bucket toilet aroma, post your tips

[HungryCoyote]

If you are like me and eat most of your meals in your vehicle, there is nothing worse than bathroom smells when you're trying to enjoy your food. Here's what I do. First, I try to park within walking distance of a restroom. I know that's not always an option when you're out in the boonies. But every once in awhile, I will get that emergency 3 a.m. wake up that says I should have found a bathroom like 10 minutes ago, if you know what I mean! I have a five gallon bucket with a screw on lid. That lid really makes a big difference. I keep a thick layer of cedar bedding in the bucket. The kind that you would put in the bottom of a hamster cage. They also sell pine but I've always liked the smell of cedar. Since I'm not a hamster, I don't do my business directly on the bedding. I use 13 gallon Walmart kitchen trash bags. I do double bag it. Probably not necessary but it gives me a sense of security when I'm carrying it to the dumpster. Even with all this, the oder still lingered. So now after every use of the bucket, I burn a three wick vanilla scented candle. It really makes a big difference.

 

[bullfrog]

I don't like candles due to the fire hazard in confined space and the cancer causing fumes caused by the wicks so we use a squirt of air freshener as well in the bucket and that makes the cedar chips activate their smell as well. Keeping the urine separated from the poop makes all the difference, one of van build out videos shows how to build one cheaply. I believe there may be some plans available now as well.

 

[maki2]

One good tip few people ever bother to mention don't eat stuff that makes a huge pong. Also try taking some pro-biotics as a supplement everyday. Many times it is an issue within our digestive system that can be fixed. So it is not just the toilet it is what you put into your own system that can be a big factor in strong odors.

 

[Dingfelder]

That's probably gonna be tough for a lot of readers to put into effect. From what I read here, many of us eat the very worst food and recommend it heartily to others.

 

[travelaround]

Powder and spray for cat box odors.

 

[user 423]

From what I read here, many of us eat the very worst food and recommend it heartily to others.

And that's a good reason for an emergency evacuation at 3am.

 

[LoveCareThinkDo]

When I did use a bucket, I used a food grade five gallon bucket. They seem to be more impermeable. Naturally, I had a gamma seal lid. I use contractor grade trash bags because they are extra thick. I never peed in that bag. And I used good odor absorbing cat litter right in the bag with the poop. I would keep one bag as the safety bag and then put the poop bag inside of it. After every poop I tied off the poop bag, and then left it in the bottom of the safety bag. Whatever I got somewhere where I could dispose of everything, I would tie off the safety bag and throw the whole thing into a dumpster. (Yes, yes, we all know there is no legal way to dispose of human waste in a trash bag. Let's please not start that stupid debate again.) As long as I closed up the gamma seal lid promptly, then no odor ever escaped from the bucket.

That is not to say that the bucket did not smell on the inside. Even though no poop ever touched the bucket itself, after I stopped using the bucket as a poop bucket, the inside still reeked to high heaven. I had to store it hanging upside down outside on my RV ladder for almost a year before the smell finally went away. What that tells me was that the food-grade bucket was doing a great job of containing a lot of odor. I imagine after a year or so of use, that odor would have worked its way all the way to the outside of the bucket. But I wouldn't have minded simply needing to buy a new bucket every couple of years.

Now, I use a porta potty. It keeps all of the odor contained very very well. I rarely smell anything at all from that thing when it is closed up. When I was in Austin and the car was getting over a hundred and forty degrees inside while I was out doing other stuff with the car closed up, then I started to get a little bit of a whiff coming from that porta potty. But it was entirely tolerable and the smell of cooking my food would have completely masked the smell of that porta potty.

 

[janeontheroad]

Cedar chips user too - I'm inclined to think that the best way to reduce smell is by removing water from waste, rather than adding water. Bullfrog already mentioned that it's even possible to separate to reduce the smell. It works.
Not a fan of candles either, as from my experience essential oils work better. But it's not an option if you're moving.

 

[Matlock]

I eventually moved on from the plastic bucket /kitty litter/ cedar chips, that retains smells... to a 5 Gal SS tall cooking pot. I guess it's my next step in the process. It's tall enough, uses typical 13 Gal white trash bags and will not absorb any odor, cause it's stainless steel. Found it at a flea market for $7 and it came with a lid.

Next year it's porta potty time ..... then one of those ultra fancy nursing homes, cause I hear they wipe yr azz for ya and the meds keep all your senses dulled. Oh joy!

 

[kygreg]

Use a high quality (thicker plastic) tall kitchen garbage bag, only let the bag dip into your bucket about 6-8", then spin the duce in the bottom, turn the bag inside out on itself and spin again. You can do this 4-5 times until you get tot he drawstrings to close it up. That gives you 4-5 layers of plastic around the stinker, this contains the odor for a long time.