La toilette

We live in a shack. It's solidly built, 10 x 20 max, but it keeps the rain off. We are comfortable enough, with loft storage space and a propane stove for cooking. Cold water comes in on tap and drains into the irrigation system but that's it for plumbing. So how, you ask, do we perform the other very basic functions of life?

For human waste there is an outhouse less than 20 yards from our door. It is a basic latrine model but is a far cry both from the fly-traps common at campsites and the industrial porta-potties of death known to haunt fairgrounds. Yes, it is made of wood and is open to the air but similarities end there. Instead of a nasty hole, the wood frame platform is built over a garbage can to catch solid waste. Liquid waste is diverted through a special drain (called, descriptively enough, a “urine diverter”) and the whole she-bang is outfitted with a “normal” toilet seat just like they have in Paris, France!

Once we've completed our seated business we cover the mess with a layer of carbon-rich organic material (coffee parchment) that helps compost the waste. This not only protects us from hookworm (and bad smells) but will eventually produce a safe, all natural fertilizer known as “humanure.” (There's contention about exactly how long you have to wait for it to be safe, so it's not used on any of the food here.) The diverter is structured in a way that allows the liquid waste to run-off directly into farm land (urine is a great source of nitrogen) without interfering with solid waste landing into the garbage can.

To keep clean, we employ a solar shower, which is structurally reminiscent of “Gilligan's Island.” There is a cold water hose with a sprinkler nossel tacked-up about 6” off the floor inside. Outside the shower structure is a simple pulley system that allow a big heavy bag of water (the “solar shower bag”) to be hoisted up to head level. The solar shower bag is just a big black bag made of heavy plastic with an opening at the top to pour water into and a tube and sprinkler head at the bottom. Put water into the bag and seal it up, set it out in the sun for a few hours, hoist the bag onto the pulley, and let gravity do the rest. Viola! Hot shower with energy from the sun.

At least that's the idea. Despite being in the tropics, it's quite cloudy here and sunshine is often in short supply. K has experience with the exact same technology at an eco-village in Missouri and found that it worked much better there. In the Midwest, summertime means sunshine but in South Kona it means rain. To make up the heat deficit, we've resorted to using a tea kettle.