Anyone use a sawdust toilet?

[GreenGranolaMama]

DH and I are currently turning a tiny pottery studio into a tiny house and are planning on eventually being entirely off of the grid- we will have electric power until we can come up with the $ for solar. I just started reading the Humanure Handbook and we are thinking we are going to go with a sawdust toilet and compost our waste (although we have no intentions of using it to grow food). I've been researching commercial composting toilets but they are so expensive and after talking with folks who have tried them, most say they didn't really work all that well.

Does anyone currently use this method? Any advice? 

[prescottchels]

I read the Humanure Handbook and used the bucket method they did and I thought it was great! Totally no smell and so easy! I totally recommend it

I also use cloth tp which kinda goes along those lines and I love that too! T-shirt fabric is so much nicer than any paper tp

[Leslianne]

My husband had to talk me into it, but now I love my sawdust toilet!  I'm pregnant and pee all the time, which means he has to take it out a lot more often, but we're still complete fans.  My favorite part is that it makes no sound!  (Which is great because one of our bathroom walls is still temporarily only a curtain.)

We were going to build one just like in the Humanure Handbook, but we ended up finding an old boat "commode" at a salvage yard for $50.  It was essentially just small metal barrel with a wooden toilet seat fitted on top, just the right size to hold our plastic 5-gallon buckets, and it is so nice and sturdy, much more comfortable than the average flush toilet.

[farmkids42morrow]

We had one for a long time.  They are great and not difficult at all other than the care of emptying when necessary.  If you have a large family, it would probably be better to have a separate one that is just for pee.  Otherwise it gets very liquidy and that is when problems arise.  If it's just you and your husband or something, one may suffice.

Use as little toilet paper as you can, that takes longer than anything else to break down and causes more mess than it's worth.  Make sure you always have a good supply of cover material, you definitely don't want to run out.

This type of toilet is SO easy and beneficial for the earth that it's a shame more people won't give it a try.  Just be careful, because in many areas it is illegal to use a system that isn't commercially manufactured.  Check your regulations and hide your compost bin if necessary :)

[mamatwoabunch]

we have been off grid for a few months. I mean living without any electric to the house ,from the pole. we use a comode right now and empty it into the outhouse for now. we moved in in dec so we couldnt dig a "compost" hole. WE plan on compost toilets. or sawdust toilets. some have been telling us that sawdust takes forever to decompose??? anyone heard of this?

[Toolip]

I don't have one but I have used them. The place that I used them they were outhouses. They encouraged people not to pee in them, as it interfered with the composting. They said just to pee in the bushes, which I don't mind. They had just built a big building and were planning on just using composting toilets but they still had to put in a regular flush toilet and septic system. They have never flushed the toilet or used the septic, they have grey water, but it was requited for building code and to be insured.
I would love to build an outhouse/sawdust toilet to use and give our septic tank a break.

[sweetpeppers]

I do! Since I moved into our house about 6 months ago. I won't use our compost for a year or so, so I can't answer on that. But there is no smell and it's quite easy. I use peat moss as a cover, since I don't have anywhere to get loads of sawdust. well, I use the small amount of sawdust that I make for the toys, but that's not enough for all the time.

[Leslianne]

We've also only been using our composting sawdust toilet since July, so I haven't used the compost yet.  The humanure handbook indicates that a year is a safe bet for full composting, so in our case, for instance, we'll make one pile from July 2010-June 2011, and then start a second pile for July 2010-June 2012.  And in June 2012, our first pile should be plenty readty for use.

As for whether sawdust composts, definitely read the humanure handbook for the expert opinion--he really did his research!  I recall that sawdust from pre-dried lumber (kiln or air dried) is NOT good, but "green" sawdust from a sawmill (recently from a live tree) is perfect for composting.  My husband is a furnituremaker, but we don't use the sawdust from his workshop, we buy our sawdust from a local lumbermill.  It's about $20 for a full truckload.

And as for digging a hole--we didn't.  Instead we just wall the pile in with strawbales, and stack more as we need them.  No smell so far!

[eastmillcreekmama]

We used one for a while, where we pooped into a 5 gallon bucket that was inside a wood box with a hole in the top for a seat. We covered things completely with sawdust. When full, we emptied into a 35 gallon pickle barrel. Those we stored for a year or two, and then used as compost for non-food contact plants. The plants grew amazing. The bucket was pretty funky inside when emptied and TP hadn't broken down. Ideally, I think we would have composted it outside the buckets in a concrete chamber or something, and turned it periodically. If we had done that, I assume the TP would have broken down. 

[QueenEsther]

I have heard good things about that book and need to see if I can get it at my library! We are considering a composting toilet but have only talked to a few people who actually use them. They say they work great. But you are right, it is expensive, if nothing else!

[seashells]

I don't do this yet but I do recommend the book. And I don't see the point of an expensive composting toilet. A set of 5 gal buckets (more than one is best, to rotate) and a toilet seat is really all you need, though a wooden box is obviously a nice perk. And the sawdust method seems so much more pleasant and effective than the composting toilet method.

I've got my buckets :) I've enlarged my composting pile setup :) Now just need a toilet seat and a truckload of sawdust.

[QueenEsther]

Yeah, my thing is convincing my hubby that there really are other alternatives to the great white throne that don't stink or wouldn't be worth the hassle involved. He's taking quite a bit of time just to consider the fancy composting toilets. But...sawdust and buckets definitely fit the budget better!

[JudiAU]

I don't have anything to add other than to say that I love mothering.com .

[MamaRhi]

I use the bucket toilet but with peat moss. It's best to just pee outside when you can but it doesn't hurt to pee in the bucket. It's best to get a bunch of buckets with lids and let it sit for a month before emptying it into a pile or bin. THat way it composts a bit in the bucket first. If you have 5-6 buckets, you can get a good rotation cycle going. You can also have an extra small bucket for the tp. The resulting compost can b used under trees. We have an oak tree on our land that is thriving on 6 years of humanure.

[QueenEsther]

Originally Posted by MamaRhi 

I use the bucket toilet but with peat moss. It's best to just pee outside when you can but it doesn't hurt to pee in the bucket. It's best to get a bunch of buckets with lids and let it sit for a month before emptying it into a pile or bin. THat way it composts a bit in the bucket first. If you have 5-6 buckets, you can get a good rotation cycle going. You can also have an extra small bucket for the tp. The resulting compost can b used under trees. We have an oak tree on our land that is thriving on 6 years of humanure.

I think that whole thing sounds like a great, do-able plan!

[laohaire]

It's your choice, but consider looking into alternatives to peat moss. Sawdust is a byproduct frequently just disposed of, whereas peat moss is mined (and mining is inherently damaging to the environment).

[elsa_elsa]

[MamaRhi]

I'm using peat moss because it's what is already being used here. I moved to this land 8 months ago, whereas my friends who own the land have been here 6 years. I try to start with what they're doing and then research from there.

Where do you get sawdust from? Peat moss is easy for me to pick up at the hardware store when I'm in town. I'm assuming sawdust availability depends on having a local sawmill. Those aren't prolific I imagine.

[kimmom]

We have been over 2 years with a bucket toilet too.. Yes you can pee in it, you just need to empty it more and it uses more cover material..

We use sawdust sometimes but since last summer have been using wood shavings, we bought a huge truckload to go into our woodchip clay infill walls on our home, it works great in the bucket toilet too. Cedar woodchips dont work as well , they take a LONG time to breakdown I have heard. We just emptied out our pile from 2 years ago, everything was broken down except some egg shells..

[kimmom]

Oh one more thing go with black 5 gallon buckets :)