[Cleanwaste]

Hey everyone! As you might know we are now a supporting vendor and one of the main reasons I'm participating in this forum (other than to tell you how amazing our products are and that you should totally buy them) is to pick your brains about sanitation issues related to prepping.

I couldn't find a category that fit, so I'm posting it here. I would appreciate some feedback and insight from all of you.

1. Do you have a plan for personal sanitation/waste management when sh*t hits the fan? Where are you and your family going to go when nature calls in an emergency situation?

2. Where do you think human waste management ranks in prepping? Is it important to you or merely an afterthought?

3. Have you ever used our product or one like ours and do you think it's effective? Why or why not? What can we improve to make it fit your needs better?

Thanks for taking the time to respond!

 

[Smokin04]

Two things...

1) When SHTF, I honestly think I'm going to be too busy shoot-move-communicating to sift through my crap and turn it into fertilizer. Yes composting is a GREAT tool to have post SHTF. I would look into it the moment I reached a permanent (restart life) location.

2) I don't think I would bother grabbing a port-a-shitter to travel with. It would not be small enough to warrant taking up precious space for more valuable preps like food, water, fuel. My truck is already loaded down with gear...even the trailer would be.

I think focus should shift on a portable additive (like a gel, or woodchips, along that avenue) that could turn waste in to compost. That way once I reached my perm location and I built my outhouse...I could add this to the waste and get my fertilizer from it.

The question is, does urine make usable compost? If not, you have to seperate the two just to make fertilizer? Hell with that, I would just burn it at that point.

 

[Notsoyoung]

I am old enough that I can remember using outhouses. That is my plan once I am settled. Dig a pit and build an outhouse over it.

 

[Smokin04]

As I re-read my post...I realize that it would take an even lower priority than I thought. Here's why. Once I reached my LOL (Live out Life) location, I would need to focus on ensuring the shelter was good, water source was secured and regenerating, food was in order and organized, power systems were up and running (if possible), shower/laundry facilities were ready, avenues of approach were secured, dogs were situated (kennels), suitable location for crop generation was located (or livestock grazing), THEN I could worry about human waste recycling.

So nothing personal OP, but this is fairly low on the list of shit to worry about after SHTF. But my original thought is legit...if an enzyme existed that I could bring 2-3 gallons of that would aid in fertilizer production, I would consider procuring that for the bug out trailer.

 

[Slippy]

Hey everyone! As you might know we are now a supporting vendor and one of the main reasons I'm participating in this forum (other than to tell you how amazing our products are and that you should totally buy them) is to pick your brains about sanitation issues related to prepping.

I couldn't find a category that fit, so I'm posting it here. I would appreciate some feedback and insight from all of you.

1. Do you have a plan for personal sanitation/waste management when sh*t hits the fan? Where are you and your family going to go when nature calls in an emergency situation?

We are already on our retreat location and have a Waste Water Septic Treatment System in place. All toilets gravity feed into the Aerobic Water Treatment System which feeds into an "over sized" set of tanks which then feed into our field lines which are hard plastic multi-chambered pipes to distribute the effluent. To reduce the amount of detergents, animal fat and other things that mess up a septic system, only our toilets and 2 sinks feed our septic system. We use natural cleaners to avoid getting harsh chemicals into our system. So all other waste water from the house is discharged in the form of "graywater" via a dedicated line into its own retention area. Our system should last a lifetime or more. I will probably dig a hole and build an outhouse one day but that is way down my list of things to do.

2. Where do you think human waste management ranks in prepping? Is it important to you or merely an afterthought?

When we designed our home and land useage plan, waste management was fairly high on the list of priorities.

3. Have you ever used our product or one like ours and do you think it's effective? Why or why not? What can we improve to make it fit your needs better?

I've never used your product but it would be very nice to have for camping or tailgating events.


Thanks for taking the time to respond!

Answers above, good luck.

 

[SDF880]

I am old enough that I can remember using outhouses. That is my plan once I am settled. Dig a pit and build an outhouse over it.

Me too - LOL and believe it or not still a few around here in KY

If I have to keep it indoors I have a home made bucket and lid deal and I have saved every plastic shopping bag from the store for like the
last 5 years. I'll bundle it up and set it in a hole outside.

 

[rice paddy daddy]

Some may not place this very high on the prep list, but as someone who has staddled a slit trench in the Colorado Rockies in below zero weather with a wind blowing I am here to say that dropping a deuce may not always be easily done.
A dry composting toilet may not be a bad thing to have, even during normal times. The wife and I have looked into this in the past.
We are longtime (think decades) subscribers to Backwoods Home Magazine and these are advertised regularly.

 

[Slippy]

I'm with you RPD!

At this point in my life, I would rather fight Chuck Norris and Mike Tyson (in his prime) than squat over a stump in the woods to lay some pipe again. Give me a nice comfy toilet with indoor plumbing, the latest edition of "Cabela's" Magazine or the latest book I'm reading, "Find your Inner Avatar" by Mish, and I'm good to go for my daily constitutional...thank you very much!

 

[rice paddy daddy]

I'm with you RPD!

At this point in my life, I would rather fight Chuck Norris and Mike Tyson (in his prime) than squat over a stump in the woods to lay some pipe again. Give me a nice comfy toilet with indoor plumbing, the latest edition of "Cabela's" Magazine or the latest book I'm reading, "Find your Inner Avatar" by Mish, and I'm good to go for my daily constitutional...thank you very much!

I'm totally 21st Century now. The wife gave me an Andriod Tablet for Christmas. I can sit on the throne and surf the web at the same time, wirelessly thru our Wifi modem.
For a technical dummy like me this is a big deal.
(you never know. I might be there right now)

 

[Sharkbait]

Were on a septic tank that has a giant leech bed which was replaced a few years ago.The old one was shot so we had a double tank installed with a switchover valve.Takes about three years to fill a side which is long enough for the other side to have decomposed and leeched out,basically,it should (if working properly) never get full to the point we couldn't use it (both sides full).We have a running stream on our property and I have two rain collection setups.I will haul water or even melt snow to keep a working throne going.However,for on the go,camping or bugging,I do have the old trusty seat that snaps on the top of a 5 gallon bucket.

My wife takes worn out cotton clothes and cuts them into strips and stores them away because it doesn't matter how much tp you stock in your preps,1-your not gonna be able to take it all with you if bugging out or 2-sooner or later,you're gonna run out anyway.The butt rags can be washed,sterilized and reused (gross sounding,but in tough enough times that will be petty).She also bags and saves all dryer lint for fire starter.It's amazing the material waste items that can be used or put towards prepping.

 

[Slippy]

10-4 RPD...Too much information yet hilarious all at the same time!
The best science fiction writers of the past couldn't have imagined a bunch of people communicating through the airwaves on small multicolored hand held devices while punishing the porcelain! Plus the fact that in my bathroom area there is an AR15 within arms reach. Is this a great country or what!

 

[Cleanwaste]

Two things...

1) When SHTF, I honestly think I'm going to be too busy shoot-move-communicating to sift through my crap and turn it into fertilizer. Yes composting is a GREAT tool to have post SHTF. I would look into it the moment I reached a permanent (restart life) location.

2) I don't think I would bother grabbing a port-a-shitter to travel with. It would not be small enough to warrant taking up precious space for more valuable preps like food, water, fuel. My truck is already loaded down with gear...even the trailer would be.

I think focus should shift on a portable additive (like a gel, or woodchips, along that avenue) that could turn waste in to compost. That way once I reached my perm location and I built my outhouse...I could add this to the waste and get my fertilizer from it.

The question is, does urine make usable compost? If not, you have to seperate the two just to make fertilizer? Hell with that, I would just burn it at that point.

Thanks for the response! Our port-a-shitter is only 7lbs and folds up to about air plane carry on size (or a huge brief case if you will), so it's highly portable and won't take up much space at all. It can also come in a complete system with a privacy/shower shelter, waste kits and back pack to carry everything in.

I know there are composting toilets, but ours isn't one of them. Our proprietary poo powder is made up of a NASA developed gelling agent, a deodorizer and a decay catalyst, but it doesn't turn the poop into compost. You have to dispose of the used kits in regular trash (or burn them I guess).

I don't think it's a product for long term use once you have set up a home stead, it's mainly for emergency situations, short term use when plumbing is not available, for use in emergency backpacks or 72-hour kits, etc.

Also, since you are or have been active service (judging from your picture), you might know that our toilet systems have been used frequently by different military branches and have been used on bases in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as in tanks and helicopters.

 

[Cleanwaste]

Were on a septic tank that has a giant leech bed which was replaced a few years ago.The old one was shot so we had a double tank installed with a switchover valve.Takes about three years to fill a side which is long enough for the other side to have decomposed and leeched out,basically,it should (if working properly) never get full to the point we couldn't use it (both sides full).We have a running stream on our property and I have two rain collection setups.I will haul water or even melt snow to keep a working throne going.However,for on the go,camping or bugging,I do have the old trusty seat that snaps on the top of a 5 gallon bucket.

My wife takes worn out cotton clothes and cuts them into strips and stores them away because it doesn't matter how much tp you stock in your preps,1-your not gonna be able to take it all with you if bugging out or 2-sooner or later,you're gonna run out anyway.The butt rags can be washed,sterilized and reused (gross sounding,but in tough enough times that will be petty).She also bags and saves all dryer lint for fire starter.It's amazing the material waste items that can be used or put towards prepping.

What do you use in the 5-gallon bucket? Our waste kits can be used with our portable toilet as well as any other system/bucket/etc. and I was just wondering if line the bucket with anything or not.

The butt rags are no different than cloth diapers. Personally I never used them, but you're right, no matter how much TP you stock, you will run out and then it's great to have a re-usable option.

And dryer lint?? Brilliant! Does belly button lint work as well? ;-)

 

[Cleanwaste]

Some may not place this very high on the prep list, but as someone who has staddled a slit trench in the Colorado Rockies in below zero weather with a wind blowing I am here to say that dropping a deuce may not always be easily done.
A dry composting toilet may not be a bad thing to have, even during normal times. The wife and I have looked into this in the past.
We are longtime (think decades) subscribers to Backwoods Home Magazine and these are advertised regularly.

How do the composting toilets work? Ours is not a composting toilet, so I'm interested how they are different.

 

[Cleanwaste]

Me too - LOL and believe it or not still a few around here in KY

If I have to keep it indoors I have a home made bucket and lid deal and I have saved every plastic shopping bag from the store for like the
last 5 years. I'll bundle it up and set it in a hole outside.

How are you going to deal with the smell indoors? Basically our systems has a plastic bag (like your grocery bags) but is filled with "poo powder" that gels and deodorizes the waste. It doesn't take away all the odor, but a lot of it.

 

[Cleanwaste]

Answers above, good luck.

Thanks for the response, sounds like you already have a great setup where you are! What is your plan in case you have to leave your retreat? And yes, our products work extremely well for camping and tailgating Bye bye endless porta potty line!

 

[Sharkbait]

What do you use in the 5-gallon bucket? Our waste kits can be used with our portable toilet as well as any other system/bucket/etc. and I was just wondering if line the bucket with anything or not.

The butt rags are no different than cloth diapers. Personally I never used them, but you're right, no matter how much TP you stock, you will run out and then it's great to have a re-usable option.

And dryer lint?? Brilliant! Does belly button lint work as well? ;-)

Well,for camping we just use small kitchen bags for a liner,but for a tshtf and when the bags run out,will probably just keep some creek water in it so it could be dumped easily,never really thought that far ahead though.

And heck yea belly button lint works,add a little vaseline and that shit will burn for 10 minutes,plus I produce wayyy more belly button lint than the dryer ever could.But the big question is-why doesn't the color of my belly button lint ever match the color of the shirt i'm wearing?

 

[Tennessee]

We use the Thetford Curve Portable Toilet 550E Electric for camping. It would be used as a short term fix when the SHTF. But for long term an outhouse.

 

[Cleanwaste]

But the big question is-why doesn't the color of my belly button lint ever match the color of the shirt i'm wearing?

That will remain one of the unsolved mysteries of the universe!

 

[Cleanwaste]

We use the Thetford Curve Portable Toilet 550E Electric for camping. It would be used as a short term fix when the SHTF. But for long term an outhouse.

I looked up your toilet and it has excellent reviews. Here are some issues I see with the Thetford, please let me know if these things have caused you problems:

1. looks like it's very heavy and has an awkward shape for transporting (not really a portable option to grab and go, when disaster strikes).
2. needs fresh water to work. In an emergency situation, will you want to use your precious water supply to flush the toilet?

This is one of the most "regular toilet looking" potties I've come across and it seems to be of great quality (according to the reviews). However, I'm wondering how effective you think this toilet would really be in an emergency situation?