Composting Toilet

[pacifica]

Hi everyone,

I’m planning to install a composting toilet on Pacifica and am leaning toward the AirHead model since it seems easier to remove the urine container.

If you’ve installed a composting toilet, could you share photos of your setup? Also, where did you route your fan?

Thanks,
Alya

 

[mpearson]

Hi Alya - we installed a Natures Head in 2022, and we really like it. Very happy we made the change from holding tank, sewage piping, etc.

My wife is sensitive to smells, and when we would tack, a whiff of sewage would sometimes come out of the holding tank tank vent, and she really disliked that. With the composting toilet, basically no odor. Plus, we don’t have to deal with pump-out stations, etc. There was always an uncertainty how full our holding tank was, and the gauges for measuring fullness are notoriously short-lived and hard to maintain.

With the composting toilet, we basically dump the pee container once per day. With 2 of us on board, we only need to dump the solids every 30 days, however we find it easier to do that every 2-3 weeks - before it gets completely full. We just take the container into the cockpit or ashore, and dump it into a garbage bag, then toss into a trash can. Reload the coco noir, and repeat.

I did a deep dive on all the brands for a few years before we purcahsed, and checked them out at Annapolis and Miami boat shows beforehand. We liked the AirHead, too. I can’t remember details on why we chose Natures Head, but I think it was the fit. The NH’s rectangular shape makes very good use of the space. And in the back of the toilet, where the our hull slopes upward, the NH has a small slanted shape on the back bottom that fit that very well. I believe with the AirHead’s design, it goes vertically up in the back. So the back of the AirHead could only slide back far enough to hit the base of the slope where the hull goes up. I think the AirHead would need to be positioned further “forward” (actually starboard on the boat), which reduces space in the head compartment.

The removal of the pee container on the NH is a little janky (as you said) in that you need to tilt the seat up a few inches to remove the container. We struggled a little with that the first few times we removed the container. But once you get used to it, it’s easy and becomes muscle memory.

Another nice thing about the composting toilet, is when we remove it to empty, it’s super easy to clean the area behind/beneath, because it’s empty. With our previous marine head, it was almost impossible to reach the nooks and crannies behind/beneath to clean.

We vented our NH out the left side and into the vanity. Then behind the cabinet (which is behind the toilet), out the side of the cabinet into the shower area, then up and out. We could easily have vented it out to the right and up/out. We just wanted more of the vent hidden.

Here is a picture of the Natures Head in place. You can see the vent going out the bottom left. I’ll take a picture of the vent routing thru the shower and out when I get a chance. To mount the NH, I made a little 2” lift platform for the base, out of marine Starboard. I’ll get a picture of that too. This was so the trap door handle would be above the edge of the shower seat.

I’m sure the AirHead would be fine, too. And regardless of exact fit, I’d still much rather have that than our old marine head.

Good luck! And please keep us posted on your progress.
-Mark

 

[mpearson]

Here is a photo showing the 2" thick Starboard base I made for the Natures Head. We sandwiched two 1" thick pieces together.
Right above that, you can see the slope of the hull I mentioned in my earlier post.



Also, a photo of where our Natures Head vent exits the cabinet in the shower and heads outside.

 

[SV_Fortissimo]

Mark did a great write-up of his Nature's Head install. I installed the same head (actually still in progress). I had one in my Pearson and it was awesome. I use to joke with the crew, "stick your head in there, it don't stink!" I'll add my $0.02 worth... get 2 urine buckets, then you can swap out and take the full one to the shore bathhouse with you. I didn't like that I couldn't get the NH back far enough. I did something like Mark, I used an Oak stair tread to raise the unit up. This actually allowed me to slide it back another inch. I also added a wood floor in the drain pan to correct the knee height. Pictures aren't ready for prime time, but I'll have them up soon.

 

[SV_Fortissimo]

Not pretty (yet).

 

[pacifica]

Hi Mark and Ron,

Thanks so much for sharing the write-up on your install! I’ve been thinking about switching to a composting toilet for a while now. Our hoses are old and smelly, and last summer, finding pump-outs while cruising Northern BC was a such a challenge. A composting toilet just seems to make sense for Morgans—at least on my boat, since the holding tank is in the keel and there’s no way to evacuate offshore. I was considering adding another tank and changing the hoses, but composting toilet is so much easier.

Mark, your install looks super neat! Good point about the NH’s shape. The AH is more rounded, but I think they’ve added a hull-shaped version now. I’ll do a mock-up to see which one fits best.

Ron, totally agree—having two urine containers sounds like the way to go.

With the lift platform, how does the seat height feel? Comfortable?

Alya