Tiger Toilet

I wrote about the Tiger  Toilet under the 'leach field' topic but wanted to bring it to the attention of other folks who live off grid. The toilet was developed to use in India originally for the many folks who have no other access to safe toilet facilities. We came across the information that I have attached to this post while working with our county in Calif after the fires in 2019. We live off grid and were completely burnt out, houses, barns , workshop etc etc.  Many folks in our off grid community have tried to work with our county to enable us to be permitted. My husband and daughter wrote the Class K - owner builder code using the most liberal codes used in other counties in California. I researched sanitary papers from around the world and found the papers for  Tiger Toilets.  Because of Calif department of Fire and the new roads required to be built and the millions it would cost to bring them up to Cal fire standards we gave up trying for permits.

Tiger toilets are worm composting toilets that use the tiger worm or other types of composting worms like 'red wigglers'  to process the feces.  Before we moved back to the property from the refugee trailer park we were living in, I started gathering up and propagating the worms. Anyway read  the paperwork I have attached if you are interested. If you find other interesting articles that folks might use to get these toilets permitted  please let up all know.

Cool links! Thanks for sharing. I'm wondering how this compares with a system like humanure. Is the benefit of the worms that you don't have to import organic materials like sawdust for smell and hay for decomposition?

The worms in the toilet are manure worms - They eat the manure. Lots of info in the articles I attached. Biggest problem is getting enough worms to keep up with the human manure. I started a worm bed as soon as we could get back on property after fire. I had red wiggler  fishing type worms in garden beds and started collecting them and putting them in a box and bring food from refugee camp we were staying in after fire. We were in refuge camp at fair grounds for 7 months after fire so the worms had a chance to multiply . The Tiger toilet was ready when we could finally move back to property. I hope this answers your question

Karen, you don't need special worms.  We've had earthworms doing an excellent job for at least 7 years.  They get big, they multiply like crazy.  It takes a few months, but they will really multiply.  I'm not even sure if introducing non-native worms where they don't belong is a good idea.  

We don't run any other grey water down through the worm box, I think it's a bit much, and I don't want to subject them to soap, washing machine soap, shampoo, Comet cleanser, stuff like that.  And I think it's a bit too much water with the washing machine, etc.

In fact, there are so many worms they can go down the line and multiply there and plug up the line.  So be sure you have a big enough exit pipe.  Our worms can come and go out of the box.  

As far as the County being okay with it, it's not likely.  We have a septic tank that is to code, but I wanted to try the worm method, and it's great, love it.

Doesn't sound like your place had a septic tank before the fires?  And now they want you to go by the code and install one?  They can only make your place more valuable.  And aren't there agencies to help people get back on their feet with infrastructure after fires like that/

So much to parse here ...

You are in an area where CA (and CalFire) just doesn't seem to want to work with you, and you are going self-supporting, off-grid, no-code, etc. It's what I would've done. Good luck with it all!

What I've had to do is: build a standard OSSF (septic system: conc tank, infiltrator leach field), and do it to "code"; luckily, my perc test showed good dirt (which I can now turn into bad dirt with the septic system ... go figure). However, I felt it important to put the system in that would keep the AHJ happy, and (more importantly), if nosy neighbors lodged complaints, the AHJ would see the approved system on file. To mitigate the financial madness (cost), I just did it myself ... cuts the cost in half.

With that out of the way, humanure is our current chosen method of waste disposal. We just implemented it afterwards (after the OSSF). Same with greywater.  Jenkin's book seems to cover the bases on how to safely turn this stuff into good dirt. Your worm method (and others who've done similar, aka vermi-composting toilets), is the alternative to humanure, and possibly is as good as, or better (no worm-humanure "book" that I know of?). I haven't tackled it yet because of lack of research on my part, but I want to; worms and cold climates = special handling, to keep the little guys alive. It would be a 3rd disposal method for us ... if the little guys would stay alive ... right now, they hold up little signs saying "murderer" and "going south for the winter", and so on.

So, while the worm method is working for you, this is CA (where you are at) ... sooner or later, the AHJ is coming (although the roads may keep them out) ... perhaps putting in an OSSF (done by you at the cheapest possible cost) would be a method of insurance against that day when they show up, even if not inspected (just take lots of pictures). At least you could say it's there, or, be further along when they try to sue you into doing it.

It's what I've always recommended to all folks who are code-bound, where an OSSF is really the base requirement (and the only thing AHJ's understand), unless and until the codes get changed *in a given area*. Do it as cheaply as possible, get it done, and then do what you want, and what we all know works. The rest of the world can't be wrong ...

Ditto on the thanks for the attachments ... you've sped up my research!

I usually order my worms off of Amazon ... I assumed they wouldn't be selling an invasive species ... have to check that as well.

Thank you for the reply- We did have a septic in before the fire that was never used . I have no idea how this post fire thing will ultimately play out. No one in our community can get permits as I mentioned before. Out of approx 1000 burnt homes 60 permits have been issued. We are not holding our breath.