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machzman
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# Posted: 4 Dec 2014 03:38pm
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other than digging a new hole is there any thing that will break down the paper and the waste
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darz5150
Member
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# Posted: 4 Dec 2014 07:05pm - Edited by: darz5150
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I have used rid x in the past. But for the past 7 years or so, I use regular bakers yeast packets ( super cheap ) open 2 or 3 and spread them around. It seems to eat up waste, and breaks down the paper.
We also don't throw the " pee paper " down the hole. We have a small trash can to put it in, then just burn it.
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ChuckDynasty
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# Posted: 4 Dec 2014 07:43pm - Edited by: ChuckDynasty
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I've been using a sawdust bucket for the last few months separating solids and liquids and adding to a compost pile but no women are involved. Highly recommend it.
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turkeyhunter
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# Posted: 4 Dec 2014 08:28pm
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at some hunting camps I have been to they throw a hand full of outhouse lime...the powdered kind u get from the feed store ~~to curb the smell 
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toyota_mdt_tech
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# Posted: 4 Dec 2014 09:00pm
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I use lime.
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NhLiving
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# Posted: 4 Dec 2014 09:18pm
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I use sawdust or wood ash very rarely.. My outhouse has probably only had about 100 uses in the past 2 years. Don't urinate in it either, that will stink and slow down the natural break down. No smells so far, but it is about 75 feet away.
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cabingal3
Member
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# Posted: 4 Dec 2014 10:17pm
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we use sawdust in our outhouse.
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bldginsp
Member
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# Posted: 5 Dec 2014 10:53am
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But I think the basic answer to the OP's question is no- once the water has evaporated, the paper and 'other waste' doesn't really break down, and has to go on some sort of compost pile. In a septic tank the solids have to be pumped out periodically.
Digging a new hole is probably the only solution unless you are willing to set up a composting arrangement where the waste is removed from the toilet and put elsewhere to compost.
Lime stops the smell but kills all the bacteria that are breaking down the waste (to a certain extent). That's why it stops the smell- it kills the bacteria.
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hueyjazz
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# Posted: 5 Dec 2014 11:57am
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I use to use a doggie-dooley for my pet waste. Basically a dog septic system. You added an enzyme that help digest the waste. It work well in the summer but come the cold of winter it didn't work at all. I know the composting toilet generally have you add peat moss and require heat. Maybe some combo of the three heat, peat and enzyme would have benefit. I agree you do have to keep the pee out. I don't think the steel pot would be sized for human waste.
http://www.amazon.com/Dooley-3000-Septic-Tank-Style-Pet-Waste-Disposal/dp/B0002DI35E/ ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1417798394&sr=8-2&keywords=doggie-dooley
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toyota_mdt_tech
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# Posted: 5 Dec 2014 11:56pm
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Hueyjazz or huge ass (I suspect that is what you name refers to  )
Would the chemical for doggie dooley work in a outhouse to break down the solids???
http://www.amazon.com/Waste-Terminator-Super-Digester-Concentrate/dp/B000FEN2BK/ref=p d_sim_petsupplies_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=09KPZCW38JJHVH33SVP9
I found this following your link. Looks cheap enough. I may have to buy some to try in my outhouse.
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TheWildMan
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# Posted: 8 Dec 2014 11:52am
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sawdust toilet, i situated it in a 4x4 shed that looks like an outhouse but without the hole. when the bucket is full i dump it into a black plastic trashcan w/o a lid and with small holes punched in the sides. i live on site year round, fill 2 cans a year then compost them for 2 years before using for fertilizer in the orchard
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cman47c
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# Posted: 8 Dec 2014 12:35pm
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Moldering Privy per the National Park Service is what I use. It works fantastic for 2 person cabin occasional use. It is a hybrid outhouse that uses aerobic bacteria rather than anaerobic bacteria to breakdown the waste. You want air to get at the waste so you use a shallow hole and 35-60 DEGF is the ideal temperature. Paper and waste seem to disintegrate in 4 months.
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smallworks
Member
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# Posted: 14 Dec 2014 09:23pm
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We use sawdust and burn pee paper.
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AdkJack
Member
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# Posted: 28 Dec 2014 07:03pm
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Clorinated lime works for me.
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TranquilMan
Member
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# Posted: 18 Feb 2015 08:10pm
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Perfect. An outhouse thread. I have a wonderful outhouse that I built 22 years ago an it has worked well until 2 years ago. The pit still has lots of capacity so the bacteria must be doing it's job. It doesn't smell but I did build it with a window which is nice. I measure down with a stick from time to time and it seems okay. I don't use lime because I'm worried it may stop the action. We put all the toilet paper down the hole and it doesn't seem to be a problem. On the outside I have large modified funnel with a hose to the pit to serve as a urinal for the guys so pee does go into the pit.
My problem is that 2 years ago flies started breeding in the pit by the hundreds. I hang fly papers and have to change them daily. Thinking the pit is too dry, I occasionally add buckets of water with enzyme. What is odd is that for 20 years - no flies, only the last two? I see comments to use sawdust. I make lots of sawdust. Question is, will the layer of sawdust smoother the action that makes the pit work.
-TranquilMan
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creeky
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# Posted: 19 Feb 2015 09:35am - Edited by: creeky
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i hear walnut and some other woods can be hard to digest. i bought a bag of horse bedding, what, 4 years ago. still only 1/2 way through it.
i direct pee capture into a strawbale. a bale lasts about two years. and if you compare an unused vs peed on bale. you'll see the wetted bale decay real clear. (and, yes, of course I have a control bale 
i made a bokashi mix this fall, but the bucket broke (forgot it outside and it froze) and it all leaked out. so my first test making the bacteria worked. but my test of it's digestive capabilites is an, I'm afraid ... epic fail.
oh. bokashi is a japanese method of using bacteria to pickle your waste. it's both aerobic and anaerobic and can, apparently, treat your waste in as little as two weeks. super easy to make. takes about two weeks. uses rice rinse water and milk. i will be taking another go at it this summer.
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TranquilMan
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# Posted: 19 Feb 2015 11:32am
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Thanks creeky. Good ideas. I am intrigued by the bokashi mix. How large of a batch do you make? Do you just pour it all down the hole when it's ready?
I put a compost toilet (Sun Mar non-electric) last July and flies started in August in there also. I called Sun Mar and they think the compost must be too dry so was thinking that might be part of the outhouse problem. My wife and friends use the new toilet, I use the outhouse. I've got lots of space so am starting to plan for a new and better outhouse so keen to get it figured out.
Thanks.
- TranquilMan
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Montanagirl
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# Posted: 27 Feb 2015 11:58am
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I stumbled across this today. . . some good stuff. http://www.offthegridnews.com/how-to-2/how-to-build-a-modern-day-outhouse/
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Malamute
Member
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# Posted: 27 Feb 2015 01:54pm
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I kept a small metal trash can in my outhouse full of wood ash from the woodstove. It kept flies and smell down. Less pee means less smell also. I never managed to fill one up. If it was a dirt hole, I'd cover it and move over and do a new hole. One place I built and lived in required a concrete pit for new outhouses (old ones were grandfathered in). It was a 1000 gal septic tank without the center baffle. I told them the layout I wanted for hole, vent hole, inspection hole, and bolts for the structure. It was a nice 5x5 building, with my generator and solar batteries off the back in a little lean-to shed.
My current outhouse is 8x12. The front part is my pantry, with small under counter fridge for overflow groceries, and temporary reloading room. The back part is the bathroom. Heat, running water, clawfoot tub, vanity(sink), water heater closet. I use a small electric heater, it keeps it comfortable.
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creeky
Member
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# Posted: 27 Feb 2015 02:18pm
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recipe for bokashi
you can find the pdf for making the bokashi serum in various places. i see the place I first saw it is gone.
basically it takes two weeks of mostly sitting around waiting to make the serum. you use rice rinse water and a carton of milk.
for my batch I wasn't very careful. I had a bunch of stuff to do and i kept forgetting about it. but the serum came out fine anyway.
you then mix the serum with some sugar/molasses and store it in the fridge. mix with bran or any loose material when you're ready to start using it.
in straw bucket composting you throw in a hand full of wood shavings or whatever. the only difference is now the wood shavings have the innoculant mixed in.
pretty simple really.
I found out about the process when an interviewer asked a Japanese rescue worker how they were managing all the waste from those displaced by the big tidal wave they had. He looked at the interviewer with kind of shock, apparently the japanese have been using bokashi for generations, so he didn't realize that people could have trouble with human waste. He just sort of shrugged and said, we use bokashi toilets. That got my attention.
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Darenkcbiggar
Member
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# Posted: 1 Mar 2015 08:40am
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We've had the same out house since the camp was build in 1969, just put ashes down it.
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KinAlberta
Member
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# Posted: 2 Mar 2015 10:45pm - Edited by: KinAlberta
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I've always thought it would be funny to just auger down a deep, say 10" x 7' hole, then just drag the outhouse over a new hole every so often as needed.
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silverwaterlady
Member
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# Posted: 3 Mar 2015 03:27am - Edited by: silverwaterlady
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^^^This^^^ Why reinvent the wheel? Moving a outhouse is no big deal. This is how it's always been done once the hole is close to being full.
And I use lime,just like they did in the old days. My outhouse does not stink and I don't have a problem with flies.
I also scrub the entire outhouse with Dr.Bronners peppermint soap at the beginning of the season and wipe everything down once a day with a Kirkland ( Costco) antibacterial wipe and spray Fabrize afterwords.
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TranquilMan
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# Posted: 10 May 2015 01:12pm
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A number of people have suggested lime but I'm thinking this just kills everything. For 20 years my pit worked great - no flies but now I remember that I added an outside urinal for men that drains directly into the pit. That was 5 years ago and the flies arrived after that. Could it be the increased urine to the pit? Anyway, I would prefer to try to keep the biological processes working naturally without loading the environment with chemicals {lime, sprays, insecticide's, etc.}. My pit has never filled up in 20 years without lime. If I start using lime will my pit eventually fill up or does regular doses of lime burn up the stuff in the pit. I love my outhouse. I installed a composting toilet for my wife and visitors but I'm hoping to use my OH forever hopefully without the flies and flypaper.
Tranquil Man
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creeky
Member
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# Posted: 10 May 2015 01:30pm
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i made bokashi and applied it to my envirolet just as the straight inoculant. worked great.
did a test where I left the bokashi "material" outdoors to see if flies would be attracted. nope.
tranquilman. i've been using straw bales as an absorbant for the urinal. it works the ticket. a bale typically lasts 2-3 years. mileage may vary.
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beachman
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# Posted: 10 May 2015 06:17pm
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We have had the same outhouse since 1947 - grandfather built it. In the 60's, we dug a large hole. It was about 3 x 2 and about 5ft deep. I had to clean it out in the 80's. I tipped the outhouse on edge and rolled a log under it. Did the same for the other side and rolled it off the hole. Cleaned the hole out in early spring before a lot of OH activity and it was mostly finished compost - no smell or grossness. Rolled the outhouse back in place in still good today. Probably have two years left. We used to use lime but now use ashes and sawdust. Sawdust really eliminates the smell. We don't use it in the winter, just spring to fall with a couple heavy weeks in summer.
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TranquilMan
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# Posted: 11 May 2015 12:13am
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Thanks folks. Since making sawdust is my hobby, I'll give that a go. Cedar might be nice. Here's a few pics. Not sure if I could tip it over to clean out the pit? I usually leave the door open when in use to let the flies out. Nice view of an eagle nest. Sometimes the humming birds come in for a visit. Ice is off the lake so hope to boat down and open this week and make some saw dust.
Cheers, Tranquil Man
The Outhouse
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Tranquil Man enjoying tranquillity
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rule #1
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TranquilMan
Member
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# Posted: 8 Jun 2015 12:05am
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Okay folks, I just opened up after my last post. When I checked out the outhouse the fly papers I put up last September were full. I think they were last years flies. I was talking to the neighbor across the lane at home about the problem. This sounds crazy but what they do is throw 3 fish down the hole every year and if has solved their problem and claim it doesn't smell. I didn't honestly think this would work but got talking to a couple at a party a couple of days ago. They said the same thing. Fish in the pit every fall and the next year no flies. Has anyone heard of or perfected this treatment? As I said previously, we never had flies for 20 years. For the last 3 years they show up in August in great numbers. The pit has never filled up so must be working well.
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creeky
Member
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# Posted: 8 Jun 2015 11:09am
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TM. The bokashi thing is really working well. It removes odours completely. And shrinks the mass. I left an experimental bokashi inoculated "material" holding bucket outside to see if it would attract flies. The answer is no. Flies aren't attracted, nor has it become the house of flies.
For pics / recipe and slightly better description, you can check out the blog posts at the address in my Member info.
I'm also using the bokashi inoculate in my garden/kitchen waste composter and no flies. No smell.
I've added bokashi inoculate to the straw bale filter I use for my kitchen grey water. Again. No insects or other scavengers attracted to the filter. The straw does seem to be decomposing faster than previously.
This winter I will also try a biomass heater with bokashi.
This is neat stuff.
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TranquilMan
Member
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# Posted: 8 Jun 2015 12:13pm
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Thanks Creeky. I will give this a try. I printed off the instructions on how to make.
I'll pick your brain on a somewhat related question. Composting organic kitchen waste. We have been doing this for years in the city and it is absolutely amazing how it cuts down on garbage to the landfill not to mention the benefit of the compost material. However I have two other lives away from the city environment. I work at an aquatic research field camp in NW Ontario that is semi-remote. The cook wanted to compost but we had to stop because of the fear of attracting skunks, bears and other unwanted critters. It is now all bagged and hauled off-site for composting. My other life (preferred) is my off grid cabin. I'd like to compost but we share a 20 acre island with 3 other families. There is a general fear that if we compost we will attract unwanted critters and beasts. Our island seems to lie on a corridor for rambling island hopping black bears not to mention the occasional racoon and resident woodchuck family. We presently bag our kitchen waste and bring it home (an hour boat ride and 2 hour drive). It would be great to compost there. We have a rule: nothing accumulates on the island - whatever comes eventually goes (by boat) - no garbage dump. I'm wondering about one of those compost drums and bokashi. If bokashi accelerates the process and knocks down the smell, would it also not attract the unwanted critters? Thoughts most welcome.
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