Archive for NEEPS North East Eco-friendly People's Site          NEEPS Forum Index -> Green Building Maria Humanure handbook (free online) Really should belong in RRRR - but as it includes a 'how to build' thought it might be best here. Does anyone have a 'thunderbox' as Seymore would call it? Quote: Written by a humanure composting practitioner and organic gardener with over 30 years experience, this third edition provides detailed scientific information on how humanure can be hygienically recycled, without fancy technological do-dads, a large bank account, toxic chemicals, or environmental pollution. This unique handbook provides information on composting, soil fertility and microorganisms, alternative graywater systems and much more. It also gives detailed instructions on how you can build or buy your own sawdust toilet and compost bins for only a few dollars. http://www.josephjenkins.com/books_humanure.html Ratchet Humanure Dear WG Thankyou for the link.  As a temporary measure we are intending to install a thunderbox for the duration of our renovation project, for builders/kids/OH to use when at the farm.  We don't live there yet so when visiting OH at work we have nowhere to go, neither does OH.  We were just going to put the contents in with the muck from the cattle courts.  It is composted, well left for a year, before spreading so any pathogens are well and truly dealt with.  It'll be useful to find out how else to do it. Ratchet annepan001 We made a composting loo on Christmas Day 2007!   Wendy spent months reading bulletings from the composting toilet group (yes, there is such a thing!), and we read 'Humanure' which came highly recommended.  After all that research, the decision was to make the simplest possible system, ie. build a wooden box with a hinged top, with a hole cut out of the top, attach a loo seat and lid, and stand this in the shed over a 25 litre brewing bucket, pop in a bit of sawdust from the saw mill over our contributions, and bob's your uncle.  Works like a charm. Doesn't smell at all other than of wood shavings, which is very pleasant. The shed is very well ventilated which no doubt helps, but we and our visitors have been well impressed. We can't use the 'deposits' on the organic fields because human waste is too toxic (how appalling is that???!!) ... due to all the junk food, heavy metals and chemicals we apply to and in our bodies, as well as the many and varied drugs that go thru unchanged.  However, the plan is to compost it for 1.5- 2 yrs, then apply around the base of the trees that aren't in the organic fields. We're now contemplating makng another one for our house, as we hate wasting all the useful minerals, while polluting good drinking water to flush it away!  It's very quick and easy to make for the price of a loo seat, hinges, some marine ply, Danish oil and screws - all from B&Q. The design is in the Humanure handbook.        NEEPS Forum Index -> Green Building Page 1 of 1