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Old 01-28-2018, 11:12 AM   #1
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Question Greyhound bus Pit toilet?

I came back from Costa Rica for medical reasons and i rode from Houston to Lafayette La by Greyhound. The bus toilet was just a pit toilet with blue liquid and there was no odor that i could smell. I looked how far down it was and it was a big Oval pipe and it looked about 27" down to the water. I would like o use that set up on another project. With just one or two people using it and with mine i will use a urinal drain for ou in the booneys then this type will last for months IMO.

Can anyone give me any insight on building one? I think i would be way ahead in my case to find a junk bus and get the stainless steel top seat platform.
Thanks

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Old 01-28-2018, 11:47 AM   #2
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The larger the storage container the nastier it will be to empty. I chose the Thetford cassette toilet, same concept but with 5 gallon removable tank to empty.
Doug
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Old 01-28-2018, 12:10 PM   #3
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The larger the storage container the nastier it will be to empty. I chose the Thetford cassette toilet, same concept but with 5 gallon removable tank to empty.
Doug
Thetford Cassettes have been the standard fitment on European campers (of all types) since forever.

For fitting in an RV you can get one that is accessible from the outside for tank removal and emptying.
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Old 01-28-2018, 01:59 PM   #4
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The larger the storage container the nastier it will be to empty. I chose the Thetford cassette toilet, same concept but with 5 gallon removable tank to empty.
Doug
Agreed. I have read quite a few threads about people saying they hate the black tanks. Since my fall in the stairwell of my B700 last October 27th and being pinned for awhile i am now permanently for life on crutches. For the few times i will need it emptied i will just pay someone to do the nasty work.
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Old 01-28-2018, 02:07 PM   #5
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I came back from Costa Rica for medical reasons and i rode from Houston to Lafayette La by Greyhound. The bus toilet was just a pit toilet with blue liquid and there was no odor that i could smell. I looked how far down it was and it was a big Oval pipe and it looked about 27" down to the water. I would like o use that set up on another project. With just one or two people using it and with mine i will use a urinal drain for ou in the booneys then this type will last for months IMO.

Can anyone give me any insight on building one? I think i would be way ahead in my case to find a junk bus and get the stainless steel top seat platform.
Thanks
The pipe at the bottom was probably the drain to empty the holding tank. There should have been another vent pipe or two running out the roof. With the blue sanitary fluid and good air exchange, the toilet won't stink. Keeping the lid closed helps even more with air exchange. They work just like a Portapottys found sitting in fields and parking lots for events.
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Old 01-28-2018, 02:20 PM   #6
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The pipe at the bottom was probably the drain to empty the holding tank. There should have been another vent pipe or two running out the roof. With the blue sanitary fluid and good air exchange, the toilet won't stink. Keeping the lid closed helps even more with air exchange. They work just like a Portapottys found sitting in fields and parking lots for events.
Thanks. So simple and once installed pretty much a once per year event for one or two person's using the bus.
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Old 01-28-2018, 08:17 PM   #7
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Thanks. So simple and once installed pretty much a once per year event for one or two person's using the bus.

You're welcome.

I'm not sure if I would go that long without an empty and refresh.
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Old 01-29-2018, 09:27 PM   #8
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You're welcome.

I'm not sure if I would go that long without an empty and refresh.
When it stinks then it is gone.
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Old 01-29-2018, 09:34 PM   #9
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60 gallon tank and a drain valve with a 10 ft hose and a urinal. About $950 for a complete one tat is new unassembled. Install it and don't use the roof. The unit is assembled and then you add the roof. Haven't priced the 60 gallon tank and seat by itself. a smart skoolie guy can do this himself if you have a hard time getting under a us and how to make it not look like a johnny on the spot i have no idea. Sanitary and you get a urinal and a door. Maybe buy a used on but it will surely be nasty! I didn't know that some had drain valves.

https://www.allsafetyproducts.com/po...wter-gray.html
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Old 01-29-2018, 10:32 PM   #10
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Dumping black tanks is simply going to far. Yes I've had one, and that led me to choose any other way.

While dumping it's good to wear eye protection and be sure to keep your mouth closed. Occasional splashes, you know?

You could make a vent tube from your black tank and plumb it to a gas lamp. Free light. Not unlike propane, this also has a noticeable odor.
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Old 01-29-2018, 11:41 PM   #11
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Dumping black tanks is simply going to far.

While dumping it's good to wear eye protection and be sure to keep your mouth closed. Occasional splashes, you know?
Nasty jobs like that are the only reason I had kids. You'd be amazed what a teenager will do for more data.
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Old 01-30-2018, 08:56 AM   #12
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What in the world are you guys doing that makes dumping the tank so bad???

There aren't many easier or cleaner jobs. You connect a hose, pull a lever. What's so nasty about that?

I started my RV life wearing gloves for the job because people said to. I don't even do that anymore. It's so easy even a caveman could do it.
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Old 01-30-2018, 08:58 AM   #13
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Can anyone give me any insight on building one? I think i would be way ahead in my case to find a junk bus and get the stainless steel top seat platform.
I don't know anything about a "pit toilet" but, assuming you don't want a holding tank, have you looked at the composting toilets?
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Old 01-30-2018, 09:03 AM   #14
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What in the world are you guys doing that makes dumping the tank so bad???

There aren't many easier or cleaner jobs. You connect a hose, pull a lever. What's so nasty about that?

I started my RV life wearing gloves for the job because people said to. I don't even do that anymore. It's so easy even a caveman could do it.
That's what I'm sayin!
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Old 01-30-2018, 09:13 AM   #15
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I don't know anything about a "pit toilet" but, assuming you don't want a holding tank, have you looked at the composting toilets?
I have nothing against a holding tank . Composting toilets still require physical labor of the arms and legs to service them. irrc.
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Old 01-30-2018, 09:52 AM   #16
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What in the world are you guys doing that makes dumping the tank so bad???

There aren't many easier or cleaner jobs. You connect a hose, pull a lever. What's so nasty about that?

I started my RV life wearing gloves for the job because people said to. I don't even do that anymore. It's so easy even a caveman could do it.
JD,

You are a fortunate man.....

Over the ten years that I have lived full time in an RV I have dumped my black tank MANY times. It has gone as you described 99% of the time.

The 1% is enough for me to be determined to never have a black tank again.

To be accurate, eight years of black tank dumping and two years of composting toilet.

To each their own but I will stick with my composting toilet.

To the OP: As JD suggested, before you make your final decision, explore composting toilets and see if that may suit your needs.
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Old 01-30-2018, 10:52 AM   #17
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I have nothing against a holding tank . Composting toilets still require physical labor of the arms and legs to service them. irrc.
The only physical labor is reaching in and pulling out a 5 gallon bucket or 1 gallon milk jug.
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Old 01-30-2018, 11:18 AM   #18
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The only physical labor is reaching in and pulling out a 5 gallon bucket or 1 gallon milk jug.
Thanks. I viewed this toilet and i still rule them out. I am permanently on crutches. I was using a cane before i fell upside down and was pinned in the stairwell of my bus for awhile. Post Polio Syndrome is catching up with me.
I can do it if i have to but moving a 5 gallon bucket or even a 1 gallon jug is a real chore.

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