How to Build a Composting Toilet

It has been said, 'World War-III will be fought over water'. Annually, a family of four requires, on an average, 100,000 liters of water for flushing. Although the majority of the earth is covered with water, most of it is unfit for human consumption and use. It's time we start conserving the water that we have. The decomposition of the human excreta also takes a lot of time when water. At the same time, it contaminates the water bodies. The composting toilet will help not only save the environment, but also in making the earth more green. The composting toilet is similar to compost bins for kitchen and garden waste.

Here is a method of building a composting toilet. The list of the material required is as follows:

• Funnel - 2
• Bucket of capacity 5 gallons with lid - 2
• Toilet Seats - 2
• Dry twigs, dry leaves, saw dust
• Lime powder
• Tube - 2
• Tank - 1
• Material for building a plinth over two chambers
• Exhaust pipe - 1
• Cement for plastering the chambers

Now let's look at the procedure for building the compost toilet.

Make two chambers so that they can be used alternately, till the waste from one chamber is converted into compost. Fix the toilet seats over the chambers. Attach an exhaust pipe to the chamber room. The exhaust pipe exhausts all the odor and keeps the toilet odor free.

Attach the funnels to the toilet seats. Join the tubes to the funnels. The tubes should be joined to the tank. The funnels will be used to dispose off the urine and the waste water. The tank will collect the urine and the waste water. The water waste and urine will be mixed with water in the ratio 1:3. The same can be used to water the garden. The tank can have an opening, which opens into the flower beds. The urine does not smell, as it is mixed with water.

Attach a bucket to each of the chambers. Fill the bucket to half of its capacity with saw dust, twigs, and dry leaves before the usage of the toilet starts. After using the toilet, add some saw dust into the chamber. If the chamber has not been filled to its capacity and is smelling, add lime powder in the chamber. The saw dust helps in keeping the compost moist. The human waste is low in carbon, but high in nitrogen. It's the reverse case with saw dust. Once the first bucket is full, cover the bucket with a lid. Start using the second chamber. When the second bucket is also full, empty the compost from the first bucket and use it in the garden. Repeat the same procedure with the second bucket. The buckets will take on an average 6 to 9 months to fill up. Do not forget to fill the empty bucket with saw dust, dry twigs and leaves before reuse.

Once you empty the buckets of the compost, they can also be washed. But it is not a necessity. Although after a long period of time, there is a possibility, that the buckets will have odor. It is then suggested to change the buckets.

In case the compost is not required immediately, it can be dumped in a compost pit. The compost will then turn into fertilizer, which can be used as and when required. If the pit, where the compost has been dumped starts emitting odor, turn the contents upside down. The bacteria will get the required amount of oxygen and the odor will reduce.

With the paucity of water, amount of pollution, etc. awareness should be created about composting toilets. They should become the rage of the future, making the earth a greener place to live in.