Homestead mailing list

[Tvoivozhd <tvoivozd AT infionline.net>]

Robert Walton wrote:
http://www.weblife.org/humanure/images/fig8-4.jpg  (box to take a single 
bucket or bag-in-a-bucket.  Use carbonaceous material to accellerate 
transformation into compost---and segregate urine)

http://www.lowimpact.org/infosheetcomposttoilets.pdf  (a two-chamber 
toilet is most numerous now in Asia---using two plastic bags.  When one 
is full, use the other, giving a year or so for the first one to convert 
the contents to easily-handled compost.  The only thing of importance is 
to remember you want aerobic decomposition----anaerobic decomposition 
really, really stinks)

http://web.tusco.net/soiltech/facts.htm  (I have done a great deal of 
research on composting toilets in the past.  Of the commercial varieties 
I like Biolet the best---and own one.  They all have a screened 
vent-pipe to keep out the inevitable insects in the absence of a screen, 
and remove odors which will exist until the manure is covered and until 
it starts to decompose. 

And of the Biolet models, I prefer the only fail-safe one, which has a 
hand-operated mechanical stirrer instead of one that relies on 
electricity---the K.I.S.S. is the best engineering principle to follow.

http://www.eob.alvsbyn.net/principlesEOB.htm  (depending on how much you 
want to spend on a composting toilet, you can evaporate urine from a 
pan, or divert it to an outside removable container.  Urine is 
pathogen-free and can be used immediately around your bushes---or garden 
plants for that matter, your cabbage, lettuce, corn, anything that 
sticks out of the ground if you are a little queasy about root crops.)

http://www.worldtoilet.org/design/design_Hand_made_simple_toilet.htm  
(I'm not really in favor of flush toilets of any kind, but it fits the 
mindset of many people---here is one using a plastic bucket and a 
simple, but effective sealing mechanism---the point of seal is a 
water-trap, so it won't smell anymore than your thousand dollar Kohler 
or American Standard flush toilet, with its gas-sealing liquid trap

http://berkana.tomoye.com/ev.php?ID=1557_201&ID2=DO_TOPIC  (Kofunda---I 
you have a big enough back yard---move your toilet once a year and plant 
a tree on the site recently left---good for you, good for the tree)

http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/academic/agriculture/sustainable_agriculture/faqs/Compost-Tea.FAQ  
(byproducts, compost tea for your garden)

http://www.ias.unu.edu/proceedings/icibs/ibs/ibsnet/InFoRM2000-paper.htm   
(an integrated biosystem is even better if you have animals and a fairly 
extensive source of carbonaceous materials)

http://www.ipcc.ie/wormbin.html  (let earthworms help you)

http://journeytoforever.org/compost_humanure.html
http://journeytoforever.org/compost.html  (good idea to start or end up 
with Keith Addison's Journey To Forever website for anything related to 
sustainable agriculture, homestead living)

http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/academic/agriculture/sustainable_agriculture/faqs/Compost-Tea.FAQ  
(anything is better than using waterways as sewage disposal systems)