There was a strange sight and sound in our bedroom last night. I stood up, cheering and clapping, as Maria was doing business in the new toilet room. The farm’s ancient outhouse door was returned to work and is perfect for us.
The light insight lit up and gave us an Edgar Allen Poe look.
Sharing this event is a first for both of us.
I’ve never written about toilets before, and since there won’t be any photos of us going to the bathroom, I can at least describe the process; my mail tells me many people want to know how it went.
It went perfectly.
We are delighted with this evolution of the toilet. It’s not new; campers and remote homes have had them for years, but new technologies have made them more accessible and safer. Climate change is causing more people to pay attention. They will be odor-free if you take care of them.
It took a long time and a lot of patience to find Dan Rogers, a gifted handyman who built a small bathroom in a corner of our bedroom and made it look beautiful. I can’t say enough about Dan.
The toilet is efficient and easy to use – an odorless compact toilet with no water. The only electricity required is a quiet ventilation tube running all the time.
The first use went perfectly. You lift the lid, go to the bathroom, spray the bowl with disinfectant, and go back to sleep.
The toilet performed as promised and advertised; we have no complaints or reservations.
We got a Nature’s Head compost toilet. The directions were clear, and customer service was readily available. It helped to have a handyman put it all together; at least, it helped us.
Maria is the handyperson in our family; it was sobering to listen to her and Dan go over the details. Most went over my head at first, but I’m learning now.
Maria suggested shiplap wood to Dan. He loved the idea. It is a popular wood paneling, relatively inexpensive and attractive.
This toilet would never have happened without a good friend who helped with the cost and Maria and Dan. It was all over my head.
It takes 12 hours to get our coco coir compost absorbent moist (the ventilator keeps it wet) moist enough (we mixed it with some water) to use.
Maria was the first to use it in the middle of the night; she was delighted not to have to go downstairs; the same goes for me. I’m biding my time.
I took this photo of the toilet’s first use at 2:15 a.m. The door was originally an outhouse door for the farm; it was rotting away in the hay loft. Dan Rogers brought it back to life.
It was simple.
The toilet is sturdy and well made; urinating requires lifting the lid and spraying the bowl with water and vinegar mix, keeping the bathroom clean and odor-free.
The urine runs right into a plastic container at the bottom of the bathroom. If a bowel movement is involved, there is a lever right alongside the toilet, which, when turned, opens a much larger hole and a different hole than the urinary opening.
We have more work to do – painting, a safety grip bar, and some things to hang on the wall to brighten it up.
Toilet paper is a part of the equation; it can go into the poop bucket and will get absorbed with the waste. A spray can – filled with vinegar and water- is nearby to keep the toilet bowl clean after use. The ventilation tube is always running (silent) to keep odors outside and the compost moist.
If only one or two people are in the family, or if the toilet is only used for urinating, the absorbent need not be changed for one or two months. It is a godsend for small rooms, old houses, RVs, and camping.
It is also being discovered by people living in drought-stricken areas who need to save their water and people with old and small houses.
When the bowel movement waste fills the compost, we put a 13 gallon garbage bag over the top, turn it over, and slide it in. The bag goes to the compost heap, and the bucket stays in the toilet. The compost will keep it clean.
Depending on usage, the urine bucket must be emptied and washed every few days.
It is simple to slide it right out and carry it outside or to the downstairs toilet.
We got this toilet because the old farmhouse would have to be torn apart to install modern plumbing upstairs.
We are also working hard to be environmentally sensitive. I suspect we will all seek to conserve water in the coming years. We are ready.
I have been getting lots of questions about the toilet. I can’t answer each one individually, but I will try to get to most, if not all, of them as I describe the process.
I recommend it. I must say that for the price of the toilet – approximately $1,200 – the simplicity and the clear instructions, it is a bargain compared to building a bathroom with a standard toilet. For us, there were material and labor costs that added up quickly.
It’s not for everyone, but it is definitely for many. You will know who you are. I have no reservations or alarms to share. We started wanting to build a bathroom upstairs, but the price skyrocketed when we figured out the cost. It was way more than we could afford.
We’ve only used it briefly once, so I’ll take more time to consider it all. So far, so good.
I’m also learning that reading instructions carefully is essential, something I often ducked to regret.
