Composting Toilet For Camping: Everything You Need To Know

Did you know there is a type of toilet that can be carried around from place to place? Further, it doesn’t even require any water in the process. Sounds great, right?

But do you want to know how such a thing is possible? How can you flush without water and move a toilet around?

Well, for someone who owns an RV, which is short for a Recreational Vehicle, it is more important to know about the process involved in Composting Toilet For Camping because it can improve your lifestyle!

Let’s get into the article.

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What Is A Camping Composting Toilet?

A composting toilet, from what the name suggests is a toilet that turns the human waste into compost. It isn’t rocket science but a simple procedure that is followed inside the toilet.

A composting toilet is a type of dry toilet that treats human waste by decomposing the waste in the presence of oxygen. Since oxygen is present in the process, it is called an aerobic process.

The waste entering the toilet usually contains 90% water. This water is evaporated and carried to the environment through a vent system. The rest of the 10% is solid waste. The decomposing of that waste is usually carried out by microorganisms, mainly bacteria, and fungi.

Why Use A Camping Composting Toilet In RV

Inside an RV, you can cook, sleep, watch tv, and everything else you do at home. Well this everything should surely include doing the toilet, right? These days the RVs have the facility of a toilet, but a traditional toilet causes a major issue in this case.

Firstly, you need a supply of water for flushing.
Secondly, you have to assign a separate place for a septic tank.
Finally, there is also an issue of smell with the traditional toilets.

With a composting toilet, all these issues become non-existent. Composting toilets are dry, so flushing doesn’t require water.

The decomposition takes place inside the toilet setup itself, so there is no requirement for a septic tank and finally, the composting toilets are odorless.

Types Of Camping Composting Toilets

Composting toilets can be classified based on two criteria:

Based on the location of the Composting Chamber:

Self-Contained: In a self-contained composting toilet, the compost chamber is usually beneath the bowl. Flushing the toilet immediately puts the waste in a chamber where the decomposition starts. There is a fan to regulate the airflow.

Central or remote: In a Central or remote composting toilet, the dump is carried to a central or remote composter somewhere. The remote composter has to be placed somewhere. Because of this reason, it is not very useful for RVs.

Based on the number of Composting Chambers:

Single and Multiple Chamber:

In a single chamber composting system, the solid and liquid waste goes into the same chamber. In a multi-chamber composting system, the solid and liquid wastes go into two separate chambers. There is a handle that you can rotate for the chambers to be connected to the bowl. So, if you are peeing, you can keep the handle for the liquid waste chamber to connect. And for taking a dump, you can rotate the handle, so that the solid waste chamber gets connected to the bowl.

Which is more suited for RV?

A self-contained multiple chamber toilet is the best if you own an RV. The self-contained composting toilet requires less space as compared to the remote composting toilet, and since space is limited in RV, it is more suitable. Also, a multiple chamber system is easier to clean and the disposal of waste is better suited for an RV.

So, if you are looking for the type of toilet you need for an RV, go for a self-contained multiple chamber composting toilet.

Parts of Composting Toilet For Camping

Steps By Step: How Does A Camping Composting Toilet Work In An RV

1. Firstly, you have to fill the composting chamber with carbon materials like dried sphagnum moss or coconut fibers.

2. Separation of solid and liquid waste: Liquid waste goes into a removable container. Some models use a heated evaporation chamber below the compost area to eliminate liquids. The solid waste drops into the composting chamber by manual flushing.

3. Keeping a spray bottle, with a mix of water and vinegar can keep the bowl clean and also assist in the passage of the waste.

4. A handle called spider handle is provided, rotating of which results in the mixing of solid waste with existing compost.

Once it is full,

5. Remove the liquid container and empty it safely. This has to be done regularly.

6. Once the compost chamber is full, it has to be disposed of as per the state and/or local guidelines.

Variables For Optimal Composting:

1. Temperature:

The temperature has to be maintained within a certain range so that the aerobic bacteria remain active. The decomposition process accelerates if the temperature is warm. Usually, a temperature between 60 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit is the best for optimal composting.

2. Balance of Carbon and Nitrogen:

Proper disposal of urine can maintain the carbon-nitrogen balance since excess nitrogen cannot buildup in the compost pile, but adding carbon-rich material is an effective measure to maintain the balance. Sawdust, coconut fibers, etc. are some carbo rich materials used.

3. Moisture content:

The composting chamber has to be rich in moisture but it also cannot be wet, or else it can drown the oxygen breathing aerobic bacteria. The proper disposal of urine from its container is usually enough to maintain the required moisture content.

Should You Choose Composting Toilet For Camping

You Should:

Cheaper in the long run
Eco-friendly
No plumbing required
Takes less space
Convenient to use.

You Shouldn’t:

Need more installation time and effort.
Need to be approved as per the local guidelines.
Electricity may be required

To know about the pros and cons in details, you can click here.

Final Say

So, as we saw, a portable composting toilet for camping is the best option for an RV. More specifically, self-constrained multiple chambers composting toilet is the best option for an RV.

You can choose which composting toilet you wanted basing on the size of your RVC, or your other requirements, but all of them are way better than a traditional toilet.

Some of you may say that it requires some maintenance and a traditional toilet just needs to be set up, but the maintenance is a small price to pay for a toilet that will not smell, take way less amount of space and cost less than the traditional toilet in the long run.

Finally, composting toilets are ecofriendly. so, keeping the environment in mind, the composting toilets should be installed more and more replacing the traditional permanent ones, not only in RVs but also in homes, offices and other places.

“The environment is where we all meet; where we all have a mutual interest; it is the one thing all of us share.”
-Lady Bird Johnson