C&RT say don't empty your compost toilet in our bins.

[Maffi]

10 hours ago, MtB said:

 

Do you mean they fall apart into microplastics that stick around in the environment for centuries? 

 

 

No mine are actually Biodegradable!

The bags you are talking about were made from materials which have been in the environment for millions of years. When the sun absorbs the earth such materials will just melt into one big blob! 

3 hours ago, MtB said:

 

I was just countering the blatant virtue-signalling.

 

How can we possibly know they don't?

We cant possibly know that they dont, but it is only an educated guess that they do!

[Maffi]

3 hours ago, MtB said:

I was just countering the blatant virtue-signalling.

How is stating a fact, "blatant virtue signalling"?

[George and Dragon]

20 minutes ago, Maffi said:

Biodegradable

Which means what, exactly, in term of plastics?

I'll accept that many things ARE biodegradable unless the material it's made from isn't plant based. Otherwise we just have to decide whether we believe the manufacturer, many of whom will say anything if they think it will help them gain a sale.

[Maffi]

41 minutes ago, George and Dragon said:

Which means what, exactly, in terms of plastics?

I'll accept that many things ARE biodegradable unless the material it's made from isn't plant-based. Otherwise, we just have to decide whether we believe the manufacturer, many of whom will say anything if they think it will help them gain a sale.

Erm!  Technically plastics are plant-based.

 

[George and Dragon]

23 minutes ago, Maffi said:

Erm!  Technically plastics are plant-based.

 

Some. Most are mineral oil based.

I think (crude) petroleum rather than mineral oil.

Edited June 15, 2022 by George and Dragon
clarification

[ditchcrawler]

1 hour ago, George and Dragon said:

Some. Most are mineral oil based.

I think (crude) petroleum rather than mineral oil.

And where does that come from originally 

[Mike Todd]

5 hours ago, Maffi said:

No mine are actually Biodegradable!

The bags you are talking about were made from materials which have been in the environment for millions of years. When the sun absorbs the earth such materials will just melt into one big blob! 

We cant possibly know that they dont, but it is only an educated guess that they do!

But do you know into what they degrade? They may break down into something much smaller but are you sure that it is then benign?

[magnetman]

3 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

And where does that come from originally 

Dinosaurs are not plants. 

[Maffi]

2 hours ago, magnetman said:

Dinosaurs are not plants. 

No, but trees are!

[captain flint]

On 18/05/2022 at 14:54, haggis said:

 Ok, we hear that composted human waste is not unpleasant to deal with but what about the period from production till it gets to that stage? 

 

From memory, the ea guidelines are that the first three months need to be closely monitored to ensure the right heat is maintained (I think it might have been 60 degrees c), then it's another chunk of months before it's usable as a safe fertilizer. 

 

Honestly though, having dealt with pump ours and cassettes, you'd be amazed how much less the stink of dry waste mixed with sawdust is. But I'm not going to pretend you'd want to bottle the aroma, obviously

[MtB]

Given that composting shyte is so great, I wonder why we don't have composting dog shyte bins put in by the local councils. 

 

 

[Bargebuilder]

20 hours ago, MtB said:

Given that composting shyte is so great, I wonder why we don't have composting dog shyte bins put in by the local councils. 

 

 

I understand that councils advise against the composting of either dog or cat poo; apparently it contains more pathogens harmful to humans than does the poo of a healthy person.

 

General household waste bins, not recycling of course, are recommended by councils for pet's and human waste, provided it is double bagged.

 

When specific dog poo bins are unavailable, councils seem to be recommending the use of street litter bins instead, presumably because it all ends up in the same place.

 

Partially dessicated/pre-composted human poo to my knowledge has never been mentioned specifically by any council, just adult's and children's soiled incontinence pads nappies etc, which may be somewhat less pleasant. I suppose once double bagged, it's all similarly disgusting.  

 

I have no idea if councils are happy for incontinence pads etc to be deposited in dog poo bins or street bins if the former is unavailable, or what happens to it once emptied, but once double bagged, nothing is going to compost aerobically.

 

 

[Maffi]

On 15/06/2022 at 00:13, MtB said:

 

You mean they fall apart into micro-plastics that stick around in the environment for centuries? 

 

 

Well there are people who know this stuff and you have to trust them. Otherwise, you would spend your life trying to replicate other people's work and be a very boring boy. If you think I should be doing a whole pile of research to make you feel better then I suggest you put your hand in your pocket and pay me!

Edited October 13, 2022 by Maffi

[robtheplod]

I was at our marina over the weekend cheekily looking around boats for sale. One had a compost loo and i we got into conversation about this. The sales chap assured me CRT have changed their stance and will be supplying the means to dispose of this???  I've not heard anything about this, has anyone else???

[Jen-in-Wellies]

2 minutes ago, robtheplod said:

I was at our marina over the weekend cheekily looking around boats for sale. One had a compost loo and i we got into conversation about this. The sales chap assured me CRT have changed their stance and will be supplying the means to dispose of this???  I've not heard anything about this, has anyone else???

Good idea to check what ever a sales droid tells you. Not just with boats. Not heard anything about this either.

[Alan de Enfield]

3 minutes ago, robtheplod said:

I was at our marina over the weekend cheekily looking around boats for sale. One had a compost loo and i we got into conversation about this. The sales chap assured me CRT have changed their stance and will be supplying the means to dispose of this???  I've not heard anything about this, has anyone else???

 

Could it be a 'wish' that they do ?

He is trying to sell a boat with a major impediment.

 

[HenryFreeman]

On 23/05/2022 at 19:35, Maffi said:

Well, there are reasons which you may not have thought about. First, l do not want you pouring a couple of gallons of p*ss on my woodland however far it is from a watercourse (and be honest you are not going to walk full containers a mile or two). Second, most of the canal towpath has a hedgerow and there are plenty of m*r*ns who will think "well that's a hedgerow that'll do"! Then 34,000 boats dumping their urine, sometimes in close proximity, along/in the canal will set us back100 years in sanitary disposal. Finally, there is no fact-based reason not to use the socialist disposal system, one group of people being paid by all to dispose of the sewage properly. 

 

I'm pretty sure there's a Latin name for the logical/argumentation fallacy that is "one person does X then suddenly 34,000 people will be doing it and then we'll be going back to pre-Victorian times" but I'm not sure what it's called.

I'll find out!

[Bargebuilder]

3 minutes ago, HenryFreeman said:

 

I'm pretty sure there's a Latin name for the logical/argumentation fallacy that is "one person does X then suddenly 34,000 people will be doing it and then we'll be going back to pre-Victorian times" but I'm not sure what it's called.

I'll find out!

Are we not going back to paper bags and cardboard packaging?

[HenryFreeman]

On 29/05/2022 at 21:53, Alan de Enfield said:

 

Unfortunately  that is exactly what we have with a large majority of the, laughingly called,  "composting toilet owners". In a Facebook survey 75% owned up to not composting properly and just 'chucking' the bucket contents into bins or elsewhere.

 

They are the ones claiming that they are 'green' and saving the planet.

 

Lets just say deluded (at best)

 

Are they, though? Are they actually claiming this?

8 minutes ago, Bargebuilder said:

Are we not going back to paper bags and cardboard packaging?

 

To put our stools in? Well, it's not a terrible idea, depending on the consistency of the stool. There's a stool chart you can use to decide whether to use paper bag, compostable bag or something a bit more substantial!

 

The Bristol Stool Chart.

[Bargebuilder]

Water shortages and concerns over CO2 emissions may yet force the authorities to look at alternatives to flushing valuable drinking water down the toilet.

 

[Alan de Enfield]

3 minutes ago, Bargebuilder said:

Water shortages and concerns over CO2 emissions may yet force the authorities to look at alternatives to flushing valuable drinking water down the toilet.

 

 

 

All four of my boat toilets use the river / canal / sea water as the supply for the flush.

 

It is very common in houses 'on the continent' for rainwater to be harvested and stored as the suppy for the toilets, some UK house builders do the same, no reason why a secondary source system cannot be plumbed in to the toilets.

[IanD]

43 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

 

All four of my boat toilets use the river / canal / sea water as the supply for the flush.

 

It is very common in houses 'on the continent' for rainwater to be harvested and stored as the suppy for the toilets, some UK house builders do the same, no reason why a secondary source system cannot be plumbed in to the toilets.

I've often wondered why boats on inland waterways (e.g. narrowboats) don't do the same, it would certainly mean refilling the water tank less often. Maybe it's just that canal water is sometimes rather dirty compared to river/seawater?

 

Although given the amount of sewage and pollution in our rivers and inshore seas nowadays thanks to the privatised water companies, perhaps this isn't really true any more... 😞

Edited August 14, 2023 by IanD
typo

[Bargebuilder]

4 minutes ago, IanD said:

I've often wondered why boats on inland waterways (e.g. narrowboats) don't do the same, it would certainly mean refilling the water tank lass often. Maybe it's just that canal water is sometimes rather dirty compared to river/seawater?

Unless you live aboard and flush the toilet every day, even sea water, if left stagnant in the toilet's U bend for a week will start to smell, so a tap water flush prior to leaving the boat is essential.

[IanD]

1 minute ago, Bargebuilder said:

Unless you live aboard and flush the toilet every day, even sea water, if left stagnant in the toilet's U bend for a week will start to smell, so a tap water flush prior to leaving the boat is essential.

So why don't all pools of stagnant -- meaning with no circulation -- water smell, and what to boats like Alan's do to avoid such a problem?

[Bargebuilder]

19 minutes ago, IanD said:

So why don't all pools of stagnant -- meaning with no circulation -- water smell, and what to boats like Alan's do to avoid such a problem?

Because in the back of the U bend and in the pipes the environment soon becomes anaerobic. The organic matter in sea water gives off highly pungent gasses as it degrades in the absence of oxygen.