We use the simple five gallon bucket method and absolutely love it. Since we have access to sawdust that is super cheap, it really works for us.

We are urbanites with land and we have great compost. We will NEVER go back to the traditional water flushing toilet.

The only difference between us and Cherokeerox's method is that we don't separate our urine and solid waste.

We feel confident that we can handle our own waste properly and responsibly. It's also nice that it is really cost effective and earth friendly.

I have a SunMar composter that works wonderfully however, it does use electricity to run the evaporator. Does anyone have a suggestion on how to convert it to solar? I was wondering about the panels you can buy for campers and if they would produce enough power to run the little heater and blower. It produces enough to power a 12 volt source to run a camper so I think it should power the composter. I just don't know how to convert the composter from 110 volt to 12 volt. Thanks

We have 3 composting toilets - 2 in the UK and 1 in Bulgaria. All were installed about 1 year ago and so far we are very pleased with them.
The 2 we have in the UK are in log cabins where connection to mains drainage was going to be very expensive, and in Bulgaria the property is way out in the sticks where the current sanitary arrangements were in the form of a rather dubious cess pit. We were also very concerned to conserve water wherever possible.
We chose to buy Separett loos from Sweden because
a) we thought they looked good - much more like conventional loos and therefore not so off-putting to visitors and
b) the price was more competitive than other companies such as Biolet, Sun-Mar, although still not cheap (around £575 GBP inc delivery charges).

The first thing we really noticed was the total absence of 'post poo pong' in the bathrooms. The toilets are equipped with a low voltage fan which can either be run from a solar panel or from mains electric supply and this not only removes all smells via a vent to the outside but also helps dry out the solid matter which is later composted. The urine is collected at the front of the pan and we have the pipe connected to our grey water system which irrigates the garden.
Another nice feature is the pressure sensitive seat which opens a flap covering the bucket compartment when the loo is being used, screening the contents at all other times.

After having used conventional flushing WCs all my life I can truly say that at this point in time, I find our composting loos very much more pleasant and the business of changing the poo buckets every month is a small price to pay for fresh bathrooms, free compost and a substantially reduced water bill.

Our $800 Separett www.separett.com toilet has been beyond fantastic. Not only are there no odors between uses, but no smells during use either! Think of those unpleasant trips into a stinky bathroom after someone did a #2. Ick. Separating the urine from feces is the trick that really works -they come out separate, keep it separate! The toilet uses only 18 watts, doesn't need a heater or dryer and is very simple so a breakdown is highly unlikely. There is also no user limit like the other toilets. Every two to three months you simply 'take out the composting trash' and start with a fresh new bucket....and it looks 'normal' too - a big issue when it comes to bathroom decor.

That poo has to go somewhere Jennifer and if you have not had the septic system pumped out yet, then you are in for a rude awakening soon. It is most likely filling to the top and then into your leech field. There are some biological agents you can put into a septic system to prolong the inevitable (pumping it out), but you still need to get it pumped.

I would bet the if Jennifer had her septic system pumped now it would cost her well over the quoted $200-$300 as the pumping company would need to make two trips or use one truck solely for her septic tank.

RE: Septic Pumping Costs

Although folks may not have had costs for pumping their septic system, be aware that this could change. Our particular county requires pumping at least every 3rd year. Until last year we had never been contacted by our county regarding this. In spring of 2007, we started receiving reminders that this needed to be done. We had ours pumped and still we received the notice with a threat of huge fines and legal action. This was due to a misinformation in the county office and we had no further issue. My understanding is that this is going to become more widespread. The county is going to be keeping track and the pumpers verify for the county that they've been to a certain address and emptied their tank.

I purchased a hybrid Envirolet system, one that uses a roof exhaust wind turbine or battery w/PV panel, for my farm in N. Carolina. I have not installed it yet, but it promises to handle up to 3 Marine toilets. Has anyone had experience with this system? I would love to have a little more knowledge behind me, when I do install.

I have heard that mathematicians used to work it out with a slide rule. The facility pictured must belong to a carpenter that works things out with a speed square.

I was staying out west near Cranbrook, BC for the summer at a meditation centre. We got started using a sawdust toilet to reduce the overload on our septic system. Basically, it's pooping in a bucket that's in a wooden box indoors, covering well with sawdust, and then removing this bucket whenever it's full and taking it outdoors to finish composting. It's the "Humanure" method, as described by Joe Jenkins. We were all surprised by how unstinky it was, even indoors in summer, and then we got a huge pile of manure to compost over the next year. We're monitoring it closely to make sure the heat gets high enough and for long enough, but even in Canada, this is possible. We won't go back to a big group using regular toilets that require water, and that give nothing back to the earth. It takes such a tiny bit of time to empty buckets in exchange for the free compost.

My wife an I are Fulltime RVers and live in a Motorhome. Does anyone produce a Composting Toiler that can be installed in an RV?

Farmer Annie;
Here in AZ myself and many other people who live off the grid have bought shipping containers and buried them in the ground. I put a concrete floor over the top of mine and built my kitchen over it and I have access through the top with a stairway from in the kitchen. I have friends who buried them and just put dirt on top and they have had some issues with the roof leaking. Most people have there container away from the house with access at the original doors or have made openings in the sides.

As I said in a previous discussion on compost toilets, our log cabin can not use a traditional septic system. After research, we decided on an Incinolet toilet. It turnes everything to a cup of ashes which get dumped every 2 weeks. No work to keeping at certain temp or ph. Easy, easy, easy.

I have used my bucket/sawdust system now for a year and a half. I found the best system for me is to use two buckets, one for urine and one for solid waste.
I have no problem with odor since separating, and I now have a big beautiful pile of compost ready to be added to my landscape.
$1500 manufactured waterless toilets may be nice, but I'll keep my $10 system anyday.

Having just spent 2 hours this morning fixing my Biolet composting toilet, this issue is very much on my mind! We've had a Biolet for 7 years and are generally very happy with it (this was our first big repair - to replace the fan motor). Its performed well and they have great customer service. However, I would never recommend any to install one if you have access to water and a sewer system. Nothing beats a good old water-flushing toilet in my opinion. We have a cabin that doesn't have sewer service or a septic and we can't build one, so this was one of only options. I'd buy a Biolet again, but only if there was no better way.

Most composting toilets don't work because the microbes need an average of 55 degrees F to thrive and they are completely dormant at 50 degrees. Arizona? OK. Canada? Forget it. Unless you have enough power to simmer your poop, it gets cold and just sits there getting bigger and heavier every day. And if you have that kind of grid power, you likely have a sewer system or at least septic. Those remote and off-grid can't afford the heat unless it is inside the house and then........well...........it can get a bit stinky. Composting toilets are NOT a general-use type product at all. Worse, many mfgéd units are poorly built with plastic hinges and pop rivets. Think twice.

Manufactured composting toilets can be certified by the respective state so that they can meet building code requirements. If you buy one, ask for that certification. The manufactures spend a lot of effort and money to get this certification. I was told by one make that it fulfill COUNTY requirements. I didn't ask about city requirements.

The Water Crisis, A Practical Solution

The Water crisis is the most serious problem humanity has ever faced. Water pollution has infused the entire food chain with neurotoxins, poisons and pharmaceuticals, all of which damage the health and survivability of man and planet. The cause is our modern, water based sewer system. We flush all of our disposables down the drain, into the sewer system where more chemicals are added and then finally pumped back into our water system. Water based sewer systems are the prime polluters and our use of them has proved to be full of unintended and unanticipated horrors. The use of water based sewer system wastes and contaminates the entire water supply with pollutants and nutrients that if captured and recycled, could provide sufficient agricultural nutrients to ensure a sustainable food supply.

One practical solution to the water shortage is to replace our centralized water based sewer system with on site, waterless toilets and recycle grey water. Grey water is the water from the kitchen and shower and can be recycled, on site and reused for landscaping. This will reduce our demand on the water source by 80 percent while simultaneously creating a sustainable, renewable, agricultural resource, namely, organic nitrogen.
No Mix toilets collect urine and feces in separate places, the toilet bowl has two drains, one, in the front for the urine and one in the back for the feces. The feces are dry composted and the urine is processed for agricultural purposes. Separating toilets protect the water supply and provide a renewable, safe, low cost source of nitrogen, enough to greatly reduce our dependence on foreign natural gas and oil. The important key is to separate the valuable, nitrogen rich urine, human urine is 18% organic nitrogen, at the source, before it is mixed with feces and before it is flushed into the water supply.

The economic potential of capturing human urine is stunning. Human urine is 18% organic nitrogen

Is there any way to set up a root cellar in southeast Texas? The garage gets hot and humid, the pantry doesn't stay cool enough... any ideas?

We built a composting toilet for farm use last year. We used the plans in Sim Van der Ryn's book "The Toilet Papers". We modified the plans a bit to fit our needs. After 1 year in operation, it's worked perfectly. No odor or bugs. We've even taken the door to the vaults off and still, no foul smell.
We also have a house with a conventional septic system and have never had to pump in out, but then again it never gave us finished compost and a decrease in water use. We're on a well and even though we don't pay for water, we're still very concerned about it's waste. Good drinking water has more important jobs to do than carry humanure away. Not too mention the fact that leach fields can pollute groundwater.

I'm a retired-from General Contractor who could easily get certified to be a Building Inspector, had I the inclination, but I'm too anti-bureaucracy to survive that! Most BI's would not know what to do with out-of-the-box ideas, and will not likely pass them: plus they have the Uniform Building Code as guide. That's where change needs to take place.

In concrete-dominant urban metros, a sewage system is necessary. Imagine urbanites dealing with their own poop! Mercy! But if you have acreage, are building new, and have not yet brought in the grid (water in - sewage out usually shares a trench to the road), then compost toilets complementing a greywater system would be much cheaper (and as mentioned, more eco-friendly)!

We have this system; also, we collect rainwater and supplement with water delivery, and of course, generate all our electricity (I.E: We're completely off-grid)!

The other option is to sand-filter the greywater and use it for toilet water as well as other non-potable uses! And do not put/flush anything non-bio-degradable into the toilet, and this would mean a small fiberglass septic tank with no service required ever (if its installed properly)! Pooping in a bucket is just not a logical long-term application. Many writers are not yet old enough to consider physical limitations when voicing options/opinions!

I stopped reading at this.

"usually $200 to $300 every other year"

I've lived with a septic tank for 28 years and three houses. I've only ever had to have a tank pumped for two reasons, one tree roots had blocked the lateral lines and excess water was in the tank. Two a leaky toilet was allowed to continue leaking water into the septic tank till the tank was full. (Before we moved into the house.)

Other than that we have no septic tank costs.