Nick Neufeld

Joseph Lofthouse wrote:My experience with raised beds indicates that they generally harm the plants grown in them, except in specialized circumstances, such as blueberries needing acid soil, sweet potatoes needing more warmth, or trying to grow over swampy ground or bedrock.

Can't say that I have much experience with perennials in raised beds, but I'm inclined to agree with you. I'm in a very cold climate where raised beds freeze solid in the winter. Roots would be happier in the ground.

I like raised beds for annuals.

I've been growing seedlings in 1' x 2' air prune boxes for about 5 years. I love it. I keep adding more.

Mine are on a balcony so that I don't have to cage them off from squirrels. I therefore don't get the surprising weed problems that Christopher mentioned.

Aaron Yarbrough wrote:I put a P-trap on our urine diverter in one our toilets. We have to flush it occasionally with with water and/or vinegar. The exhaust fan also helps with the smell. If you have a cold water line running to your toilet area I think a really snazzy solution would be running a drip line with a timer to the urine diverter bowl.

Our second compost toilet doesn't have a P-trap and we haven't had any issues with smell. However, it runs to a gray water system rather than the septic tank. I also did a better job sealing it and it has a bigger exhaust duct (2 inch pipe) then the first toilet.

P-Traps are fairly easy to add. I think I would build a really well air sealed toilet compartment with a good venting and see it goes before adding a P-trap.  

Thanks for sharing. Very helpful.

I was planning on having bathroom venting without additional venting for the toilet box. I'll rethink that decision.

John C Daley wrote:Do you realise urine mixed with water is good for the garden.
If you explained where you live locals may be able to share knowledge.

I'm on the Canadian prairies.
Very cold winters.

We use a similar toilet setup in our outhouse, except in that one the urine goes to a 4L jug and then to our plants.

I'm ok with letting the liquid gold go from the cabin to the septic field. I can harvest the extra grass growth from that field if I'm looking for a nitrogen boost somewhere else.

Hi,
I'm building a cabin with a humanure bucket toilet. I like diverting urine to keep the bucket dry. I don't want to capture the urine separately because emptying it manually would be too frequent for my liking. So I had a plumber rough-in a line for the urine to flow towards the septic field. No water, just gravity and urine. My jurisdiction requires septic field. My plumber warned me that a line directly between the septic system and the toilet would stink up the house without a P-trap. But if we installed a P-trap it would sit full of pee and that would also have a stench.

Should I put a valve on the urine line so that a user opens it before they sit down and closes it after? Maybe a lid over the urine cup would be easier? There must be a better way. Maybe use a P-trap and chase it with a cup of water? I want to be water conscious because we'll have rain collection only.

The HRV unit will be getting rid of bathroom air constantly, so that's a mitigating factor.

Does anyone have updates to share about casserole lid doors? I love the simplicity of this solution but am wary about their longevity and safety.

Alex, that is a beaut!

If a pea gravel mass creates lots of air space, would a mix of pea gravel and sand offer a noticeable improvement in performance?

Thanks for the replies all!
I'm going to go for it. I have a lot more learning to do on RMHs before I start. Will start with Paul's video package and probably track down a copy of Ernie and Erica's builders guide.

Thanks for the replies. The floor joists are only in 6 foot spans. They span the 12 foot length of the building and are supported by timbers underneath at both ends and the middle. The joist spacing is 16".