We know you are curious about composting toilets. You wouldn’t click this article, if you aren’t.
While some people differentiate composting toilet from the conventional ones through its method of disposal, this toilet actually comes in different sub-types.
To be specific, there 2 composting toilet types available in the market. This guide will explain these types, as well as discuss on how to choose the best composting toilet type for you.
What Are the 2 Types of Composting Toilet?
Below are the 2 composting toilet types and their description:
1. Self-Contained Composting Toilets
Self-contained composting toilets can be electric and non-electric models. This is a practical toilet for homes that are off-grid.
If you can get past the misconception, you will know that self-contained composting toilets are actually one of the best engineered toilets there is. This toilet decomposes the waste without emitting awful odor in your bathroom.
How can it vent out the odor?
It has a special pipe that sucks the odor and vent it outside (the vent area usually powered by electricity). So, your bathroom smells just like the conventional ones. Of course, it is always a good idea to have a good ventilation in your bathroom as well so as not to trap any smell.
Why Choose Self-Contained Composting Toilet?
Environment-Friendly
The best composting toilet is one that does not harm the environment. For this reason, a lot of people agree that self-contained composting toilet is the one that perfectly fits this description.
Most composting toilets do not need water to flush the waste out. If it does need water, it is usually for cleaning when you dispose the waste in the compost unit. Moreover, instead of sucking and throwing the waste after a couple of months, composting toilets naturally decompose the waste with the help of carbon materials such as coconut fiber and sphagnum moss. This compost can then be used for gardening and soil cultivation.
No Plumbing Needed
You also do not need any complicated plumbing or none at all to install a self-contained composting toilet. No water connection is needed, so the unit is very easy and quick to install.
Economical
This toilet type is economical as it does not need water for flushing and no plumbing requirement. Therefore, you can save a lot in terms of water bills and professional fee from hiring a plumber to do the installation.
Overall, self-contained composting toilets are the best composting toilet type for tiny homes, cabins, RVs, boats, and even on container homes. A home with 1 to 2 people living can benefit the most from self-contained composting toilet.
2. Central Composting Toilets
This type is usually a two-piece unit and offers the combined benefits of the traditional and eco-friendly compost toilet. In other words, this is actually a hybrid toilet. It has the look and appearance of a traditional toilet but is actually connected to a composting unit that is located in the basement of the building.
The central composting toilet has two sub-types as well. It can be 1-pint flush or completely waterless.
Why Choose Central Composting Toilet?
Conserve Water
Since this model may use 1-pint flush, it can still consume water but not much as compared to the traditional ones.
Easy Plumbing
This one requires plumbing but is rather very straightforward. It usually has 3-inches pipe that connects the toilet to the composter.
For the waterless version, the pipe can be as big as 10-inches in diameter to allow easy transfer of solid waste to the composting unit.
A good vent pipe is also needed to keep the odor out.
Central composting toilets are the best composting toilet for private planes, buses, RVs, and also container homes. If you want to have the look of the conventional toilet but want to compromise a bit to be environmentally friendly, then this is the toilet type for you.
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