to search for.
Airhead, $1000 last I checked
Thank you. Considering the composting vs regular for an upcoming travel trailer.
I'm really surprised you didn't wear any gloves during the whole process.
I like it raw
@@HomePerformance I just shivered LOL
Don't panic, it's organic.....LOL
Hilarious and very informative video. Thank you.
HEY THANKS!
That is obviously a commercially made toilet. Who made it and how do I buy one?
Airhead. You can buy direct I believe.
Ummm gloves 🧤 anyone
Watched an incinerator toilet review and was turned off. Watched this and I was 100% turned back on by incinerators. 😂
But seriously, you failed to discuss the third reason for bathroom visits and that's menstruation. Maybe get the wife to weigh in on this because it ain't just #1 and #2 you've got to consider!
Do not put this in your mouth. Lol!!
Graphic content? Wahoo sign me up!
Ok, dropping a shipment in the mail now
@@HomePerformance BOOM! Nice channel. I’ll be getting myself a garden toilet like this for sure.
Cool brother, thanks for watching so enthusiastically
Ok composting toilet off my list going to stick to flush toilet
Happy to help light the path my friend
Peeing outside is one of the best things about being a man! 🙌
Thank you for sharing. So far, this is the most " civilized "way to handle the human waste when you don't have a regular flushing toilet. I hate "Outhouses". Totally disgusting! I think they should be completely redesigned🤭🤭🤭.
Thx Esther
I bought a Laveo dry flush toilet for my RV Van and am happy I did. I only use toilet when a real toilet is not available or in bad weather. There's trade offs for anything. Just do your research and decide which type of toilet is best for YOU. Happy trails!
I am 78 years old, female, and won't have a toilet where I have to pick up the whole thing and haul outside. There are better options, including a DYI version.
It's interesting. But $24k/year in rent seems a reasonable price for a plumbing toilet, tbh. Saving $24k/year (upper bound) is not going to make any difference in terms of finances, so this doesn't seem worth it for most people.
I would love a tiny house one day but I’m not doing that
Would installing this on an off the grid home be an issue when it’s left alone for a few months when we aren’t there? Probably getting power from solar
Nope- longer you leave it, drier it gets. Better for it, and you have to reset much less often if you’re not ‘depositing’ every day.
This is exactly the shit video I've been looking for. Great work, thanks!
What brand compost toilet is this and where did you buy it. Also, where do you buy the Koirs and compost starter?
What's more gross? Cleaning the sides of a sealing toilet when your "aim" is poor, or simply putting sawdust and lime on top and forgetting about it? My vote is for the latter.
Very interesting and informative. Thank you!
With pleasure, Laurie
Never tell a DIY’er you can’t build something.
We do have quite better composting toilets ideas without clearing the area for years in Pakistan, people are using that way from decades.
THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH! I've been a suburb dweller all my life. Yet, a few months ago, I purchased a property with 3 different buildings on some acreage for my therapy and volunteer work for others w/ animal and art therapy. But one heated art bldg came with an already installed composting toilet. There is a fan that works in the bathroom. Since it's the dead of winter, I've not bothered with it, yet. For now t's a spooky room with large spiders and not cleaned in eons. I hoped to find information to prepare me for cleaning then setting it all up as needed. And, I DID!! You've greatly reduced my anxiety and fear. :) Now I know what I am going to face when I go in there to A) clean in out and B) get in working. Thanks again.
Excellent! Knowledge is power.
@@HomePerformance Empowering oneself, then others, is one of the best gifts to give.
You said " you can't dyi a composting toilet " ..... Hmmmmm , how many years have you had your head in the sand ?.
Thank you so much for satisfying my curiosity. Im debating between compost toilet or regular toilet for my van build
I’m not so sure you have a choice, Vivian- you’d need to be connected to unlimited water supply and sewer each time you used a real porcelain toilet in your van, and it might crack from all the shaking.
I love the idea of tiny house living and do wish I had the money and place to build I also love composting toilets but I'd rather have worms in my composting toilet so when you clean out it is already to use
On the kitchen counter?
Only after it’s been cleaned
@5:00 it is somehow hilarious to think that we should not put chemical medications (drug molecules), aka feed them to our organic plants for safety reasons, but it is "safe" for us to take them directly. Everything that goes through the natural food chain, is in one form or another, purified, aka nature finds its way. So the logic for the warning does not hold, unless we are also warned NOT to take the chemical drugs.
You shouldn’t take drugs unless there’s a valid medical reason, yes. Exactly.
The most informative composting toilet video I've seen yet! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Paige
If you wanna go diy you could get a bucket, some sawdust and make composting station
i dont wanna buy the membership dawg i just wanna buy the toilet 😭
This wasn't gross on any level, You're very Professional & informative.
Thankyouverymuch
the grossest part is him setting the toilet down on his kitchen counter beside his dishes.
I bet you don’t have kids if you think that’s the grossest part. The kids are always the grossest part.
@@HomePerformance Do not put the toilet with ecoli near a cooking area sir. 7 people died in Walkerton from ecoli in water. People know it can cause deaths. People do not realize until they lose someone they love. So please in future make sure not to put the toilet near cooking area surfaces . However thank you for teaching people what to do so the next generation understands things as this generation has lost survival skills they may need someday if emergency happens floods etc if sewer systems are not working then they have a video to look to to understand how to set up a "system" quickly with bucket to adapt as most do not know what to do if electricity or water goes out. I suspect that you must be in Hawaii to have coconut husks then because most in Canada might adapt and get sawdust from a sawmill that has plenty to spare.
Why would I say "don't put the filter in ur mouth" of the loo?
Thx u for that step by step process with ur loo. 👍🏽
It’s a joke, Li. Thanks for watching.
Thankyou for this video. I am building a tiny house soon and was confused as to what to do; this has explained everything.
Good luck Kristen
makes my trip to the dump station with my rv be so bad
Honest conversation: What about when your woman/daughter has her period? Is that a liquid or a solid? Why does no one address this natural monthly occurrence?
GRACE HERE- Actually I’ve seen this addressed in other videos but heres the short. Its both. 👍🏻 don’t worry about it. Diarrhea has a bigger impact than your period will. Definitely don’t add tampons or pads to the mix. I reccommend cups. Silicone ones are the best. I dump it into the solids. And don’t worry about too much of it getting into the liquids. 🙌🏻💃🏼
@@HomePerformance 👸TY
SO THIS IS A GIRLS WAY TO PEE, WHY IS IT THAT NOBODY EVER MAKE THERE OWN URINAL 1 FOR PEE 1 FOR POOP TRY SOME WORMS WILL GO FASTER OOPS SORRY ABOUT THE CAPS
🙄
omg this video is amazing
☺️
Where are ya gloves? And you put it on your table? Oh Lord. lol
Dumped into a compost pile for a year or more is safe to put on gardens
I'm haven't my garage converted to a studio like apartment. There is NO water in that part the house. Is this something I could put in there as long as I can vent it??
Yes
Great information, Thanks!
Where can I hire an agent who can help me build a bio toilet ?
Great information! Thanks!
Glad you found us, Frank
When you empty the toilet instead of taking the whole toilet outside you could use garden trowel to shovel it into a bucket then just take the bucket outside to dump it in your compost bin. This way you won't have to re install the toilet every time.
Thx Robby, but that’s the easiest part of the whole process already
And take the risk of dropping some poo during shovelling?
Even though I don't have to, I always sit down. Not into the mist thing.
100%
Great video, thank you
I don’t know about you men, but as a woman when I go it’s a combination of both pee and poop and can’t separate it to get it down one hole or the other and you seem to say it really needs to be separated all the time~ well physically it doesn’t happen with a lot of us women -especially older ones! What do you say about that? How can it work for us?
I guess I’d suggest not using this type of latrine if that’s the case. There are other types than composting- incinerating, bagging, etc.
Could you telle the dimensions of the lower half of the toilet- poop bucket, thanks
You can easily find it at AirHead’s site
Hi guys, what brand toilet do you have? Thanks for your time and info
Airhead
I want to know about the greenhouse!!!!!!!
Haha- here:
ruclips.net/video/WocJYcrB6L0/видео.html
Thanks for your insights in this video. I am curious about ventilation. As I understand it, it is best to not have additional ventilation in the room the dry toilet is situated as it can compete with the toilet's own ventilation and draw odour back into the room. At the same time, one wants to ventilate the bathroom itself. I was considering installing something like the Lunos or Blauberg HRV with one unit in the living space and a second unit in the bathroom. Would this still be the best option if I had a dry toilet in the bathroom with its own ventilation fan? Also, where would be the best outlet position for the toilet's fan on the exterior? As high as possible?
Good Q, CJ. You are absolutely right, but in a tiny home the exhaust doesn’t have to be in the bathroom to fight the toilet exhaust. Be very careful to equalize your entire enclosure’s pressures. Watch this:
Ventilation Testing the Best Performing Tiny House on Wheels in the World
ruclips.net/video/Xy4OvjEd3IE/видео.html
Thank for sharing your content. Aloha from Milton Donner from Hawaii...😊
I have this very same compost toilet. How do you clean the pee area and the calcification?
Vinegar works
sit down yourself
Ok. First off, I thought a composting toilet was a homemade bucket, so there’s that. 👌🏽
Glad to show you the light of truth
It can be both.
This is great.
This is like old fashioned
Love it
Ewww. Hard to watch.
Do not put them in your mouth.
What kind of composting toilet is that????
It’s an Airhead!!!!
Loving the beard
🙅🏻♂️
So cool to listen to you !
Thank you mr. bear
Thank you sooooo much for this, very instructive and funny😂