Help wanted for buring waste

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Help wanted for buring waste

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Rich.h

Joined: 26 Jun 2011
Posts: 29

Posted: Mon Aug 05, 13 9:15 am Post subject: Help wanted for buring waste

Currently myself and partner live in a mid terrace house with both and open fire/back boiler & oil heating system. I have recently looked into various ways of reducing the general things we use and the topic of water came up.

The biggest culprit turned out to be the toilet as such we looked into the technicalities of composting it all. Unfortunately living here makes that very very hard as there is no where to make a suitable compost box.

Now I am thinking we could use it as fire fuel, we also have a few animals and have up until now disposed of their waste with the toilet as our own.

I know the main problem here is moisture content, so I am trying to think of the most efficient method of drying. So far the best I can think of is to use food grade buckets with lids, then fit a fine mesh to the upper section to allow airflow and only fill them 3/4ish full. Also I figured if they were also used as a toilet then simply toss in some sawdust as per a composting toilet it should reduce smell as possibly aid drying.

So can anyone suggest either an adaptation to this idea to speed up the natural drying or even offer up something totally different as a more efficient means to achieve this?

yummersetter

Joined: 26 Jan 2008
Posts: 3241
Location: Somerset

Posted: Mon Aug 05, 13 10:18 am Post subject:

Please don't take offence, but I think this is taking eco-puritanism too far. If you live in a house which is supplied with a working sewage disposal system, that you pay for, just go ahead and use it and find something else to fret about.

That's one of the advantages of civilisation and urban planning, that you don't have to have buckets of drying poop round the house. Your ancestors would have been thrilled to have a flushing lav. instead of a chamberpot and midden.

Piggyphile

Joined: 02 Apr 2009
Posts: 891
Location: Galicia

Posted: Mon Aug 05, 13 10:24 am Post subject:
Rich, I assume you mean an indoor loo? There are some expensive indoor waterless compost toilets on the market but if you can use outdoor space I have always fancied a tree bog which does not need emptying and is supposed not to smell. You can google them both.

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Mon Aug 05, 13 10:27 am Post subject:
I would be hesitant about burning human waste in a sealed airwash fire let alone an open fire - if it's not burn at the right temperature it'll pollute by sending unburnt waste up the chimney. Have you looked into the modern toilet cisterns that use reduced water? Not just the common small/large flush systems but ones that use much less water to flush? What about grey water/rain water flush?

Hairyloon

Joined: 20 Nov 2008
Posts: 15473
Location: Today I are mostly being in Yorkshire.

Posted: Mon Aug 05, 13 10:36 am Post subject:
If it is just water that you're worried about, then why not a rain/grey water butt and pump it to your cistern? Is what my folks do (for the downstairs loo).

Woodburner

Joined: 28 Apr 2006
Posts: 2904
Location: Essex

Posted: Mon Aug 05, 13 1:23 pm Post subject:

Round here you get charged for waste/sewerage according to how much water you use according to the meter, so as long as you don't use metered water (as per Hairyloon's suggestion) you won't get charged for either!

Burning it on a domestic scale is a bad idea. Have you ever smelt burning cat poop? It's even worse than when it's fresh!!! Even burning chicken poop stinks to high heaven.

I never agreed with the privatisation of the utilities, and if you don't have the land/facilities to compost it hygienically, I regard it as a civic duty to dispose of it in the noral manner, same as cigarette butts, chewing gum and dog poop should not be left on the street.

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Mon Aug 05, 13 1:35 pm Post subject:
In typo in the thread title left me wondering whether he was wanting to burn it or bury it...

Hairyloon

Joined: 20 Nov 2008
Posts: 15473
Location: Today I are mostly being in Yorkshire.

Posted: Mon Aug 05, 13 2:04 pm Post subject:

Woodburner wrote:

Round here you get charged for waste/sewerage according to how much water you use according to the meter...

The sewers from my terrace all run through my garden, and I was wondering about diverting it into a methane digester.
As well as the gas, in theory I should get paid their sewerage charges.

I think it is too small a terrace to make it worthwhile though.

Mr O

Joined: 13 Feb 2005
Posts: 5512
Location: Nova Scotia, Canada

Posted: Mon Aug 05, 13 4:11 pm Post subject:

Rob R wrote:

In typo in the thread title left me wondering whether he was wanting to burn it or bury it...

Me too Rob.

Mistress Rose

Joined: 21 Jul 2011
Posts: 16750

Posted: Tue Aug 06, 13 5:54 am Post subject:

I would agree about reducing water usage rather than trying to dry and burn the waste. It is rather foul smelling to burn anything like that; husband vividly remembers even now a woman who used to burn cat poo on her fire round the corner from where they lived when he was a child.

The sewage system was designed to stop people having to use middens because of the health risk in an urban environment, so I would stick to using grey or rain water for flushing.

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