[Public-List] composting toilets
Rod
weatherhelm at hotmail.com
Tue Jun 10 16:30:50 PDT 2014
Thankyou both for your insight. You have given me the confidence to do the measuring start planning how to make one fit. I will never be able to make the existing head smell reasonable I figure because the tank may not be higher than the pump but the hoses do have to go up hill to get to the tank input neck. Therefore the liquid left standing in the pipe will always leak back in to the bowl. Uck
Cheers, Rod
-------- Original message --------
From: Jeffrey <fongemie at gmail.com>
Date:10/06/2014 8:41 AM (GMT-05:00)
To: Alberg 30 Public List -- open to all <public-list at lists.alberg30.org>
Subject: Re: [Public-List] Sail manufacturer and composting toilets
I'll chime in on this too. I've been using a Nature's Head for the last 5
years. It works great for us (usually just the two of us, sometimes more).
I agree with everything Kris wrote.
-Much less odorous than a traditional holding tank. Believe it or not, the
"solids" tank has little smell. The liquids tank can get a bit of a smell,
but that's easy to fix by emptying. A single drop of soap will film over
the top to cut the smell if needed. The liquids tank can be thoroughly
cleaned easily in a few minutes.
All in all, the problems associated with the composting toilet are much
easier & less messy to deal with than the potential problems of a
conventional holding tank.
I think the downside is for large groups. I've not tried it, but I think 5
people on a multi-day cruise would overwhelm the system, especially if they
are big eaters (if you know what I'm talking about). You could always
just scoop the solids into a paper bag and toss where legal, but that
wouldn't be much fun.
Jeff
Seagrass. #116
Boothbay Harbor, Maine
http://sailboatseagrass.com/
<http://instagram.com/jfongemie>
On Tue, Jun 10, 2014 at 2:16 AM, Kris Coward <kris at melon.org> wrote:
>
> I don't know, I got mine nearly 5 years ago from the manufacturer in
> Ohio.
>
> -K
>
> On Mon, Jun 09, 2014 at 11:41:54PM -0400, Rod Symmes wrote:
> > Kris; Is Airhead the unit that now has a Canadian dealer or is that
> Nature's Head ?
> >
> > Cheers, Rod
> >
> > ~~~~_/) ~~~~~~~~~~
> > ~~~~~~~_/) _/) ~~~~~~~
> > ~~_/) ~~~~~~~~~~~~
> >
> >
> > > Date: Sun, 18 May 2014 14:17:53 -0400
> > > From: kris at melon.org
> > > To: sifuback at yahoo.com; public-list at lists.alberg30.org
> > > Subject: Re: [Public-List] Sail manufacturer and composting toilets
> > >
> > > Hi Dwayne,
> > >
> > > I've got an Airhead on Candy Cane (#583, so a liner boat), which I use
> > > living aboard.
> > >
> > > On the good side, it works well, and the output from the solids tank is
> > > decidedly non-disgusting to have to deal with (which I do by just
> > > putting on some dishwashing gloves, and shoveling the contents into a
> > > compostable kitchen waste bag with a gardening trowel. I have to do
> this
> > > about 2-4x each year (closer to 2 in years where I've worked at an
> > > office, closer to 4 in years where I've worked from home), which I see
> > > as a considerable improvement over having to pump out the holding tank
> > > for the flush toilet.
> > >
> > > On the other hand, I find that I need to empty the liquids tank closer
> > > to weekly (even when I pee off the side of the boat a fair bit), and
> > > that it can leak/spill if overfilled. I find that I tend to empty mine
> > > the night before, or on the day of, any race I might participate in, to
> > > avoid leaks all over my crew's baggage when we heel over too much.
> > >
> > > In terms of space, and usability, it's a bit of a tight fit facing
> > > forward in the head (I asked Richard and Margaret from Into The Blue
> > > about their setup and experience before switching over, and they
> > > suggested a fore/aft orientation so that it would continue to work
> > > properly at all angles of heel), and the routing of the vent hose is a
> > > bit unlovely, but I find these are relatively minor problems. Also,
> when
> > > the solids tank is full, I typically impose a week-long solids
> > > moratorium, so the most recently added solids have time to compost a
> bit
> > > more before removal (and this moratorium often extends a bit as I
> > > procrastinate on actually emptying the tank), though this probably
> won't
> > > come up when you're weekending.
> > >
> > > If you don't have a garden to use the compost in, most municipal
> compost
> > > systems accept human waste (e.g. diapers), so it's not that hard to get
> > > rid of solids when the time comes. For liquids, I find that the tank
> has
> > > enough capacity that pouring it into a shore-based toilet, it causes a
> > > degree of flushing to occur, and the toilet in question often needs to
> > > be flushed twice more before the water looks clear again. There's also
> > > often a bit that drips away while emptying the liquids tank, but that
> > > wipes up easily with a little TP. The old urine kinds stinks too, so
> > > simply pouring it off the back of the boat is something that can only
> be
> > > done when there's no one around to recognize the smell and get offended
> > > (and only in marine environments that aren't sensitive to having that
> > > much urine added to them all at once).
> > >
> > > Another nice point of the composting head is that it allows the use of
> > > normal toilet paper, and I no longer have to worry that I'll clog the
> > > plumbing if I use more than 5 squares at a time. In fact, with a few
> > > exceptions, I can even feel reasonably safe letting visitors use it
> > > (though if the cranking handle is in the wrong position, some of them
> > > can get squeamish about making sure their TP properly goes into the
> > > solids tank, and drop it in such a way that I have to fish it out with
> a
> > > bent bicycle spoke (that I keep around specifically for this purpose)
> > > before it migrates over to block the liquids tank.
> > >
> > > Anyhow, I wouldn't go back to a flush toilet on the boat (even if the
> > > pickups on my holding tank hadn't corroded into uselessness--I must
> give
> > > proper thanks to whoever made a holding tank with aluminum pickups).
> > >
> > > Hope this helps,
> > > Kris
> > >
> > > On Mon, May 12, 2014 at 06:35:16PM -0700, Dwayne Back wrote:
> > > > Just thought I would seek feedback as to sources for my current
> issues. I am need of a new main sail and looking for recommendation of
> manufacturer. I was looking at Peak Sails but then researched online and
> found all kinds of bad reviews. I am a cruiser who enjoys good
> performance, so while I do not need racing sails would prefer ones that
> perform adequately, but price is obviously a consideration. Second issue
> is an appropriate solution for the head, i currently have none. Mostly a
> weekender and looking at the composting heads as a solution but would like
> feedback as to other individuals experiences.
> > > >
> > > > Thank you,
> > > > Dwayne
> > > > Orion 94
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> > > --
> > > Kris Coward http://unripe.melon.org/
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> --
> Kris Coward http://unripe.melon.org/
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--
______________
Jeffrey Fongemie
<http://instagram.com/jfongemie>
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