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Small Cabin Forum / Off-Grid Living / Saw dust toilets
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ADK Don
Member
# Posted: 10 Aug 2017 08:31
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For those who use saw dust toilets, the simple 5 gallon bucket deal - is it important to have a separate bucket for pee and another for poo? Most of the composting toilets are urine diverting but it seems like most saw dust folks use one? Was thinking about making a ply wood box with two buckets but it will be a lot larger then one. I figured I would start out this way before I shelled out thousands on a composting toilet . Need to get boss on board slowly!

bugs
Member
# Posted: 10 Aug 2017 08:51
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No need to separate imho... We have been using a composting 5 gal pail system with aspen shavings for 9 years. After the pail is full "it" is dumped into a garbage container (with a little 1/2" hole about 2" above the bottom) for about 18 months. After each dump a bit of old compost or leaf litter is spread over the contents to enhance decomp. After 18 months it comes out as compost. Track down my project post if you need more info/images.

Eddy G
Member
# Posted: 10 Aug 2017 10:43 - Edited by: Eddy G
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Keeping things dry helps keep down the smell....
The composting process isn't hurt by mixing or separating the urine. I believe mixing urine in helps the process of composition but wet poo is stinky poo.
You don't even need to separate 100% of the urine but a majority of it helps a lot.
Do a search here or on Google for BoonJon C-head composting toilets or the Humanure (not sure I spelt that right) hand book...Lots of info there.

Personally we used the straight 5 gal pail with saw dust for about a year of construction before we moved to the C-head and couldn't be happier with it. The pail worked fine but we have found there is a lot less smell with the urine separation process and we have to empty the bucket a lot less often.
We keep the lid closed and empty the c-head bucket every other weekend or so, sometimes more with out any trouble.

There are plenty of options and alternatives out there, good luck with whichever you choose.

hdhp
Member
# Posted: 10 Aug 2017 12:30
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I use one for both! can't really stop the flow when you go #2.
lol

HDHP

Steve_S
Member
# Posted: 11 Aug 2017 07:26
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@ADK Don

The answers to your questions & the why's you seek, are here: http://humanurehandbook.com/

Everything explained and different methods useable.

Scott G
Member
# Posted: 11 Aug 2017 08:15
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Another vote for not separating. I'll P in the woods/outside during the day as much as possible, even evenings really - but that's moreso to make the bucket last longer.

We dump full buckets into a 4x4x4 pallet compost pile. We're working on our second one and have one that was filled in a year and now sitting for the second year. It's a good system.

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