Composting Toilet

How to Make a Composting Toilet

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As my husband and I began mapping out the interior of our rustic shed-turned-cabin in Montana, he knew we wouldn’t have plumbing, and I knew I didn’t want to deal with chemicals or smells. With two small children and weather that can range from -20 to 85-degrees Fahrenheit, we also didn’t want to deal with schlepping outside for potty breaks. Building our own humanure toilet turned out to be our perfect solution.

With only 12x20 feet of living space, the whole cabin is virtually a kitchen/bedroom/bathroom. We had to choose between putting the loo by the hot stove (not safe for children) by the hide-a-bed, or in this quiet corner. While some question the cleanliness of pooping so close to a food prep area, one must remember that this is not a flushing toilet that sprays bacteria into the air with every flush. Your backside seals the toilet while you do your business. There is no splash. Compost debris quickly covers the deposits, and the lid is shut immediately. Also, having water within easy reach is a must for cleaning up "accidents." We hope to adjoin the outhouse to The Shabin in the near future.

We get quite a few jokes from friends and family about our “lovey loo,” but I would take our lovely-loo over a honey bucket any day! It’s a bucket inside a wood box, and we cover – um – the deposits with sawdust. it has a real toilet seat on it for looks and comfort, but it is what it is, and it works very well.

Recycled red outhouse behind The Shabin always stinks!

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Bill Brooks Tiny Solar House Part 3

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Tiny Solar House part 3 by Bill Brooks. This video covers his storage area and refrigerator as well as some of the electronics in the unit to convert the electricity to the different modes available. Also a tour of the shower and bathroom area and an introduction to Bill’s composting … Read more

Collapsable Living Quarters

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Derek (Deek) Diedricksen from relaxshax and the Tiny Yellow House videos has sent me a couple of new videos and I want to share them with you. Here is what Deek says: This is a lil’ offbeat- but heck, I’ll send it your way anyway, as its designed for small space … Read more

Composting Toilet

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Following is a guest post by Walt Barrett. I promised that I would write an article about the composting toilets that we build, so here it is. It includes my idea of a sliding adjustable urine separator. The customers that we have using this toilet are very happy with it. … Read more

A Comment About Tiny Homes

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Walt Barrett sent me an article sharing his thoughts about tiny houses and I thought you would enjoy reading it so let me turn it over to Walt.

Lately, in the light of two very recent earthquake disasters, I have been giving a great deal of thought to the advantages of living in a small self contained, or autonomous home. The benefits are quite obvious, and huge. First of all, you will probably be located in a rural area far from the looting and other crimes commonly found in cities after a disastrous earthquake, or other natural disaster.

Photo Credit: Jay Shafer

There is also the advantage of not running out of power because you will be making your own. If you are using a composing toilet you do not have the problems associated with sewerage disposal. You most likely will have your own water supply which would be pumped from the ground by a solar powered water pump.

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ICS SIPs Trösta Outhouse

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Luke Danielson sent me this interesting concept for an outhouse that I thought would work for someone with a tiny house. Here is what Daniel has to say about his design:

I was skeptical at first but after reading Humanure (everyone should read this book!) I was inspired to design an outhouse that incorporates a composting toilet. I know there are many out there that have been doing this exact thing for years, but I’d like to think that with the use of SIPs, the Trösta (“comfort” in Swedish) could be one of the most efficient.

With R-28 closed-cell SIP walls, roof, and floor, the unit would require very little input to heat or cool. Plus, with temperature being crucial to the composting process, it just makes sense to have a highly insulated outhouse. I designed it with the use of 4×8, 4×9, and 4×10 sheets of OSB to keep scrap and price to a minimum. With is being a bit larger than typical outhouses, you could use that extra space as a storage shed, or even split it with a divider wall for two toilets for a Men’s and Women’s unit.

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