Traditional vs Composting Marine Toilet ~ A decision swimming around our HEAD!

Our son gave us Poo-Pourri as a gag gift for Christmas this year. It's like pot pourri only it's designed especially for those hard to hide, man made bathroom smells. His timing was perfect since composting marine toilets keep bubbling up on our list of items to consider for cruising.  Dave has been researching them and keeps trying to convince me that we should convert Mystic's head to a composting system. My first reaction was "Doesn't it STINK?!?" Apparently it doesn't. Dave tells me that the bad bathroom smell targeted by Poo-Pourri is from the wet part of human waste. Dry poo does not smell, only wet poo does.

I hate to sound skeptical about this plan but I'm a proponent of the thought, "if it ain't broken, don't fix it"! In an effort to sway my thinking, Dave reminded me that our traditional head doesn't hold enough waste to get us through a summer of weekends aboard Mystic. He also mentioned that during a year of cruising we could get ourselves into a situation where we need a pump out without a pump out station in our neighborhood. Then he tempts me with the fact that we would gain a substantial amount of space by removing the holding tank. Now he's got my attention. I begin my own research and find that composting toilets have come a long way in the past few years. The original models DID have issues with odor and ease of maintenance. In addition, there were health concerns regarding pathogens in the composted waste. Modern composting toilets address these issues. From my research I'd have to say that it's a simply complicated system.

When Dave first broached the topic of installing a composting toilet aboard Mystic, he explained that the solid and the liquid waste must be separated to ensure an odorless system. Of course, I imagined us carefully scooping the floaters with a slatted spoon, but he assured me it all happens below the lid. I was relieved (no pun intended). The composting system has it's own strainer which collects the urine into one chamber for evaporation through the vent system and allows the Poo to fall into a separate chamber where it is treated with saw dust or peat and is composted naturally. The environment is a balance of moisture, heat, oxygen and organic material. A finishing drawer collects the fertilizer by-product which is generated through composting.

So I ask Dave, "What do we do with the by-product?" He answers, "We collect it!" I challenge him with, "And then what?" He tells me we empty the compost tray into sealed containers then carry it to shore. This compost can be thrown away, flushed or added to the base of trees. Apparently, it can be used in vegetable gardens as well, however it has to be treated and transformed into organic fertilizer first. I've been toying with the idea of growing tomatoes aboard Mystic. Compost would come in handy. I wonder what Dave will think about that!

The debate continues. We both need to do more research in order to make a final decision on this bucket list item for cruising. Our kids heard us discussing this over Christmas. Our daughter thinks we should add a Squatty Potty to our new toilet.  That way, we'll have a happy colon along with our happy head!

http://www.squattypotty.com/