All you need to know about composting toilets

All you need to know about composting toilets
Table of Contents

“Rise the lid, pull down your pants, sit down and relax.” Using a composting toilet can be described simple as that. And it is simple as that in fact! We tell you everything you need to know about the eco-friendly alternative to the chemical toilet

Setup and Function

Separation_toilet
At first sight a composting toilet consists of a synthetic or wooden corpus closed with a lid. On the inside a separator, a canister for the urine and a container for the feces built the centerpieces of the toilet. The separator divides the pee and the poo into the can and the container. A garbage bag protects the container from contamination and makes it easy to dump the feces. To dry the poo in the container put some bedding into the bag.

How to sit on a composting toilet

The poo in the pot, the can for the drops: the function of a composting toilet is affected by the way you take seat. Due to the anatomy the sitting positions of women and men are different. The straighter your spine the easier it gets. By varying the angle of your legs and leaning forwards and backwards you can optimize your sitting position. Before you start traveling with your composting toilet some trials at home may help you to find your individual posture. To make sure that the separation works well please sit down on the toilet. To pee standing up isn’t quite a good idea.  

No smell

Mixing urine and feces leads to the typical toilet odor. Dividing the excrements is the first step towards the odorless use of a composting toilet. The second one is the dehydration. The drier the poo the less smell of loo. To dry the excrements, you can use special powders, small pet bedding, sawdust or fine bark mulch. Depending on the consistence two handful of bedding are enough. Fresh urine is odorless. It starts smelling during the process of decomposition when bacteria convert the urea into ammonia.

Which things can be disposed in the toilet?

Trelino_Trenntoilette_Abfall

Toilet paper can be disposed in the container for feces. If you want to compost the excrements, please use chlorin-free, recycled paper either without printings or with organic colors. Avoid dumping papers into the canister for the urine. Analog to conventional toilets sanitary articles must not be disposed in the composting toilet.

Disposition

If the can is filled up you can simply dispose the urine in any toilet with access to the canalization. If diluted the pee can also be used as fertilizer for plants in your garden or on your balcony. The bag with the feces can be disposed in the household garbage. Conditionally you can also use it as compost.

Cleaning a composting toilet

Trelino_Trenntoilette_Reinigung
Cleaning a composting toilet is as simple as using it. As a household remedy diluted citric acid has proved to be a very good cleanser. To clean the separator, the can and the container in an eco-friendly way mix maximum three tablespoons citric acid with one liter of water. Applicate the solution with an aerosol and wipe it off with a soft rag. It is also possible to use ph-neutral cleanser or cleanser containing effective microorganisms.
If urinary stone forms in your canister, it can become a stubbornly smelly companion. To prevent the uninvited guest from settling down, we recommend that you add a little cider vinegar or citric acid to the urine canister after every second emptying, shake it and let it soak in for a short time. Then empty the canister and it is ready for the next use.

The solids container is also happy about regular cleaning. Cleaning products with effective microorganisms are suitable for this purpose. Spray them inside the container, close it for a while and sit back and relax while the microorganisms do their job. Of course, cleaning with other agents is also possible.

Usually, odors in the dry separating toilet are caused by improper use. You can find more tips and tricks for avoiding or combating unpleasant odors here.

7 comments


  • Hans

    Hallo Jürgen,
    Fülle Wasser in den Behälter und gib mehrere Gebissreinigungstabletten (Kukident o.ä.) hinein. Ggf. mehrmals (Hilft auch bei Toiletten im haus)
    ———
    Trelino® Composting Toilets replied:
    Hallo Hans, vielen Dank für Deinen Tipp. Mit Zahnreinigungstabletten haben wir die Urinsteinentfernung noch nicht getestet. Liebe Grüße Justyna – Trelino® Team


  • jürgen

    Hallo,
    bei mir hat sich eine dicke Schicht von eingetrockneten Urin im Behälter angehäuft, da ich ihn in den letzten Wochen auf der Reise nie richtig geputzt habe. Mit normalen Putzmittel geht es kaum weg.
    Was kann ich da machen?
    Danke
    ———
    Trelino® Composting Toilets replied:
    Hallo Jürgen, oh, Urinstein ist hartnäckig. Du bekommst ihn durch mehrere Anwendungen von Tafelessig ggf. Essigessenz raus. Hierzu immer wieder für längere Zeit den Essig einwirken lassen und den Behälter schütteln. Nach mehreren Anwendungen ist der ganze Urinstein verschwunden. Für die Zukunft empfehlen wir, die Reinigung regelmäßig durchzuführen. So sparst Du Dir die mühevolle Nacharbeit ? Hierzu nach jeder zweiten Entleerung einfach etwas Tafelessig in den Urinbehälter schütten und schütteln. Nach etwas Einwirkungszeit, entleeren. Bei weiteren Fragen stehen wir Dir gerne zur Seite. Liebe Grüße Justyna – Dein Trelino Team  


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