Hey All

[DLTooley]

Colorado allows, by right, composting toilet systems in most rural areas. I would hope more jurisdictions in other States would allow these.

 

[user 22017]

Well... I know we had an outhouse back in the day, and the small town nearby used the creek that went through as a sewer. That changed when I was a kid though.

Human waste is treated as toxic for some reason.

Composting toilets have been around for decades. I first read up on them in the '70's. There are also camping toilets with removable waste containers on wheels.

From the link you posted:

"Composting toilets are legal in Illinois so long as they are NSF approved. The contents must be disposed of by either discharging into the municipal sewage system, sludge lagoons or sludge drying beds, incinerator devices, or disposed of at sanitary landfills."

Nothing wrong with outhouses

 

[jacqueg]

Composting toilets have been around for decades. I first read up on them in the '70's. There are also camping toilets with removable waste containers on wheels.

From the link you posted:

"Composting toilets are legal in Illinois so long as they are NSF approved. The contents must be disposed of by either discharging into the municipal sewage system, sludge lagoons or sludge drying beds, incinerator devices, or disposed of at sanitary landfills."

Nothing wrong with outhouses

I actually prefer a well-maintained outhouse. No flushing means you're not breathing poop aerosol. Bonus points for a great view...

 

[jacqueg]

If you are interested in building a composting toilet, BE SURE to read the "The Humanure Handbook". Everything you need to know to do it safely.

IMO, everyone using a poop bucket, even if you're not composting, should also read this.

 

[Gr8ful]

Here in Michigan outhouses are fine to have.

 

[RonDean]

And when you are checking with the county, make sure it's with the right dept. A number of years ago I opened a Park Model dealership based on information provided to me by the county Planning Dept. Unfortunately, the first buyer that went to county Building Dept who was the dept that issued the necessary permits for siting such a structure was told in no uncertain terms it was not allowed. I closed the business (at a significant loss) soon thereafter.

And that was in a state that even back then was already short of affordable shelter. And finding affordable homes have gotten much worse since then. One wonders exactly who these restrictions are actually designed to protect.

 

[Frood]

I actually prefer a well-maintained outhouse. No flushing means you're not breathing poop aerosol. Bonus points for a great view...

!!! I do not think I've ever run across one of those... a well-maintained outhouse that is! The closest I've ever come is a recently emptied vault toilet I think...

 

[Patrick01]

And when you are checking with the county, make sure it's with the right dept. A number of years ago I opened a Park Model dealership based on information provided to me by the county Planning Dept. Unfortunately, the first buyer that went to county Building Dept who was the dept that issued the necessary permits for siting such a structure was told in no uncertain terms it was not allowed. I closed the business (at a significant loss) soon thereafter.

And that was in a state that even back then was already short of affordable shelter. And finding affordable homes have gotten much worse since then. One wonders exactly who these restrictions are actually designed to protect.

Very discouraging. I'm in urgent need of affordable housing, plus transportation. I'd jump at the chance to finance an RV plus have space to park year round, as a package bundle. Such restrictions should immediately be lifted, on a federal level, considering the US has a sizable affordable housing shortage. Unfortunately your business model doesn't appear to be included in Biden's 2022 Housing Supply Action Plan.

 

[bullfrog !]

Incredible Tiny Houses has several such videos on YouTube outlining their communities and how you can go about getting a package deal.

 

[jacqueg]

!!! I do not think I've ever run across one of those... a well-maintained outhouse that is! The closest I've ever come is a recently emptied vault toilet I think...

Build your own - and keep it clean. The afore-mentioned boiok has some really good pictures.

 

[Morgana]

Well maintained = there aren't too many splinters and there's a reasonable supply of cut-up newspaper pages, right?

 

[bullfrog !]

Northern ones in cold climates have personalized seats cut out of insulation foam! Lol!!!

 

[Texas Gypsy]

I'm mostly seeing discussions about land in Arizona. Any reason New Mexico isn't as good of an option! Should be similar climate at similar elevation.

 

[bullfrog !]

In my experience New Mexico is generally colder and has less resources due to a smaller population. Nice weather a few months of summer but fewer roads and many of those are mountain roads with lots of curves with longer drives to get supplies. A dry hot summer and a cold longer windy wet winter with lots of clay mud.
Most of the warmer parts of Arizona are sand and a few miles from steep mountains with cooler climates in the summer with lots of people and resources nearer by.

 

[jacqueg]

Well maintained = there aren't too many splinters and there's a reasonable supply of cut-up newspaper pages, right?

Nope. (But if you LIKE using cut-up newspaper, you could certainly have it...)

You talk as if it's a law that outhouses must be built with unfinished scrap lumber, that insulation, dry wall, paint, tile, doors, heaters, and windows can't be used, and they must be unmoppable. Hint - there is no such law anywhere. And yes, I have stayed at intentional communities where the composting toilet facilities were designed to be pleasant places. After all, if you're going to be using them several times a day, and you WANT people to use them, shouldn't they be decent?

 

[Morgana]

It was a joke, hon, based on lengthy childhood experience.

 

[jacqueg]

It was a joke, hon, based on lengthy childhood experience.

Oh yeah, we've all been in those. But it's a stereotype that unfortunately all too many people think is the way it has to be. I fight it wherever I can.

 

[user 22017]

Oh yeah, we've all been in those. But it's a stereotype that unfortunately all too many people think is the way it has to be. I fight it wherever I can.

Recently we got on the topic of outhouses in the Tuesday night forum chat room. We discussed how nice they could be today compared to 60-70 years ago. Eg. solar lights

On the topic of rural land and septics, my dad used a buried 50 gallon drum at our campsite (for the trailer). I Googled it and it turns out people are still using them.

 

[RonDean]

On the outhouse/toilet issue as it relates to off grid or alternate housing. It is not that there are no workable alternates to flushing fresh potable water down some pipe into an approved overbuilt and over expensive septic/sewer system. The problem is getting the PTB (Powers That Be) to allow us to actually do it legally. There are so many restrictions related to this issue that I am convinced that in this one case there actually IS a conspiracy. It's the only thing that makes sense.

 

[jacqueg]

On the outhouse/toilet issue as it relates to off grid or alternate housing. It is not that there are no workable alternates to flushing fresh potable water down some pipe into an approved overbuilt and over expensive septic/sewer system. The problem is getting the PTB (Powers That Be) to allow us to actually do it legally. There are so many restrictions related to this issue that I am convinced that in this one case there actually IS a conspiracy. It's the only thing that makes sense.

To be fair, composting toilets do require some attention to detail, and we all know that there are folks out there that can't manage that. I suspect that's what is often on the mind of the PTB. And of course, never discount plain old bureaucratic inertia. Nevertheless, it borders on criminal to use potable drinking water to flush the icky-poo away, IMNSHO.

Here's my favorite bare bones system - Very easy to implement. (Obviously not suitable for frequent travellers, although I use (something like) this system at my summer digs.)