No, two bags will not hide your poop

[Willie Dorr]

"If you have read my posts before then you know I don't mean to argue.  But what is the objection disposing of such in the trash?"

For myself, the answer is to not do it on a farm you won't be leaving for a month or so, in a trash bin in which the odors will collect for one week before knocking someone to their knees. I think the travel/diaper thing is valid, but if you're staying in one place for a while and you're not the guy emptying the garbage, you might still fetch along some sawdust for the sake of keeping the peace.

 

[Willie Dorr]

If a public dumpster has signage that forbids dumping of household waste I will find somewhere else to dump.

The trick for me -- and I will admit it's kind of noisy up here [points to head] and therefore quite a trick -- is first looking around for such a reasonable and well-placed. sign. I'm a total newbie to all of this of course, and although those signs have always been there, they haven't had anything to say to me heretofore, alas & goddamn.

 

[jacqueg]

What happens on the moon stays on the moon, at least that's the plan.
-crofter

Description: link to article, plans for lunar recycling.
https://www.wired.com/story/on-the-moon-astronaut-pee-will-be-a-hot-commodity/

But won't that be stinky, or are there no smells on the moon?
-c

No atmosphere, so no smells.

 

[Tony's Dream]

Some blogs die after a dozen posts......but talk about poop and we are 58 posts and growing. To be honest, it is something that I need to deal with before I head out on my journeys. One of the things that I most find a way to deal with it. Dumping a black water talk is gross. Dumping a portable toilet is gross. Need to find a way to deal with it that is at least someone feasible.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

 . . . went to throw something in the trash and, of course, was knocked out by the smell . . . 
But are people really just pooping in bags and throwing them in dumpsters? 

Since no-one picked up on it I will reiterate.  It makes a huge difference in smell on how your poop is stored and what plastic you use:

• If you mix sh!t and urine, the combination will smell very bad for a long time.
• It makes a big difference what plastic you use.
• Grocery bags, ziplock bags, et. al. are LDPE or LLDPE and do not hold odors in very well (as well as being not very puncture resistant).
• Bags made from HDPE are much more resistant to smells and the thicker the bag the less smell gets out.  They are also much more resistant to tears and punctures.

Feces stored separate from urine does have a mild unpleasant smell that is easily contained in HDPE bags (passes the beagle test).  HDPE bags do not puncture or tear easily (can safely dispose of glass shards in a 3 mil bag without a problem), so very little danger of contents leaking out.

As to the legality of disposal:
Any politician that makes a law that makes disposal of human or pet waste in the garbage stream illegal will have a lot of tired and angry parents and pet owners to contend with.  As one of my OCS teachers was fond of saying, "Never give a command or make a rule that you know will not be obeyed.  It just makes you look stupid and undermines your authority."

 

[nature lover]

I said I was done but I want to respond to Tony. I have used a bucket with biodegradable bags for years. I have used several things in the bag to help with odor. Sawdust and wood shavings is good especially cedar. (found in pet stores)
Cat litter is good and I always have a bag on hand for traction if stuck in snow or ice. Being raised with an outhouse taught me that lime has been used by county foak for over a century. You can buy it at farm supply stores in powder or crystals (I prefer the crystals). One thing that makes the bucket more pleasant than the black water tank is keeping the liquids separate from the solids, Mixing them just makes the smell much worse and the chemicals that some "porta potties" use stinks almost as bad as the waste we put in it. If I have to keep the waste in the van when away from disposal places I tie the bag tightly and put it in another 5 gallon bucket which I keep in the "garage" (inside back doors of van) I use a gamma lid for that rather than the one that comes with most buckets. Gama lids a threaded and therefor sealed better and easier to open and close. "Where there is a will there is a way"

 

[jacqueg]

Some blogs die after a dozen posts......but talk about poop and we are 58 posts and growing.    To be honest, it is something that I need to deal with before I head out on my journeys.  One of the things that I most find a way to deal with it.  Dumping a black water talk is gross.  Dumping a portable toilet is gross.  Need to find a way to deal with it that is at least someone feasible.

As far as I know, there is no non-gross way to deal with it. There IS less gross and more gross, but that is an individual judgment call.

 

[Weight]

Search all you want. Can you find a law that makes it illegal to put these bags in a proper trash container? From your links: "Plastic Bags: Plastic bags require a collection container. At Mt. Rainier National Park (NP), the user bags are deposited in a 208.2-liter drum. The drums are closed and flown off the mountain when full. The amount of material deposited in the drums is lighter than expected. Whether people are making better use of trail head facilities before starting the climb due to the educational effort, or are just getting farther off the climbing trail is not known. The amount of human waste along the climbing route as it progresses noticably decreases."

 

[mike01]

  I have used a bucket with biodegradable bags for years. 

Can you tell me if the biodegradable bags are sturdy and keep contents for some period of time if you do not dump them for a while?

thanks

 

[LoveCareThinkDo]

Can we please just have a blanket ban on this topic? It has been discussed to death. And it always devolves into people who don't have to deal with the situation lecturing the people who do. We all know it is illegal to put human waste into any trash, including dumpsters, in most areas. But Bob Wells has stated in several videos that he does exactly that. So what are you gonna do? Start lecturing the owner of the forum you are using to do your lecturing?

Personally, I use a porta-potty and dump that at dump stations or toilets where it is not prohibited (or would gas people out). But that is only because I often have very loose stools (no, I do not want your diet advice) and using bags in a bucket was just too inconvenient for me.

 

[Dingfelder]

I never knew babies weren't human until now.

Admittedly, they do look a little weird.

 

[Weight]

No, it is not illegal except in very few specific places. If you don't want to read about "this", don't open the link. Your problem solved. You do not have to use a bucket. I don't have to use a cassette toilet. We can all be happy as a

 

[izifaddag]

(Raises head above the parapet)

Firstly as Weight says it is a little hard to understand why you would open a thread if the content of the thread was clearly stated in the header and you find the subject distasteful. But what do I know so I'll shut up about that.

For 12 years I have used a bucket and 2 grocery bags. I have found kitty litter the best cover. I went on to make a proper toilet with a seat, a seal made of steel and an attractive drop down lid which doubles as a stool and step. It doesn't smell, the seal and the kitty litter works well and I have a little technique to dispose of it that works. I have a dedicated pair of scissors. I snip the top of the bags halfway along the sides. just an inch. I then carefully tear the bag down. Then I tie the bag off. It then goes into my regular trash. The trash bags I buy are the more expensive strong ones. That is deliberate.
So it is a small tightly wrapped package in 2 layers of plastic then placed in a third layer. This works. No smell and off it goes to the dumpster.
Personally I find the idea of dealing with a black tank absolutely disgusting. Anybody see Robin Williams movie RV?
I am interested in a composting toilet. I need a lot more information first. I am also interested in biodegradable plastic bags. What we are talking about here is completely natural and will dissolve into the earth. So burying is an option if somewhere suitable. 
I often wonder what happens in a landfill. How long does it take for all the bio waste to convert to soil. I have seen bottle hunters dig out old outhouses for treasure. There seems to be zero evidence it was a waste pit except for the bottles. Most of these are over 100 years old.

 

[GypsyJan]

But per Google: "the clay litter, particularly clumping clay litter, is environmentally damaging. The natural clay is obtained through strip mining, a process that scars the landscape and damages the natural ecosystem. It's not biodegradable."

 

[izifaddag]

That is a hard one isn't it?
The problem is GypsyJan that just about anything you do in this modern world is going to have an impact on the environment.
Theoretically.
For myself I do not believe for a second that kitty litter is damaging to anything. It is part of the ecosystem as is the biological content whether from a human or a little moggy. Heat and rain will break it down to nothing. 
It doesn't get anymore biodegradable.

 

[user 423]

But per Google: "the clay litter, particularly clumping clay litter, is environmentally damaging. The natural clay is obtained through strip mining, a process that scars the landscape and damages the natural ecosystem. It's not biodegradable."

Dang. With 100,000,000 cats in our homes, I guess the planet is doomed.

 

[crofter]

• ....Bags made from HDPE are much more resistant to smells and the thicker the bag the less smell gets out.  They are also much more resistant to tears and punctures.

Sounds like a good idea, but where to get HDPE bags? From my search, looks like those white shipping bags and possibly parts bags which are very small. 

I use ziplocks (LDPE) and an airtite cannister prior to disposal. Even with seperation, the ziplocks leak odors.
-crofter

 

[wayne49]

Quick lime is effective when thrown down the outhouse hole to cover the fecal material after each use. Speeds up decay and cuts the odor.

 

[wayne49]

Wow, back when, we had a large, maybe 50 lb, bag of quicklime in the outhouse (aka "biffy", "take a whiffy, take a sniffy, it's springtime in the biffy").

Now $50 for 500 g. Must be pharmaceutical grade.
https://www.amazon.com/Calcium-Oxide-Quicklime-Reagent-500g/dp/B014X5HXT8

 

[Dingfelder]

On the other hand, things like minerals are generally not biodegradable. That doesn't mean they are deadly or bad. You are surrounded by them every time you walk out doors anywhere within the slightest whiff of nature.