Compost toilet underground?

I really want to have an underground house, wofati or otherwise.
I also want a compost toilet system. (Preferably no bucket, hot compost)
Not sure how to set it up. Thoughts please.

I never heard of a no bucket system. So this would be like having an outhouse in the house?

I asked Mr. Google about a "no bucket system though he didn't know either.

Maybe these threads might offer you or other folks something of interest:

https://permies.com/t/190807/house-compost-worm-septic-system

https://permies.com/t/189811/Tree-bog-septic-composting

I am hoping that other folks on the forum have heard of the no bucket system and can chime in.

I’ve been contemplating a bucket-less system for a temporary shelter while building a home to code. I wasn’t planning on building an underground house though. I had something like this in mind:

Indoor outhouse

I haven’t read the article yet, I just am referring to the design concept. I found that article searching “indoor outhouse”, which I think you may find worth searching.

Would something like this possibly work if placed on the open side, to the side of the entrance door, with the collection box being above ground too(meaning you’d need steps inside to get to the elevated bathroom)? The collection box being accessible from the outside, not buried, on grade with the ground right outside the entrance. Indoor toilet, outdoor cleaning.

I’m just making this up off the top of my head(aside from previously contemplating a no-bucket system for an above ground structure). Hope this helped. If not, it helped me by finding this article and getting my brain working on this subject again.

Edit: googling tree bog after going to Anne’s link is also turning up interesting designs for me. I wasn’t familiar with that term. Thanks Anne.

Look into Black Soldier Fly (larvae).  If not possible for a total solution, they could certainly offer a substantial partial solution.  If the idea interests you, I will be happy to give some pointers on how to make that work in your situation.
Here is a pervious thread from here: https://permies.com/t/44268/BSFL-processing-humanure-free-chicken

Here is a example that could work with a wofati or underground house:



It's similar in design to the Mother Earth News article Kevin David linked to. The tricky bit would be building an access way though the berm to retrieve the finished compost.

Aaron Yarbrough wrote:Here is a example that could work with a wofati or underground house:
…
It's similar in design to the Mother Earth News article Kevin David linked to. The tricky bit would be building an access way though the berm to retrieve the finished compost.

That’s funny. I was actually thinking of this video when I was writing my last post, but I could’t remember where I saw it. Turns out it’s one of Paul’s videos.

Couldn’t it come out the front and avoid going through the berm altogether? That’s what I was clumsily describing in my previous post. And since the front goes out to a slope, wouldn’t that be a good place for these chambers to go down? Then you just have to go through the front wall

…..or I am not understanding underground house and and wofati design? I never got too deep into the underground house  stuff due to the legality of it.

Anne Miller wrote:I never heard of a no bucket system. So this would be like having an outhouse in the house?

I asked Mr. Google about a "no bucket system though he didn't know either.

If you check The Humanure Handbook p.186 there is a testimonial describing someone who put the compost bins directly underneath the seat, as apposed to the normal removable buckets .
I called it "no bucket" for lack of a better name.
Made perfect compost.

Thank you, Sasha

That makes sense. And thank you for the reference.

Is this something similar to what they do at the Wheaton Labs Willow Feeder?

I would say it is closer to an indoor outhouse.

Sasha Platte wrote:

Anne Miller wrote:I never heard of a no bucket system. So this would be like having an outhouse in the house?

I asked Mr. Google about a "no bucket system though he didn't know either.

If you check The Humanure Handbook p.186 there is a testimonial describing someone who put the compost bins directly underneath the seat, as apposed to the normal removable buckets .
I called it "no bucket" for lack of a better name.
Made perfect compost.

This is something I’ve considered too. I don’t have land yet. In Michigan(especially the parts I’m looking) I may not have a nice slope like that to make that cool composting system from the video Aaron linked. Although, if I did, I’d surely consider making it. Seems really, really cool.

Is anyone aware of any updates from the guy in the video on how the system is working?….maybe I should make this question a new topic?

For folks that might be interested, here is how it is done at Wheaton Labs:





https://permies.com/t/80/33160/wofati-cooper-cabin#1274944

https://permies.com/t/25481/willow-feeder-wheelie-bin-pooper

https://permies.com/t/40/161838/willow-feeder

https://permies.com/t/47814/willow-feeder-wheelie-bin-pooper





source

I have a no-bucket composting toilet system. It is attached to my house in a way that would not work with an underground house, though. The user room is attached to the upstairs of the house, directly over the manure chambers, which are at ground level behind the house. We've been using it for 5 years and it's been good.

The two manure chambers are 3.5 feet wide, about 8 feet tall, and about 8 feet long. Upstairs is one room, which ended up pretty big, being over both manure chambers, the stone walls around each and separating them, and a two-foot air-gap between the manure chambers and the wall of the house. Above each manure chamber is two holes: one bigger hole for a seat, and one smaller hole for squatting (which is way nicer in winter, as long as your knees can do it). There is an exhaust fan in the upper wall of the manure chambers, with a switch up in the user room.

We use one manure chamber and the two holes over it for a year, and then cover the two holes with plywood and let the manure sit for a year before emptying it. I've been emptying it in November into an outside bin, for a second round of composting.

We've been using sawdust as the cover material. The first year and a half, we were using up the sawdust left from the house construction, and it was very coarse with a lot of shavings and chunks, so the compost that came out was way too woody. After I saw that, I made sure to get fine sawdust from local carpentry workshops, and damped it with water for a few months before using it. And for the past year I've been collecting coffee grounds from local cafes and mixing that with sawdust and autumn leaves, and keeping that damp for a few months. I've got big hopes for the quality of the compost that produces but it'll be another year or two before I really know.