snowie Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 I'm obviously not referring to audio cassetes I've recently posted about leisure battery management, had some very helpful responses, and searched out some info on solar panels; all very interesting and technically demanding, needs time to get one's head round, but the prospect of long periods away from civilization is appealing. I've read of people "wild camping " for extended periods without the need for hook-up to top up their batteries, and the appeal of cost free camping is understandable; but I've not come across any articles on that other aspect of extended "wild camping" , that much less glamorous but fundamental aspect; the loo. How many spare cassettes do people use? how many days can you stretch a cassette for? I can't imagine that responsible campers would just take a spade? :- regards alan b Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MandyAndy Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 There are 3 of us, 1 is only 12, a cassette lasts us just a weekend rally and is ready for emptying when we leave, that is with not using any other facility. We have carried a spare cassette for 5 years now and used it 3 times, *-) still wouldn't be without it just for peace of mind and we have a large garage and it doesn't weigh a ton. . Some tanks are bigger than others we just have the standard grey with yellow fittings Don't think we have emptied anywhere were we shouldn't, had to use the odd toilet before now but always take spray in with me as we have a SOG unit and it can pong a bit!! The beauty of the SOG is that you are not refilling with chemicals that cost an earth every time, though many use cheaper alternatives I now I understand. Mandy You will get alot of replies on this as many people on here like talking Sxxx (lol) (lol) (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Alan A few motorhomes have dedicated storage for a 2nd toilet-cassette as part of their design (it's been a 'signature' feature for Frankia), but I suspect that most motorcaravanners adjust their routine around carriage of just a single cassette. I did encounter once a German couple at a aire near Royan and they were carrying 3 cassettes in their large 3-axle Eura Mobil, but that will be an exception. However, it's evident that some motorcaravanners do feel a need for more than one toilet-cassette, as Fiamma markets a product specifically designed to carry a spare cassette (Thetford C-200 & Dometic CT-300, or Thetford C-250 toilet models) beneath the vehicle. http://www.agentfiamma.co.uk/fiamma-porta-kassett.html In principle, to avoid pressure build-up within a cassette with waste inside it, the cassette should be ventilated, which presents a challenge if a 'used' cassette is to be stored for any length of time within the motorhome's living area. Your "How many days can you stretch a cassette for?" question falls into the "How long is a piece of string?" category. Each cassette has a certain capacity, varying according to the model of toilet, and you'd be ill-advised to allow a cassette to reach more than 80% full. How quickly that threshold is reached will depend on how many people use the toilet, how often they use it and (to some extent) how they use it. I've known people who only used their motorhome's toilet as an emergency facility, preferring to use campsite toilets whenever possible. Others, like my wife and I, rarely use campsite sanitary facilities, preferring to use our motorhome's instead. Like Mandy, our Thetford C-200's toilet has been fitted with a SOG ventilator fan. This prevents lavatorial odours in the bathroom and I feel no need to use odour-masking products in the cassette. Consequently, because there are no financial overheads for toilet chemicals, there's no incentive to 'stretch' the empty-to-full period and I'll tend to empty the cassette at every opportunity (daily if I can) and I don't stint when it comes to rinsing the toilet bowl with water. Experience tells me that, with the regimen I've just described, a viable empty-to-full period will be two days. I've occasionally considered carrying a 2nd cassette (as they aren't too dear if you buy a "Fresh Up" kit) http://www.motorcaravanning.co.uk/shopuk/thetford_cassette.htm but, realistically, I don't need one. The only time I've come a cropper was years ago, not long after we'd started motorcaravanning, when we arrived in late evening at a private aire de services advertised as having toilet emptying facilities. Unfortunately these had been damaged and were unusable - and our motorhome's toilet-cassette was near as dammit full. Some judicious into-a-distant-ditch decanting of the cassette's liquid contents allowed us to survive till morning, but it taught me a salutary lesson. I suggest you discover how often your motorhome's cassette needs emptying when you begin to use the vehicle in whatever manner you've chosen. Once you've established that, you'll be able to decide whether or not you'll need supplementary cassettes. If you end up genuinely "wild camping" for long periods far away from anywhere offering toiiet-cassette emptying facilities (eg. public toilets if needs must), then it's likely you will need more toilet-waste storage capacity (and/or a spade). An oldie but goodie... http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=12050&start=1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe63xnotuse Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Maybe you could try and keep the casstte for the "serious" stuff and maybe just use a small,lidded bucket for the likes of male no1s?.. ..and it could be just discreetly emptied in a hedgrow etc...It certainly helps stretch the emptying times for the cassette... When we're at festivals,I've also used the tent campers method of,lining the bucket with a bin liner(double bagged!),and 1/4 filled it with absorbent, *wood based cat litter....This means that if need be,you can last a couple of days before emptying the bucket,(and no "sploshing").However obviously,when using cat litter,it can't really just be chucked in the hedge(..and certainly not down an elsan point) and you really do need to know where you're going to be disposing of it (..in our case,the large trade sized skips,designated "land fill")... * the wood based stuff is FAR more absorbent than the granule stuff(..which is just like peeing into fish tank gravel...or..ahem..so I would imagine! (lol) ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 We have a C200 which unfortunately has a smaller capacity than the bench models or the C250. We use a spray bottle instead of flushing when wild camping this also give us the advantage of making our water supply last longer. Using the spray bottle gives us up to 4 days use, when flushing only lasts 2 days. We also have a SOG which allows us more choice of empting. Public loos in remote areas often do not allow the empting of chemical toilets as they are going into a septic tank, having a SOG and not using any chemicals means you can safely empty in one of these loos. Also we have got into the habit of empting whenever the opportunity arises even if it's only 10% full. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yeti Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 I have used the cat litter especially at festivals and also used bio washing powder in the tank,it all works for me. Nothing wrong with 'p**ing in the hedge even females can do it with a Shewee. http://www.survivalbox.com/brands.php?brand=SheWee&gclid=CJCRpumiyq0CFVQLfAodkTb2gw Solids can then be disposed in any suitable point. 2 of us can last 3 days normally on a cassette cat litter method can extend it to 4-5. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe63xnotuse Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Hi Yeti.. I was going to mention a Shewee..but I wasn't quite sure how they'd be received on here...?! (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RogerC Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Just to support other posters on this thread I would recommend getting a 'SOG' fitted. Not using chemicals means that in the long run it will work out cheaper and you're not restricted on emptying points. As for how many casettes you need...like others have said it all depends on how 'regular' you are or how many bottles of wine are disposed of overnight..... (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neillking Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Wild camp, use solar for independence, carry a spare C200 cassette as a backup and use 'green' septic tank friendly chemicals for more universal disposal. Used to keep the cassette in an outdoor cupboard but now underslung in a Fiamma Porta-Kassette. Never dispose of anything in skips or ditches not least for the PR side - non campers are usually outraged if observing any such behaviour however moderated by additions. Do pee in bushes from time to time especially in Europe where it is often the norm in any case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 One last thing to bear in mind is where you will be, and possibly when, because the second string to the question is how often it is possible to empty a cassette, as well as how quickly one can fill it. Cassette emptying facilities are provided at most aires camping-car in France though, as Derek points out, having blind faith in their usability can be a bit unwise. It is also not uncommon to find that water has been turned off in winter, so rinsing the cassette can then also become a problem. Nevertheless, the aires are plentiful and if one gets into the habit of emptying the cassette regularly, and thus makes a point of passing an aire on a daily, or two-daily, basis, one should never need a back-up in France. However, other countries are whole different ball game, with some having emptying facilities only at campsites and scarce public toilets (even assuming there aren't prohibitions on emptying chemical toilets in these), so one has to take a different tack. If you plan on wilding in some places you may well find you need a second cassette, while in others, mainly France, you never should. It largely a case of horses for courses, I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Must say this thread is an 'Eye opener' , I always thought that 'Dirty motorcaravanners empty toilet in Ditch' was anti-motorhome propaganda. WELL, it looks like it's the truth. I would NEVER EVER empty a toilet cassette into a ditch, ditches lead to water courses, water courses lead to rivers, we extract drinking water from rivers and lakes. I would however, empty it into a Public Toilet, and have done so, making sure I clean up and sterilize afterwards. I have never found the need to carry an extra cassette. 'I love the smell of Formaldahyde first thing in the morning' (Apocalypse Now) Disgusted of Pembrokeshire !! ;-) ' Some judicious into-a-distant-ditch decanting of the cassette's liquid contents allowed us to survive till morning, but it taught me a salutary lesson.' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 a tip I got on here was to use a kitchen/window spray container full of water instead of toilets flush. this extends use a fair bit........ Have had SOGs in last 2 vans, main thing as you are not using nasty chemicals it can be dumped in a conventional toilet . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Brian Kirby - 2012-01-12 11:25 AM Cassette emptying facilities are provided at most aires camping-car in France though, as Derek points out, having blind faith in their usability can be a bit unwise. It is also not uncommon to find that water has been turned off in winter, so rinsing the cassette can then also become a problem. Rinsing is never a problem use your grey water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patricia Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 yeti - 2012-01-12 10:28 AM I have used the cat litter especially at festivals and also used bio washing powder in the tank,it all works for me. Nothing wrong with 'p**ing in the hedge even females can do it with a Shewee. http://www.survivalbox.com/brands.php?brand=SheWee&gclid=CJCRpumiyq0CFVQLfAodkTb2gw Solids can then be disposed in any suitable point. 2 of us can last 3 days normally on a cassette cat litter method can extend it to 4-5. Just ordered something from here which is on special offer. Too late to have it delivered in UK (leave on Saturday) so having delivery to France AND postage works out cheaper to there than to a UK address!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patricia Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 neillking - 2012-01-12 11:17 AM Wild camp, use solar for independence, carry a spare C200 cassette as a backup and use 'green' septic tank friendly chemicals for more universal disposal. Used to keep the cassette in an outdoor cupboard but now underslung in a Fiamma Porta-Kassette. Never dispose of anything in skips or ditches not least for the PR side - non campers are usually outraged if observing any such behaviour however moderated by additions. Do pee in bushes from time to time especially in Europe where it is often the norm in any case. I have checked "green" labels and not all are septic tank friendly whereas non-formeldahyde chemicals, I believe, are safe. As for emptying in a ditch not good from a PR point of view (would never actually do it myself) but almost all animal waste (they don't have toilets!!) and the contents of my septic tank, eventually arrive at a water course and, in any case, water is filtered before redistribution anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neillking Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Yes indeed "green" I mean as a type with green just as a colour. We've seen green coloured toilet fuids that aren't very "green" and bright blue ones that are very "green"!! All very confusing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starvin marvin Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 We usually free camp for the majority of nights on our trips abroad. One cassette can mean that you are always on the lookout for toilets/aire dumps. For the last two years we have travelled with a spare cassette and not come close to having to use it. It will go with us again in the near future for a few months and we'll see if it another piece of kit consigned to the shed! I can say to never having empied the cassette anywhere that it is not meant to be emptied, its been a close call on a few occasions. For peace of mind the entrenching tool will continue to find a place somewhere in the van. Our Golden Rule is "fill with water at every opportunity and empty at every opportunity, but first and foremost empty!" and I mean every opportunity, never ever assume it'll be ok at the next stop. Result happy motorhomers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowie Posted January 12, 2012 Author Share Posted January 12, 2012 Hi Mandy, there are just 2 of us, and I think I've established that it's cutting it close to expect to be independent for more than 3 nights, and we try to use CLs an CS's for most of the time in uk, ideally with a basic toilet facility resorting to bigger "bells and whistles" sites for showers and washing if needed. Looked at a SOG unit but decided ( as with diesel heating systems; a bit smelly for the neighbours) to go for organic "chemical" instead. I'm impressed with the Organic Blue,/ blue bio and I think the economics of it are pretty good. We've been using it for the last year, and are very happy with it. I posted this partly because I think there's a lot of money spent on solar panels and extra battery capacity, and maybe the real limiting factor is toilet capacity. I've heard of (but no personal experience of ) people burying chemical toilet contents or emptying into road gullies, I agree with neilking on this. We should all be mindful of the image of campers. The availability of proper toilet disposal facilities goes to the heart of the "wild camping" debate I think, as far as I'm aware disposal facilities in winter sun blessed areas like Spain and Portugal are a bit thin on the ground. When I suggested a spade, I was referring to the unacceptable burying of chemical material that others have mentioned; if you are wild camping in a tent and bury as you go, I think that's pretty acceptable, as long as you use common sense. Best bet is to buy another cassette before we go in search of the winter sun. Thanks to all who replied regards alan b Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallii Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Digging hole and burying it is perfectly OK. The problem is doing it correctly, i.e. not near watercourses, deep enough, and not in someones front garden :-) Actually the main problem is finding somewhere to dig a hole, most land is owned by someone. However, in Spain there are some areas with large and derelict pieces of ground, I have dug a hole or two in those. Until recently many privvies both here and abroad were simple holes dug in the ground, I know that many rural places abroad (and, even now in the UK) still use this method. There is some evidence that this method is less enviromentally damaging than flushing gallons of water and having to treat the whole in expensive and polluting sewage plants. H Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neillking Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 snowie - 2012-01-12 2:28 PM The availability of proper toilet disposal facilities goes to the heart of the "wild camping" debate I think ... It's certainly an issue but no different much of the time to a 'wild day out' walking or some such. Public toilets (with "green" fluids) were a mainstay but with many councils now / now planning on closing them it's likely to get more difficult. Some garages are OK with you using their toilets for emptying as long as you're buying, the ones used by trucks seem most accommodating. And you can call in to a CCC for a full service if you wish - albeit at a price! The practical time limit may depend more on your nose than on capacity. Toilet fluids / sachets usually say something like "up to four days" after which their deodourising power will be much diminished and also some fermentation is possible so tanks can become slightly pressurised. We reckon four days is pretty much max for us under normal circumstances, a couple being fairly normal. In extremis in moderate climes with the second cassette called into play a week is pretty much tops. One tip with second cassettes is not to leave it too long before making the change because trying to store a really full cassette is a nightmare, do try to anticipate and make the swap in good time. In the days when we ran a forum on our own dot com site 'toilet' was one of the most popular topics at times! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesFrance Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 There have been some areas used by wild campers in Spain where a stroll through the sand dunes has been a very unpleasant experience. Even random peeing might be acceptable in areas with high and regular rainfall, but in a dry climate it can be quite unpleasant. It's bad enough near campsite entrances where the doggy residents pee. Most sites will expect dog owners to wash any area on site that their dog has fouled, as one doggy wee attracts another. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travelling Tyke Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Hello, "Bottles" can be used to reduce the urine content of cassettes. They can then be emptied much easier in suitable locations. Remember that a certain amount of liquid is needed in the cassette tho'! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 We neither use chemicals or put any paper down our loo, adopting the Greek style of tissue arrangement instead. If you are a male, and we're talking urine I cannot much see any difference to taking a leak somewhere discretely out in the wilds, I mean the average large dog can give me a run for my money in the local high street if we're talking quantity here, or a cow in the countryside we're talking gallons, or bottle it for later disposal in a proper point. So in short adopting those methods could see you with 15 litres capacity of pure poo, why you could even produce your own cooking gas and last for weeks. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Our 'solution' for excess 'solution' when caught short between emtying points is to carry a sealable tub (ex tile cement) into which some 'solution' can be poured and stored short term and eptied and cleaned asap. Don't leave it too long in the tub - especially in heat - or it might expand and leak! Allied to the bucket and chuckit concept for solving a simple liquid only solution and a shovel for when the safe opportunity allows we manage OK with the cassette lasting 4 days and thee nights when it is the only facility used. I've only ever used the tub solution twice and the shovel a few times but boy were they handy when needed! In a dire emergency a cut down plastic coke or milk carton or bottle is quite a good disposable liquid receptacle but I've not tried it for No 2s! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 1footinthegrave Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Another option is a s**tbox, less bulk being flatpacked, and far less expense that a second cassette that may rarely be used will cost you, see link below. Odd that the forum prevents the name that the product is being marketed as so I'll try another ploy it's called. S*H*I*T*B*O*X http://www.thebrowncorporation.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.