If you use a bucket as a head, how is it set up?
Do you use a plastic 5 gallon bucket, or what kind of bucket do you use?
Do you have a seat on it or is it under a seat of some kind?
Is it mounted in something or do you just set it somewhere and use it?
Where do you use it in the boat?
Do you have it secured at the base, if so, how?
Do you have a cover for it?
When you use it, do you put water in it first?
Do you empty it immediately or at another time, for example in the evening?
Is it legal to use a bucket where you sail?
Is it ethical to use a bucket rather than a pump out?
Inquiring minds need to know.
Discuss!
If you use a bucket as a head, how is it set up?
We use both a bucket and a porta potti.
Do you use a plastic 5 gallon bucket, or what kind of bucket do you use?
White plastic, about 2 gallon.
Do you have a seat on it or is it under a seat of some kind?
No
Is it mounted in something or do you just set it somewhere and use it?
Set it somewhere and use it.
Where do you use it in the boat?
Either at night in the main cabin or out in the cockpit, depending on location
Do you have it secured at the base, if so, how?
No
Do you have a cover for it?
No
When you use it, do you put water in it first?
Yes
Do you empty it immediately or at another time, for example in the evening?
Depends. During the night we use it as a "pee" bucket so it gets emptied in the morning. If used for anything else, it gets dumped immediately.
Is it legal to use a bucket where you sail?
Depends- offshore yes, Inshore probably not for stools, I couldn't say about urine.
Is it ethical to use a bucket rather than a pump out
Depends on where you are. Offshore, certainly. In certain places, most definitely not. We do not use the bucket if in an anchorage with other boats around in close proximity, in very clear pristine waters, or in enclosed anchorages. If we are anchored out somewhere were there is a significant tidal flow, leading to the offshore waters, I don't much worry about it.
Matter of using your "head" so to speak.
Quote from: CharlieJ on March 30, 2008, 11:41:38 AM
Matter of using your "head" so to speak.
LOL!!! Great play on words!!
When I go singlehandling in the ocean, and if I have to pee, I use the bailing bucket in the cockpit and toss it overboard if on the way. If I'm at anchor I use the potty.
www.airheadtoilet.com
From a quick search on line it seems this composting system works pretty well.
Oded Kishony
Might work if you could fit it in- that 19 1/2 inch height would be a real squeeze on our boat.
They claim it'll work for a week long cruise- hey- our porta potti will go 7 days if we are careful.
I'm skeptical, for it to be a "composting" toilet to work, it has to be in there for awhile. Since oder is the biggest problem with onboard heads, I don't see it as any better than a porti potti that is used correctly (as in "no urine'.
Agree on the no urine. Ours never sees it unless we have company aboard.
I don't mean to be anal about this, ;D (groan) but the composting toilets separate the urine from the solid waste. The one I researched - I think the airhead - had IIRC a (basically) coffee filter that you went in. The urine drained through, and was routed to it's own tank. You then revolved a drum, and the solid waste was dropped into another tank to compost. There were enzymes you added to speed the composting process. It required a small fan to be hooked to it that runs constantly to keep air moving over the solids.
I've heard good things about them, but the size and power draw aspects, and the availability of getting enzymes in far-flung places were "cons" for me.
Neat idea, though.
If possible, keeping urine out does go a long way towards holding odors down.
A fellow here in the marina put sawdust and kitty litter mixed into a bucket, kept urine separate, and he told me it worked well, never smelled. I guess you could do about the same with sand, if you needed some short-term holding capacity. :)
Yes the enzymes would speed it up, and for an extended voyage it might prove worthwhile. But for shorter trips it does not seem much better than a Porti Potti. You still have the issue of disposal, and many places do not want you dumping in the toilet.
This fall up in B. C. we will be using the PETT system bags, as they are supposed to be readily disposable. Definitely a more expensive way to go, but you don't have any oder problem, and in a small boat that is a very good thing.
Also it is the least mechanical of the ways to go, and we all know how much fun it is to work on the head at sea ;D
Quote from: Tim on March 30, 2008, 11:55:17 PM<snip> and we all know how much fun it is to work on the head at sea ;D
Exactly. That's another bonus of using PortaPotties and/or buckets - they are really, REALLY hard to clog up. ;D
I hooked my airhead up to a solar fan, i will only use airhead supplied fan as needed. I do not have info available however I do not think the supplied fan draws much, however anything 24/7s adds up.
Ahh! An actual AirHead owner! :)
The solids - regarding disposal of same - can they just be bagged and thrown into a trash receptacle? Or is there another, recommended method?
I do not know why not, musty smelling rather dry. You could pasturize and use to grow bean sprouts--just kidding!!!!!
It is the combination of urine and solid waste that make holding tanks nasty
Well, an easy fix to the solids in the potty... don't eat too much!!!! :)
According to MARPOL, if you're in an NDZ, this is illegal, but peeing directly into the water isn't. Go figure....
Quote from: Gus on March 30, 2008, 06:23:28 PM
When I go singlehandling in the ocean, and if I have to pee, I use the bailing bucket in the cockpit and toss it overboard if on the way. If I'm at anchor I use the potty.
Small boats with no head are accommodated by the rules (if I recall correctly ::)), and a bucket is allowed for them still. I know two people with Airheads that have nothing but praise for them, so much so that I bought one for Toucan, though I haven't used it yet.
Not all composting toilets separate the urine, which interferes with the composting process. This is accomplished by the bowl design. This is what makes the Airhead work so well and where the high capacity comes from.
Also- the reason MARPOL allows peeing in the water is that while fecal matter is rife with nasty bacteria, like e-coli, urine is sterile.
If it's not, you'll be the first to know :o
Actually, the way it is worded, at least in the USA,...if you took a dump directly overboard, that'd be legal too....if really disgusting.
I know this thread is a bit stale but I didn't think this would be worth starting a new thread.http://www.biobagusa.com/ These pricey things have served me well combined with stove ash from my wood-burner or kitty litter. When I am inside no poop zones or in nasty weather I use the Biobag and store them for disposal ashore or over the side with a stone added to sink it. The bags also get rid of poop over the side when it is blowing and dumping a bucket can be a challenge. Been boarded by Coasties in protected waters using these and no problem. The pine kitty litter is best as it contains odor better. Easier on those who might be squeamish about a bucket. No trooping out to the cockpit with a mess in front of others. Of course I try to be very Conservative in using these. Happy with them so far.
The EPA is working on making all of Puget Sound a NDZ.
But they're not forcing the cities/counties (Seattle, Tacoma, etc) that border the Sound to update their sewage treatment plants so they don;t overflow into the SOund when it rains or the power goes out.
If they succeed in making PugetSOUnd a NDZ, you won't be able to use anything in the Sound other than a holding tank.
http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/nonpoint/CleanBoating/nodischargezone.html
These work OK in a car. Probably not so much longer term in a boat, except maybe as a backup.
http://www.traveljohn.com/1-1.php
I really have no problem with a no discharge rule. I have the boat plumbed for pump out, and found it MUCH less hassle. And MUCH more pleasant to deal with. Have zero experience with composting heads, so others have to talk of those.
I DO have a problem with the lack of enforcement of shore facilities who OOPS Overflow into the waters. And that happens more often than is admitted. And should be rigidly enforced. Don't hold your breathe though.
I've tried Wag Bags before and they are ok ( although they STINK) for weekend use. But for long term cruising, no way. Long term, they have to be stowed aboard- and did I mention? They stink!!
So I'm satisfied with pumping the head. Single hand, I get about 14, 15 days between pump outs. With two aboard 7-8 days. And that's with a 5.5 gallon setup, in a plumbed Porta Potty ( or as they all them- an MSD)
Quote from: CharlieJ on May 02, 2014, 12:05:03 AM
I DO have a problem with the lack of enforcement of shore facilities who OOPS Overflow into the waters. And that happens more often than is admitted. And should be rigidly enforced. Don't hold your breathe though.
I agree it happens more than people want to admit.
I lived at a marina with free pump-out for liveaboards (and maybe general slipped boats). There was one other boat besides us that pumped out. He was on a 42 ft trawler and would pump-out before and after his daughters came to visit or he went "out" for a few day cruise.
Yes, we had shoreside facilities. Some of those folks were not seen off their boats for days or rarely seen at the shoreside restrooms...and I'm not the only one that noticed that. I heard conversations..."I'm not storing THAT on MY boat!"
For boaters to be a population that claims to be so "green" and eco-friendly much of the time, too many of them sure seemed to have no issue dumping into the river. Offshore...no problem. Here in town? Different story.
I'll put it this way. You wont catch me getting into the water at our marina. 3 women living on one boat and never use the marina restroom.
Need I say more.
Quote from: CharlieJ on May 02, 2014, 12:05:03 AM
I really have no problem with a no discharge rule. .....
I DO have a problem with the lack of enforcement of shore facilities who OOPS Overflow into the waters. And that happens more often than is admitted. And should be rigidly enforced. Don't hold your breathe though....
And, not to hijack this thread too much, but that's the nail on the "head".... ;D
King, Pierce and Snohomish counties drop hundreds of thousands to a few million gallons of waste into the Sound each year but if you read the papers here, its all the fault of boaters.
And we won't mention all of the aging septic systems that are within a 1/4 mile of the Sound.......
Or Victoria Canada in British Columbia that thinks its OK to run their untreated sewage straight into the Sound because its in
Canadian waters....
I've written to the agencies involved and to a couple of the papers that I think a NDZ is a great idea - but ONLY if its enforced equally.
So far, I've only heard silence.
And how do you deal with the drunks/addicts who "live" in the park at the other end of the waterway and daily use the waterway for all of their needs?
/rant off
FWIW, I prefer my Lavac and holding tank over a bucket, even under sail.
My marina will pump out any tenant, any time, as often as they want, for $5 per instance.
Time to go - I'm "pooped".
Quote from: rorik on May 02, 2014, 11:32:26 AM
My marina will pump out any tenant, any time, as often as they want, for $5 per instance.
Pump out should be free because a lot of people wont spend the 5 bucks and just dump right in the marina.
Quote from: Grime on May 02, 2014, 11:48:55 AM
Quote from: rorik on May 02, 2014, 11:32:26 AM
My marina will pump out any tenant, any time, as often as they want, for $5 per instance.
Pump out should be free because a lot of people wont spend the 5 bucks and just dump right in the marina.
Sorry, should have made that more clear:
If the marina staff do it - its $5.
If you do it yourself - its free - pump your ass off.... ;D
I don't see the 5 bucks charge by the marina. They are already being paid and should do it for free just to know who is pumping and who is dumping.
Here it is free and no one uses the pump out. Just dump no body cares and the fish eat it.
Coming around from Annapolis, some were free, some were self service, and some were $5 to $10. As a transient, I really didn't mind the fee. Wasn't that often I needed it.
One place tried to charge $25 for my 5.5 gallon MSD- I said no thanks. Up the coast another day, I paid $25 for a slip AND a pump out combined.
One thing to note. You should be keeping a log of when and where you do pump out. It can save hassle if you get checked.
Edited to add.
In many spots, the pump out was a part of a mooring, or dinghy dock fee. In DC, in Ft Myers Beach, in Sunset Harbor in Stuart, in Boot Key Harbor, they provided a weekly free pump out if you were on a mooring, or signed to the dinghy dock. There are others' but those pop to mind immediately.
Ft Walton Beach, Lake Yazoo (in Pascagoula Ms), and several spots in the Chesapeake had courtesy pump outs- do it your self places.
Virtually NO places set up for dumping a Porta Potti though.
Quote from: Grime on May 02, 2014, 07:00:08 PM
I don't see the 5 bucks charge by the marina. They are already being paid and should do it for free just to know who is pumping and who is dumping.
Here it is free and no one uses the pump out. Just dump no body cares and the fish eat it.
It does cost the marina money to run the equipment. The pumps have to be maintained, etc.
Our marina did not charge customers of the marina (slip renters), but others...boats anchored out or passing by, for example, would have been. Ditto marina across the river.
That's what he meant JR. Just had supper on their boat ;D
Only fair for transients to have minimal fees
I have been told that here in Australia, if you pee or poop directly off the side or the back of your boat is isn't illegal. However, if your urine or fecal matter is captured by a bowl, a bucket or any kind of container before it hits the water, you are then breaking the law and can be fined thousands of dollars. (Not to mention, if somebody were to observe you and make a complaint to the cops, you might be convicted of "Indecent Exposure" and end up on some sex-offenders register!) :o
pretty much the same deal here in the states