Most compost toilets don’t actually do the composting within the toilet (if they did, they’d need to be a lot bigger!) so they just collect and manage (keep odours at bay etc) the raw ingredients. To safely and efficiently turn those ingredients into lovely, nutritious compost, you will need somewhere or something to let the composting process happen.

But first, let’s look at the ingredients that make good compost from what many would call ‘waste’ – although I’d prefer to call it an often ‘wasted resource’.

What ingredients does your compost bin need in order to make compost?

Carbon

Dry plant material such as wood shavings or sawdust (from untreated wood), finely chopped plant stalks etc

Nitrogen

Faeces and urine contain relatively large amounts of nitrogen

Air (oxygen)

Using a ‘rough’ carbon source will help trap air in your compost pile. Manually aerating the pile will help get air to where it’s needed.

Water

Composting bacteria can be thristy. A lot of water will come via the nitrogen source, but if your pile gets too dry, composting will be suspended.

Warmth

Composting will be suspended when the temperature drops below around 12ºC. Don’t worry, it’ll start up again when the weather is warmer. Insulated compost bins can help improve the performance in colder weather.

Carbon

Good carbon sources are dry leaves

Momento Mori

Literally translated it means “remember death” or “remember that you must die”, but it’s actually an invitation to reflect on the brevity of life and the vanity of human ambitions.

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