Portable Toilets? Why's and Why Nots!

Granite Ridge Overland

Granite Ridge Overland

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Mount Airy, NC, USA
First Name
Jason
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L
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21033

As we continue to build out our rig some questions arise. Thinking about creature comforts at home and wanting to make our trips more enjoyable the conversation of a flushable portable toilet came up. Who uses them? What's the pros and cons? We know we can go squat down behind a tree and all the obvious "in the woods" bathroom trips. I'm interested in hearing who actually uses a flushable toilet.
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I got a PT for Christmas! I think they make great sense. Instead of having to find an RV dump station, just take the tank into a restroom and dump it. Using chemicals in the tank and there is zero odors and no “clumps”......and in a travel trailer it frees up lots more grey water space if you combine your grey tank with your black tank......
But with my RTT, it will be great to have a convenient place to go....
 
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RoyB said:
I got a PT for Christmas! I think they make great sense. Instead of having to find an RV dump station, just take the tank into a restroom and dump it. Using chemicals in the tank and there is zero odors and no “clumps”......and in a travel trailer it frees up lots more grey water space if you combine your grey tank with your black tank......
But with my RTT, it will be great to have a convenient place to go....
Click to expand...
Im still leaning towards a PT also! Mainly because my wife can't get past the idea of doing bathroom time on a bucket or in a plastic bag. She was farming tobacco and driving tractors before she was 10, she ain't no girly girl by no means...some things just make her put the brakes on. I think the PT is going to be our choice.
 
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We have a Coleman version. Other than for camping we use it on long road trips. We have 3 kids who drink a lot of water and juice. We get rid of the waste when we get home. No one has needed to use #2 in it yet lol.
 
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We've been using the 5 gal bucket with snap-on seat/lid for a while now. They are a little pricy, but the double closure plastic bags made specifically for the bucket toilets are great and you can just throw them in the regular trash can when they are full. However, we are seriously looking at the flushable, 2 compartment port-a-potties as an upgrade.
 
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Some will seriously scoff at this but we have a Wrappon Green portable toilet. Originally designed for Crane Operators and disasters but it’s a “flushable” toilet that completely seals the waste and allows it to be disposed of with normal trash. Yes I know it’s sealing your waste in Plastic, the company is working on a biodegradable solution. But it’s not an all the time thing. Most of the time there’s a bathroom or a place to dig a hole but not always. Plus we do a fair amount of desert camping and you can’t leave waste buried in the desert at all. The other plus is no water, which is obviously a valued commodity camping in the desert. Anyway I’ll prob get flamed for vacuum sealing my waste but it keeps my wife happy, it’s super sanitary and certainly quick and easy. Just food for thought. Only downside I’ve found is the unit, and the “per flush” price are quite high. But again it’s not like it’s used everyday, it’s a very small price to pay to have my wife along with me.
 
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I use the PETT Toilet system and have had it for over 10 years with no issue. Easy to use and compacts up small even the tent for easy storage in the truck. With a trasharoo, the waste is on the outside. It doesnt smell based on the chemicals (powders) they use. You never have to worry about dumping it or the associated mess
 
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HIALT2D said:
We've been using the 5 gal bucket with snap-on seat/lid for a while now. They are a little pricy, but the double closure plastic bags made specifically for the bucket toilets are great and you can just throw them in the regular trash can when they are full. However, we are seriously looking at the flushable, 2 compartment port-a-potties as an upgrade.
Click to expand...

With what you said and having experience using the 5 gallon bucket system and now considering upgraded to a flushable system gives me reason to believe starting out with the flushable setup.
 
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KRomer said:
I use the PETT Toilet system and have had it for over 10 years with no issue. Easy to use and compacts up small even the tent for easy storage in the truck. With a trasharoo, the waste is on the outside. It doesnt smell based on the chemicals (powders) they use. You never have to worry about dumping it or the associated mess
Click to expand...

The PETT is the the “Clean Waste” version I mentioned. This is the same system that is used by the military, FEMA and others.

I’m with you when it comes to “dumping” and then having to clean the flushable toilets when you come home from your trip. I wanted something that was environmentally friendly and easy to dispose of the waste (normal trash cans in parks and dumpsters).
 
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Another vote for the "Clean Waste" system (which we bought at REI). The idea seems gross (I had it for a couple of years before I could bring myself to use it), but in practice it works very well and passed the wife test with flying colors.
 
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Brian Glendenning said:
Another vote for the "Clean Waste" system (which we bought at REI). The idea seems gross (I had it for a couple of years before I could bring myself to use it), but in practice it works very well and passed the wife test with flying colors.
Click to expand...
That’s what Im working on...the wifey factor. I think she is down for the Clean Waste system!
 
We have a cassete unit. Works good but it does take up valuable space in my rig. It will be very useful in my camper once it's finished. It will be nice to use when we set-up a base camp. And can be used inside the trailer out on the trail as long as the trail isn't to difficult to tow through.

My wife thinks it might be nice to just pack a smaller units that fold up with those disposable bags for day trips. Just so we have that option along.

When it comes to being as (green as we can), When ever possible I would prefer the cassete, we have a clean out in the yard (fresh air!) that makes it easy to dump and clean up the toilet when we get back. I just run water in the bathtub while I dump the cassete. And like the previous poster said those enzyme tabs works very good breaking it all down and eliminates the odors as well.
 
This is the setup I use and I do also use the tent for showering. The seat packs up into the backback and the tent packs up as well and goes together as shown in the pic below. One year I put it into a waterproof gear bag and strapped it to the roof rack

www.hotcampshowers.com

PETT Complete System

Camping and outdoor showers, horse washers, pet and dog washers and portable propane water heaters, Shower enclosures, privacy tents, portable toilets and complete camp bathrooms.
www.hotcampshowers.com

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