Should You Get an RV Composting Toilet?

When you’re looking into full-time RV life, you’ll come across a lot of different options for upgrading your setup. One of the things you’re likely to come across is the RV composting toilet.

When I first saw the RV composting toilets, I had a lot of questions and had to do some research to decide whether it was something we wanted to do or not. Continue reading this article to see what I learned as I did my research.

Everything You Need to Know About RV Composting Toilets

Composting toilets can go anywhere since they are self-contained.

Before making this change, there are some important things you need to know. Below we will get you all the information you need.

What Is Composting?

If you’re like I was and you’re pretty unsure about the concept of composting, you want to know what composting is to begin with.

Compost is simply decayed organic matter. You can put almost anything that comes from the ground into your compost pile.

Here’s what compost looks like so it’s not as gross as you may have heard.

You should not include your pet’s poop, however since it can increase the possibility of disease. Keep it human. No animal product at all so that means don’t go putting eggs, milk or butter in your compost.

Benefits of Having an RV Composting Toilet?

When you’ve got to go — you’ve got to go!

One of the major benefits to using RV composting toilets is the positive effect they have on the environment. Since you’re keeping waste out of landfills, you’re reducing methane gas emissions.

If there are no plumbing or sewage facilities near where you’re RVing, you don’t have to freak out anymore. These toilets are fully self-contained, which means they can be used safely no matter where you are.

You can empty your compost material into a dumpster with your other trash which means you don’t have to deal with sewage. The urine can go into a sewer or in some places you’re allowed to pour the urine out right on the ground. Make sure to check local ordinances before pouring a container of urine on the ground.

When you have an RV composting toilet, you can extend your boondocking camping time. You won’t use as much energy or as much water.

Many places out west allow you to stay in spots for up to 14 days. If you want to stay at a free boondocking RV spot for 14 days — you can make it happen with the help of an RV composting toilet.

These composting toilets are pretty interesting but keep in mind that they are NOT for everyone. While dumping the black tank is pretty rank and disgusting, some people (like my husband) think dealing with the composting toilet is worse than dumping the black tank.

Black tank hose — ewww!

If we boondocked more or if it were just the two of us, the RV composting toilet would be a good option but with 6 people in the RV — the urine container is going to fill up pretty quickly.

How Much Does a Composting Toilet Cost?

Let’s say you’re ready to make the switch to an RV composting toilet. How much money are we looking at when you go to buy?

Here are some of the top RV composting toilets money can buy. As you can see, they really aren’t that expensive.

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There’s not much variance to these RV composting toilets so the main goal is to get a quality product.

If you’re seriously considering an RV composting toilet, you should know how to prep and dump the RV composting toilet. Make sure you’ve got the stomach and mobility for it since it does require some light lifting.

How to Prep & Dump Your RV Composting Toilet

Now for the real dirt on how to prep and dump your RV composting toilet.

To prep your new toilet, you’ll need either coconut coir or sphagnum peat moss. Bags of these come dehydrated so the first part of the process is hydrating the coconut coir or sphagnum peat moss.

You’ll need about a gallon of coconut coir or sphagnum peat moss in the toilet to start using it. You’ll want to hydrate it to the point where it looks like potting soil and then pour it in the toilet until it is just under the toilet’s agitator.

After you do this, the toilet is ready to go. Pretty easy, right?

Now to the dumping part. That’s really what you wanted to know, isn’t it?

When I thought about dumping the RV composting toilet, I was thinking about crazy things like having to carry bags of poop until we could put it down a sewer.

Well — that’s not how it goes at all.

Since you’ve composted your feces, all you have to do is dump them from the toilet into a composting bag. Once they’re in the composting bag, you can put them in any dumpster and it is safe and not biohazard since it never mixes with urine.

Watch out for this guy when you’re dumping your toilet.

As stated above, you can either put the urine in a sewer or you can pour it on the ground in some cases. Some people also choose to put their urine in their gray tank.

Now you’ve got the information and it’s up to you to decide if an RV composting toilet is the right option for you and your style of RVing.

Need More Help With RV Life?

Now that you understand more about getting an RV composting toilet, you can make a decision on whether it’s the right choice for you or not. Why stop learning about RV life there?

We have many helpful articles on our site such as our article on how to sanitize your RV water system. Navigate through our site, find your favorite section, drop a bookmark and come back later for more great reads.