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Outdoor privy ?
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Message 1.Â
Posted by Martine (U15033945) on Tuesday, 31st January 2012
I would be interested to know how many people are using/have installed outdoor privies (old-style or the new, composting toilets) .
I am seriously considering this as it takes forever to trudge indoors for relief. Of course, OH, being a man, has no qualms about instant liquid manure, but I am a bit more bashful.
We pulled one down when we bought the house, perhaps we shouldn't have.
Our grandchildren have no greater delight than to be allowed to pee outside.
I am not saying this is topical, with yesterday's snowfall still on the ground, but maybe later....
Any thoughts ? -
Message 2
Posted by Palaisglide (U3102587) on Tuesday, 31st January 2012
I use an old plastic milk bottle behind the closed door of the garage keeping well away from the window, we do not want to frighten the neighbours do we.
In your case you could use a Sani Lav Caravan style although if you do not have a garage you would need blinds on your greenhouse.
I use the proceeds on the compost but have heard ladies water is no good for this, I did not ask why?
The caravan style chemical toilet sounds as if it would do you having a seat and all although you would need a small garden hut with an inside lock, you could hang garden tools on the walls in case of unexpected visitors!
Frank. -
Message 3
Posted by Paul N (U6451125) on Tuesday, 31st January 2012
Being well organised I go for a pee before leaving the house, putting on my outdoor trainers, body warmer and coveralls and walking to the workshop. However because of the cold, within minutes I need to go again. Fortunately our dastardly Cupressus leylandii hedge gets an extra feed from me
An hour later, there's a knock on the workshop door, and Mrs N is there with a cup of tea, triggering off another............... -
Message 4
Posted by thedogcody (U14659366) on Tuesday, 31st January 2012
I think and hope that this is right, that Gary Hobson was going to or did install a composting toilet-perhaps he will see this and advise of his venture-if it wasn't him- someone did-wonder what happened..................
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Message 5
Posted by thedogcody (U14659366) on Tuesday, 31st January 2012
Martine -read this
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Message 6
Posted by Martine (U15033945) on Wednesday, 1st February 2012
Thanks for the link. It's fascinating stuff. We can't wait to have a try and have opened negotiations as to the best place... If only we'd kept the old privy !
Now the hard bit will be to train made adults to sit when they have a pee... Just one more instance of how adaptable women are : I learned to pee standing in my early teens at school and the skill has been invaluable over the years ! -
Message 7
Posted by Martine (U15033945) on Wednesday, 1st February 2012
Ladies' water not good for manuring purposes ? I hope and trust this is not true
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Message 8
Posted by Palaisglide (U3102587) on Wednesday, 1st February 2012
Ladies' water not good for manuring purposes ? I hope and trust this is not true Martine, I have it on good authority that this is true, not having had the temerity to get samples from source and put them through the required tests.
Saying that as a child using an outside earth toilet along with the ladies of the household, where the contents would end up on the midden then the Vegetables I did not notice any difference from my Fathers rotted horse manure compost, they all looked and tasted the same to me.
Frank. -
Message 9
Posted by garyhobson (U11055016) on Wednesday, 1st February 2012
I think and hope that this is right, that Gary Hobson was going to or did install a composting toilet-perhaps he will see this and advise of his venture-if it wasn't him- someone did-wonder what happened.................. All I can say is that my roses have never had such a good supply of high quality fertiliser.
I don't know if many of you will recall a 1-hour documentary that Alan Titchmarsh presented from Highgrove House.
HRH recyles ALL his own waste. It's not exactly a composting toilet, but actually some reed beds that all the waste flows into. It's more like a classical cess-pit.
The entire program is on YouTube, in four parts. The composting is featured in part 3, which is here:
The section about recycling human waste begins at 11 minutes into that part.
I had a feeling that I'd seen Alan picking up some of this compost, and sniffing it, and saying it was the sweetest smelling compost that he'd ever smelt. But, rewatching that clip, I couldn't see it.
In any case, I am not actually intending to use mine on my rubarb.
I prefer custard. -
Message 10
Posted by cleverelliejo (U13778549) on Wednesday, 1st February 2012
I am old enough to remember having an out-side privy that had nothing to do with modern conveniences.
It was just a bucket that was emptied once a week by a man with a horse and cart,.
Because we were a large family, it needed emptying in-between times. Parents used to dig a hole in the garden and in it went .
The soil in our garden was beautiful rich, crumbly loam and my father grew lovely vegetables.
Our house didn't have mains water (had to carry it in buckets from tap in road and no electricity.
I would not like to return to those days !!!!! -
Message 11
Posted by marinelilium (U8293024) on Wednesday, 1st February 2012
I just had to share this with all of you interested in the dry composting privy.
It is a quote from a humorous book called '"the Specialist" by Charles Sale printed in 1930. Lem Putt is the champion privy builder of Sangamon County and advises his clients with the wisdom of experience. Especially on the siting of it.
He suggests why his client should site it next to his log pile
'"Take a woman, fer instance - out she goes. On the way back she'll gather five sticks of wood, and an average woman will make four or five trips a day. Why, there's twenty sticks in the wood box without any trouble."
He also cautions about siting in the wrong place
"In the first place, her bein' near a tree is bad. Tain't no sound in nature so disconcertin' as the sound of apples droppin' on th' roof".
Lem is not keen on the pitched roof either,
"a lean-to has two less corners fer the wasps to build their nests in; on a hot August afternoon there ain't nothin so disconcertin' as have wasps buzzin 'round while yer settin' there doin' a little readin', figgerin' or thinking'"
Only 29 pages but a giggle on every paragraph regarding important issues like wood knots, windows, vents etc etc
MLx -
Message 12
Posted by Palaisglide (U3102587) on Wednesday, 1st February 2012
Clevereliejo, the one we had at Deighten North Yorks was a proper soil toilet a brick building at the bottom of the garden with mostly tools in one side and the toilet a white washed (every year whether it needed it or not) area and a full length highly polished seat with a tin bath under it containing soil "err" nightsoil etc. It was pulled out of the back now and then and put into the midden, I do not remember any smell apart from those little boys scrumping fruit make.
The men had to multi task as sitting down was the only option, mark that polished seat and you were dead.
We dried the soil on top of the wash boiler and also mixed ash from the fire, my first pocket money task was to sift that bucket so only the dry fine soil and ash were left, the lumps went on the midden. That bucket would go in the toilet with a scoop and last a week or more.
We collected water for washing in barrels under the roof down flows and for drinking from the village well next to the Church "err" did that make it Holy Water?
It is remembered as a happy time in my life as it was all farms with two in the village which was a single row of houses.
Would I go back? I never go back as it is never the same and carefree boyhood days cannot be recaptured, still it was fun apart from the cold draughty winters when at night we used a gozunder, we were not that hardy.
Frank. -
Message 13
Posted by Martine (U15033945) on Wednesday, 1st February 2012
This sounds very sophisticated and sensible.
However, we grandchildren used to look down our noses at our grandparents' privy, and grumble at having to throw the contents of the chamber pot, more of a bucket really, out on the midden. We did enjoy going home to the world of flush toilets.
But today, it's practically a duty not to waste this huge amount of water and recycle one's own waste.
I have seen mouth-watering little composting toilets in pretty sheds complete with vacant signs, but we'll probably settle for a seat in a disused henhouse behind the barn , within easy reach of sawdust, and some privacy. Also I'm still a bit hazy as to the mechanics of hauling out the bag/tank/bin.
I can't wait !
Thanks to all of you. -
Message 14
Posted by marinelilium (U8293024) on Friday, 3rd February 2012
Martine, the compost reduces by a third in three months if it is aerated. The anaerobic bacteria (the ones that don't need oxygen and create the heat) work along bacteria that do need oxygen so a stir once a week will speed up the process.
Bleached loo paper slows everything down and even the chemicals used in modern newsprint do. So unbleached paper is needed or as mentioned in the book I quoted
"a box for the corncobs is extra".
Although far from the quilted loo rolls we are now used to, stripped husks are completely biodegradable as are dock leaves. How "green" do you want to be??
The compost loo at Studland Bay has a sawdust box and a scoop provided and a limited supply of unbleached paper. The seats are lidded but flies do still whoosh out in summer before you sit down and both liquid and solid waste go in the same loo so it is more of a latrine than a dry composter really.
MLx -
Message 15
Posted by Martine (U15033945) on Friday, 3rd February 2012
Dock leaves, perfect...
I hadn't thought about the flies, I should have. And perhaps separating is best.
Thank you for all this, more food for thought. -
Message 16
Posted by pottiepam (U11118368) on Friday, 3rd February 2012
My dad used to quote this rhyme:-
In days of old when knights were bold
and paper wasn't invented
they wiped their bums on blades of grass
and went away contented. -
Message 17
Posted by Palaisglide (U3102587) on Friday, 3rd February 2012
As an ex soldier I can tell you from experience, anything bar holly leaves or nettles, if you do use nettles by mistake have some dock leaves handy for self medication.
Frank. -
Message 18
Posted by Martine (U15033945) on Saturday, 4th February 2012
Ouch.
Well à la guerre comme à la guerre... -
Message 19
Posted by marinelilium (U8293024) on Saturday, 4th February 2012
My little yellow book is available on line as the 50 year copyright has gone so here you are Martine.
A few chuckles about building of privies
MLx
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