Bush Loo

[locum76]

Hi all.

Has anyone got experience of building one of these for moderate to heavy use? The composting, clean, odourless and safe variety is what I would like to know about rather than just the hole in the ground type.

Some rough plans would be useful. I've investigated the links in this old thread but most of them seem to be dead or corrupt.

Regards

Rob

 

[Toddy]

Search under treebogs, Rob.

iirc the ones that utilise living willow as a screen and as a user upper of the 'deposited' material were the ones that lasted.
Build a screen from hurdles and plant the willow whips right in next to them.

Best advice I heard was to have a seperate pissoir for gentlemen who stand to piddle, that one gets a bale of straw dug into the ground. Those who sit or squat, of whatever gender, use the first type of loo.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[Bushwhacker]

In the jungle we dug a hole about 3 ft deep and kept the pile of earth next to it with a shovel.
After every 'deposit' you'd put a shovelful of soil on top and used tissue paper into a brown paper bag and placed inside a carrier bag for incineration at a later point.
When the hole was full, we changed location.

 

[locum76]

hmmm, almost but not quite there. The bog has to be used by corporate clients and young people who will be coming to visit us as trainees. Therefore health, hygiene and comfort are paramount and ideally the bog should be as much like a normal bog in a house as possible...

 

[DavidJT]

hmmm, almost but not quite there. The bog has to be used by corporate clients and young people who will be coming to visit us as trainees. Therefore health, hygiene and comfort are paramount and ideally the bog should be as much like a normal bog in a house as possible...

Not sure if I posted this before, but how about one of these if they have a sense of humour?...

http://www.thebrowncorporation.com/

They are intended for festivals etc, but maybe with a tarp screen rigged horizontally round four poles or something?

 

[locum76]

again, it's a groovy idea but not permanent enough...

 

[Broch]

Now keep an open mind!

In the book "Highgrove portrait of an estate" is a whole chapter on the Sewage Garden and how the Royal Waste is processed through reed beds and willow beds. It may be worth a look but I susepct will take some time to develop.

I have a multi tank system that drains out into the soakaway in the field but that needs emptying about once every two years by a contractor.

Broch

 

[Neumo]

Not sure if I posted this before, but how about one of these if they have a sense of humour?...

http://www.thebrowncorporation.com/

They are intended for festivals etc, but maybe with a tarp screen rigged horizontally round four poles or something?

I was beaten to it by the poster above... We gave one of the S*** Box products to a manager that nobody liked when he left... He did not see the funny side for some reason.

 

[Toddy]

I think the system I heard about that worked best was called 'cistus' or something like.

However, this one looks interesting

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/11/biolux_composti.php

cheers,
Toddy

actually I think it's clivus, but not allowed in the UK
How about the Rotaloo ?
http://www.rotaloo.co.uk/

 

[tobes01]

Stayed at Eweleaze Farm this summer. They'd dug an earth closet in each field, essentially a very small garden shed with a pine toilet inside, with a wooden loo seat on top. Underneath is a 6ft deep hole. Bin full of bark chip next to the toilet, just finish your job and throw a few handfuls in. There was no smell at all, and every day they came round with a pressure washer, took the loo roll out and blasted the interior with the washer. Great idea.

Once your hole's full, top it off then dig another and move the shed on top of it. Simples.

Tobes

 

[bert333]

Use what Nature offers!

 

[Tony]

That's cool, i wonder how they deal with the waste, down a hole to feed the roots or cart it out...Can't imagine it being great left there.

 

[locum76]

good stuff guys.

I'm thinking along the lines of a sturdy shed with two seats in and two drop holes. I could cover one seat and use only one until its full. then move the cover over and start on the other side. when the second is full, we'd empty the first (should be after a year or so and well composted) and start the cycle over again.

This way we'd get good compost, it'd be cheap to build (I love the Biolux Toddy but we don't want the trainees getting too soft) and we wouldn't have to move it about.

Might be a good excuse to mess about with strawbale building for the shed too.... hmmmm.

Rob

 

[Toddy]

I'd seriously thnk about the pissoir idea too, Rob, or at least a seperating toilet. If you can filter out the liquid and deal with that seperately, supposedly it's better compost, less smell and a lot less maintainance.

cheers,
M

 

[crazydave]

simplest is to dig a three foot hole and erect a plywood/timber thunderbox over the top with a standard toilet seat so folks dont feel too out of place. a simple tarp maze around it or a foliage/hurdle screen

chuck a shovelfull of soil over it and it will be gone in a couple of weeks. there are designs which minimise flies by having a big lid to drop over the whole lot which can be locked. as to smell you can make a chimney to carry it over your head.

if you want to go proper alfresco every time them look at the two poles between two trees method.

on the elsan route there is a biodegradable/non toxic elsan fluid now which means you could use a portaloo then tip it away into an earth pit.

or theres the military way of sandwich bags and a jerry can

 

[bert333]

That's cool, i wonder how they deal with the waste, down a hole to feed the roots or cart it out...Can't imagine it being great left there.

access from the rear- pigs come and clear it out- nothing wasted.
Word of caution if dropping yer pants for a No2....... always check there are no porky friends nearby....they'll rush you and drop you before 'it's' half way out as experienced in Thailand and not one I'd want to do again....:twak: bad piggies!