Tiny go Lightly

Living sustainably and designing my lifestyle to be meaningful and low impact. My story of building and living in a tiny house, in Gippsland, Victoria

  • About
  • Book a visit
  • Events & Media
  • Gallery
Uncategorized, Zero Waste  /  December 7, 2016

Go hug your toilet

by tinygolightly

Warning: this post will probably be full of overshares, feel free to back out now.

Most mornings I’ll wake up ready for the loo. After a solid night spend sleeping, who isn’t? There have been a couple of early mornings and late nights that I’ve been camping out in the tiny and have had to visit the bushes for a quick wee. Which I don’t really have a problem with, actually (except when the mozzies have just woken up). But I’ve been hanging out for my whizz bang compost toilet pretty much since the get go and it finally felt like I had enough of a bathroom (albeit without a door) to justify the purchase.

As fate would have it, the day I had organised to pick up my toilet happened to be…you guessed, it: World Toilet Day! With friends working in water sanitation and hygiene I often have fascinating conversations about toilets, menstrual hygiene, water usage, etc. and on this fortuitous occasion I was advised to make sure I gave my new friend a nice big SQUEEZE!

Thanks toilet, just for being you!

img_9514

On a more serious note, having access to clean water and hygienic places to toilet is a big deal and one more thing that most of us take for granted. Today, 2.4 billion people are struggling to stay well, keep their children alive and work their way to a better future – all for the want of a toilet (worldtoiletday.info). Without safe ways to dispose of waste, drinking water often becomes contaminated (if there is any) and there’s usually not enough to spare for washing hands either. Doesn’t it seem silly that a huge portion of the world doesn’t have clean water to drink and we’re busy POOING in ours?? Doesn’t make much sense to me.

Ok, so. Back to the topic. Toilets! More specifically, how do compost toilets work, I hear you ask? Let’s break it down. There are a few different types of compost toilets available, the most practical tiny house option I found is a waterless, self-contained unit with a urine diverter. That means no flush, no water at all. This also means no plumbing and no thinking, for once. Woohoo!

img_9517

Liquids:
Urine contains high levels of nitrogen (great for most plants) and is in most cases sterile. Why WOULDN’T you put it on your garden? These self contained units direct all the liquids from the toilet bowl towards the front and down into a big pee bottle basically. You can detach the bottle fairly easily, take it outside and dispose of it. This means either tipping it into a normal toilet (although that defeats a lot of the purpose in my opinion. I think sometimes people do this if they’re using the toilets purely for logistically purposes, like if they’re out on a boat), pour it into an existing septic system (these often filter out into a garden somewhere anyway) or dilute it and put it straight on the garden. One part pee to eight parts water is apparently the magic recipe for garden use.

img_9510

Solids:
Much like any compost pile in your veggie garden, it seems an important part of the process is to balance out the nitrogen and carbon levels. Before the toilet is used for poo, you put in a base layer of peat moss to ensure there’s plenty of carbon rich material for the composting organisms to consume. This system came with the enzymes to add in to kickstart the process – much like a sourdough starter really! A lot of drop toilets that don’t separate the liquids and solids will require extra carbon to be added in to balance out the wee – hence the handful of sawdust that goes down when you’re done. Not required for these ones.

ah-1There also has to be enough oxygen for the grubs to do their job, so a ventilation fan keeps the tank well aerated and also dries out any sneaky liquids that may get in. Rather than a flush, there’s a handle on the side that lets you give the system a crank each time you go, turning everything over and improving the composting process. There are also big patty-pan-esque bowl liners to keep your bowl clean(ish) and to reduce contamination of the liquids with any dangerous poo pathogens. These sit on a little trap door that opens to deliver the goods down into the tank, before closing again to keep out any bad bugs or smells.

According to the manufacturers, the solids tank can hold up to 80 uses before it needs emptying. This will depending on your personal habits and how many people are using the toilet, obviously. This guy (Art Cormier, tiny houser extraordinaire) says he’s had his for 8 months in this video and still hasn’t emptied it! The system breaks everything down even as you use it.

Keeping the two separate also seems to be the key for making sure it doesn’t smell – I can’t testify to this just yet but people swear they don’t smell! Even less than a normal toilet, they say. I’ll report back to you when I’ve got mine fully set up and functional. Once the solids tank is full and needs emptying, you put it out to finish composting in a compost bin in the garden. It’s supposed to sit for another 12 months once it’s out there, to be sure all the harmful pathogens have been cooked off and broken down. Then you basically have dirt, ready to use in the garden! Genius. So simple. And no waste!

Models:
The two comparable options I found were the Nature’s Head (shown in the video) and the Airhead toilets. Both come from America and use a very similar design, with a few small differences. After speaking to the pros over at A Better Way to Go in Richmond who stock the toilets and some other tiny house friends, I was sold on the Airhead model.

The ins and outs of the whole set up are explained in far more detail in the Humanure Handbook, an excellent resource and general read for everyone. It’s fascinating stuff, I promise. There are so many taboos topics out there that make it hard for people to talk about important stuff like toilet hygiene. Although I don’t necessarily suggest you start using your own personal toilet habits as an ice breaker in conversations, it’s never too soon to get ready for next World Toilet Day.

Feel free to take my friend Steph’s advice and give yours a little hug too, if the moment is right.

Tags

  • compost
  • development
  • Gardening
  • humanure
  • hygiene
  • sanitation
  • THOW
  • tiny house
  • toilet
  • WASH

Post navigation

Spring Fling: Tiny Camouflage
Off grid Part two – Solar

Related posts

Uncategorized  /  July 18, 2016
by tinygolightly  /  11 Comments

The ending – stuck in the mud.

Apparently at least a few more words are needed. The bobcat arrived and managed to shift the trailer without much drama, until it sunk up to its axle in glorious Bunyip mud. My ever resourceful bro-in-law happened to have a thirty year old hand winch

Read More

Uncategorized  /  June 12, 2016
by tinygolightly  /  9 Comments

Floored.

So, this could be slightly foolish – attempting to write an update after spending all day outside building. My brain is pretty toasted, not to mention my muscles (or, as it turns out, lack thereof). BUT, Grand Designs in on in the background, the Baileys

Read More

Toys! I mean, tools.
Tools, Uncategorized  /  November 13, 2016
by tinygolightly  /  5 Comments

Toys! I mean, tools.

4 comments

  • tinycasita
    December 16, 2016

    Thanks for sharing! What made you go for the air head instead of the nature’s head? Curious what sent it into the “better” category. Getting my tiny soon and have some decisions to make!

    Reply
    • sarahsmeth
      December 25, 2016

      There were a few things that the retailer listed as advantages to the Air Head. From memory they were:

      – You don’t have to open the AH to empty the liquids bucket, NH you do.
      – AH has a more separate and distinct toilet seat to sit on, looks more like a real loo and less like a public bathroom toilet that doesn’t have a seat
      – AH has rubber seals around the lid and seat to keep smells and bugs out better

      There might’ve been more but that’s all I can remember for now. I do recommend going in to a store if you can to have a look, they’re quite different when you’re looking at them!

      Would love to follow your blog too Elena, do you have an email subscribe option anywhere? 🙂

      Cheers, Sarah

      Reply
  • Esther
    March 17, 2018

    Hi Sarah,

    Thanks so much for writing such an eloquent, exhaustive and interesting blog!! We’re currently planning out our tiny house and reading about yours has been a huge help. I’m doing some research on composting toilets and was wondering if you compared the airhead with the nature loo at all when you were looking into it? We’re trying to buy local as much as possible so I was thinking they could be a good option? We’re a family of 3 so I’m thinking our toilet might fill up a little more quickly than yours .

    Thanks again for your blog!

    Esther

    Reply
    • tinygolightly
      March 20, 2018

      Thanks Esther, I’m glad it’s come in handy!
      I definitely looked at the Nature loo but I wanted something completely self contained (quite a few of the other models you have underground chambers or the urine is diverted straight out into the garden somewhere) so I went for the airhead in the end. If you have the space and the capacity to install it, something with bigger chambers might be more appropriate for your family. A family of three would fill up the Airhead (or Natureshead, they’re very similar models) fairly quickly, but this also depends on daily habits. If none of you are at home full time you may find the usage is not huge after all. It also depends how low maintenance you want your toilet to be. With three people using the airhead, even part time, you’d be emptying the urine bucket at least twice a week and the solids bucket might need emptying each month. Neither are particularly arduous, but just something to keep in mind!

      Reply

Share your thoughts Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Facebook feed

2 years ago
Timeline Photos

I don’t know what feels more luxurious, having a towel rail in the tiny house or owning more than two towels!

What amazes me more than how much stuff you can live without, is how much stuff you need to live in a regular house. This was put into perspective doubly when family came to stay from interstate recently. With 6 adults and a toddler in the house, suddenly our two sets of sheets and 4 towels (already double what we had in the tiny!) was far from adequate. We ran out of cutlery, crockery and pillows. I forget the things people expect in a house, like a washing basket or a rubbish bin. Or a stash of kid’s toys. I feel like we’ve spent the last 8 months collecting things to try and make this house functional and comfortable, but we’re definitely trying to walk the line between those things and falling into the trap of needing ‘stuff’. We have brought a lot of the tiny house lessons into this house and it works for us. But having a space that is welcoming and comfortable for other people is sometimes a different task again - it’s not all about us. And it’s often not until your partner’s mother asks where the laundry basket is and you hand her a shopping bag that you reflect on these things 😬

Finishing the tiny also means thinking of other people. Sure, we didn’t mind hanging our towels in the shower or over the clothes drawers, but probably some people will. Sure, we managed just fine on one towel each most of the time, but that is also a personal choice. As we ready the tiny for its new stage in life, I am trying to look at things from different perspectives. And rather than marvelling at how little we needed, I am instead marvelling at how much it seems we can’t do without!

#minimalism #tinyhouse #bathroom #stuff #freshtowels #diy #airbnb #towelrail #progress #details
... See more

LIKE
LOVE
HAHA
WOW
SAD
ANGRY
View on facebook
2 years ago
Timeline Photos

My weekend fashion soars to new heights at the tiny. Rocking my Michael Long foundation jumper, toolbelt from the hardware corporation that shall not be named, boots from a local plumbing shop and my well loved hiking pants that are now marked by paint, varnish and a wild concoction of who knows what else. Also, a cap I found this morning.

Sunlight and green green grass by Mother Nature, deck by Mick and photo by insta boyfriend. For once, serving his purpose.
Happy Sunday, folks!

Peace, love and sunshine
☀️✌🏼✌🏽✌🏾☀️

#peaceandlove #farshion #womenwhobuild #toolbeltswag #michaellongfoundation #alwayswasalwayswillbe
... See more

LIKE
LOVE
HAHA
WOW
SAD
ANGRY
View on facebook
2 years ago
Timeline Photos

Some nights I dream of straight lines and saw dust.

There’s poetry in the building process. I’m no poet but I feel connected and creative in this space, and it becomes easy to find beauty in unexpected places. ... See more

LIKE
LOVE
HAHA
WOW
SAD
ANGRY
View on facebook
2 years ago

Would you like a tour of Tiny go Lightly and Ravenscroft farm? Are you interested in learning more about sustainable farming and regenerative agriculture practices? Do you love being outside and have some time on a weekend to help support a local project?

If the answer was yes to any of these questions, please consider coming along to a tree planting day at Ravenscroft farm in Tanjil South. I'll be there and happy to discuss any tiny house questions you have while we plant!

Date: Sunday 8th September, 2019

10:30 am - arrival for coffee and cake, followed by planting

1:00pm ish – Lunch

Post lunch – tour of farm featuring revegetation, tiny house and other activities

Please bring: warm clothes, gloves.

If you're keen to join us, please get in touch for the farm address and further details. Hope to see you there!
... See more

LIKE
LOVE
HAHA
WOW
SAD
ANGRY
View on facebook
« ‹ 1 of 77 › »
  • Elara Pro by LyraThemes.com
  • Made by LyraThemes.com