Installing a composting head in a FC

[Beta Don]

It's true that pump-outs can be a bit of a stinky pain, but they take 5 minutes or less, you wash your hands with soap and water and . . . . it's over for another week or two

I've never had the pleasure of emptying a composting toilet (the composting part) but emptying the pee jug every single day would be enough to turn me away from the whole concept . . . . and if THAT didn't, I'm sure hunting for a place to empty the composting part and doing the job and cleaning the toilet afterward surely would

Composting is an awesome idea but actually living with it on a boat sure isn't for me. Even though there are flaws with the flush it and holding tank method, it's the lesser of two evils IMHO

Don

[NickScheuer]

stxray, our Albin-25 came to us without a lavatory in the head, and the traditional marine porcelain bowl w/hand pump and plastic holding tank were loose (not mounted) in the boat. I figured the galley sink would serve in place of a lav in the head compartment, and decided it was time for a composting head instead of a self-contained porta-potty like we used for 30 years in our cruising sailboats.
The Natures Head (Air Head is virtually the same size) faces forward, with it's backside spaced just enough forward of the head/helm bulkhead for the top section to swing up and away as the installation instructions specify. This toilet position sort of conceals the two bulkhead mounted battery on/off switches from view, however, there is plenty of space to reach them.
I added a 3/4" Cedar plank (rot resistant) to the sole in the head compartment to give the head a flat footing on the unsuitably-contoured molded fiberglass surface. I used the hold-down brackets provided with the head to keep it in place with the boat rolling in a seaway.
We do not miss not having a lav in the head. We use a dispensing bottle of hand disinfectant and paper towels instead of water after using the head, and those supplies are kept on the original shelf in the head compartment.
The Natures Head is vented with 12V battery power when on the water, and with 120V extension cord power when parked in our driveway at home.

[NickScheuer]

Beta Don:

Composting Heads do not need to be emptied often. I do it just once at the end of each season, but then we don't get out all that often. The Urine jug gets emptied every 2-3 days when out on a cruise. Our extra jug doubles the period to 4-6 days. It's mostly for my wife; I use trees, bushes, an empty coffee can when in harbor, and over the side.

[stxray]

Nick,
That's what I was thinking I'd do. I'm in the process of redoing the Battery cabling and swithes installing a new combiner switch along with an ACR. My plan is to install the new switch on the same bulkhead but about 7-10" higher, above and out of the way of the head. I have a very small, plastic lavatory in the head but the galley sink is only a few feet away. I like the idea of the cedar plank to gain a flat mounting surface.

If you have any pictures of your installation, I'd sure appreciate seeing them.

Thnks,
rs

[NickScheuer]

Will take thje camera out to the boat in a day or two.

[NickScheuer]

tHIS PIC SHOWS THE 3/4" WOOD PIECES ADDED TO THE SOLE TO PROVIDE A FLAT SURFACE FOR THE HEAD.W

[NickScheuer]

Here is the Head secured to the stainless brackets which appear in the previous pic.

[stxray]

Excellent! The pic's help a lot. The head I got has the standard handle. I think I'll order the spider handle so I can do a similar installation.

Thanks,
rs

[hardknox]

The boat on which I made an offer had the head removed because of odors. I'm thinking of installing an airhead, after having a previous good experience with a composting toilet from Lehman's Hardware in Kidron, Ohio in the first house I owned. As long as it was ventilated and not too wet, it worked great.

Another manufacturer to consider is the much more economical C-Head. http://c-head.com/

He has a pretty interesting outlook on churning vs. non-churning models.

[Nancy]

The boat on which I made an offer had the head removed because of odors. I'm thinking of installing an airhead, after having a previous good experience with a composting toilet from Lehman's Hardware in Kidron, Ohio in the first house I owned. As long as it was ventilated and not too wet, it worked great.

Another manufacturer to consider is the much more economical C-Head. http://c-head.com/

He has a pretty interesting outlook on churning vs. non-churning models.

Heads usually stink because of permeated hoses, not because of the head itself. So get whatever head you want, but be sure to replace the hoses and maybe the tank as well.

[kerrye]

I installed a porta potti in our A25 when we bought it. Also bought an extra tank but it's not really necessary. It would be easy to go for three weeks (2 of us) with the single tank and proper management of waste. There's no need to add additional water to solid waste and we typically pee into a bucket which is roughly what happens with a composting toilet. It's easy to dump the porta potti tank into a toilet on land and easier to keep clean and not smelly than a fixed holding tank. Particularly with a trailer boat, emptying a porta potti is easier than finding a pump out since it can be done at any toilet or at any RV dump station. My attitude towards these things arises from many years of carrying out human waste on rafting and canoeing trips on Western rivers.

[JFOkie]

The remodeling and installation of the composting head was completed in the spring of 2016, sorry for the delay in updating this post. The old head and holding tank were removed. The vanity was reduced in size, I wanted a small sink and storage below, but didn't like the vanity coming out so far into the head.

The floor was cut and redesigned to accommodate the composting head. It way not look it, but there is quite a bit of additional room to move around and, well, sit.

The composting head is emptied at the end of the season. I empty it into a plastic trash bag and there's no nasty smell. The cocoa brick mulch does a great job of absorbing odors and composting the deposits. Although it's not necessary, I empty the urine jug at the end of the day.

After two years of use, I'm very happy with the composting head and glad that I made the transition. My plan is to add two additional batteries where the holding tank was and add a solar panel to the roof of the wheelhouse.

I hope these pictures come out okay. Every time I "Preview" they're sideways.