Waterless toilets provide the route to a truly sustainable future. Water is not needed to transport human waste . Since the birth of mankind gravity has been the only form of transport until the invention of the water closet . The use of water in toilets introduced a whole range of problems, removing the waste from the water to providing the water and the infrastructure to remove the waste. Rota-Loo circumvents all these problems. The Rota-Loo safely and hygienically decomposes waste into a valuable organic compost without using water Rota-Loo has a variety of toilet pans , they look similar
to a standard toilet pan however they all differ in that they have no trap full of water, just a 200mm diameter outlet. Rota-Loo have glass fibre pans for public facilities and ceramic (china) pans for the home. The waste falls into a tank (made from recycled polythene ) in which there are six removable storage bins . There is a door on the side of tank through which the bins are removed for emptying. Inside the tank there is a frame which holds the bins and is manually rotated once the bin is full (hence the name Rota-Loo). The bins are filled sequentially, once all are full the first one will have returned to its starting position. If the instructions have been followed the contents will have transformed into a
humus rich soil enhancing compost. The door is opened and the bin is simply lifted out and tipped into a small hole in the garden and then returned. It could not be easier, no digging out no bending , no raking. We understand the composting process so we have designed the technology to make life easy for the user Installation Rota-Loo installation is easy if you follow the instructions. The base unit ideally needs warmth to function effectively, this can come from careful siting to allow the sun to warm the unit or insulation or both. We suggest to allow a minimum of 300mm above the unit and the underside of the floor joists to allow easy connection of the waste chute . Any less than this allows the contents to become visible when the bin fills. We also suggest that no lamp is hung/fixed directly above the pan for the same reason. An excellent source of information on composting Human Waste is “Humanure handbook” by Joseph Jenkins which is available on the internet.
Sizes
Rota-Loos come in three sizes the 650 which is 650mm tall and 1200 in diameter. This is for two person use as the northern European climate reduces its speed of composting . The 950 which is for families of up to six
and is suitable for continuous use the bins have twice the volume of the 650 Check with your distributor as to which Rota-Loo is most suitable for your needs. It is possible to attach two pedestals to the 950 allowing and upstairs and downstairs facilities .
One of the most significant benefits of the Rota-Loo system is its ability to use spare bins. If an installation receives a shock loading and all the bins become full before the first has fully composted, a spare bin can be put in its place and the other removed to finish composting in a safe place.
The other units available in the Rota-Loo range and for which separate brochures are available are the Mobile Rota-Loo the Traila-Loo and the Remota-Loo , as a transportable or high altitude composting toilet, The Maxi Rota-Loo, for commercial facilities normally installed with a Soltran Building™.
Why are there No Smells?
Some people think that all composting toilets smell. This is definitely not the case with the Rota-Loo system. The smell that one normally associates with sewerage or septic tanks is actually caused by anaerobic bacteria, these are formed when too much water or liquid is mixed with urine and faecal material. As the Rota-Loo is a waterless system it is designed not to replicate the same conditions as in a septic system. Each of the six internal composting bins has a geo-textile filter material in the bottom. The Geo-textile material has a flow rate of around 300 litres per second per square meter and a mesh density of 175 microns, which means that liquids and oxygen can pass through
whilst not allowing any solids (larger than 0.175mm) to get through. This means that all solids are retained in the bin and liquids are allowed to separate. From this it is plain to see that the process is aerobic and smells are minimised.
Fan
The Rota-Loo system has a fan which operates 24hours per day. Air is continually being pulled through the Rota-Loo and discharged via the vent pipe, this creates a negative pressure at the pedestal and a small amount of air is drawn in from the toilet room. . With the Rota-Loo system the air in the toilet room is always fresh because any odours are taken away down the waste chute during and after use. Fans are supplied to suit most power systems from 12V to 240V . The 12V fan uses 7w of electricity.
Evaporation and Rates of Composting:
A continuous airflow helps to evaporate liquid., which has drained through the bin and is stored in the base of the Rota-loo under the bins. Complete evaporation is achieved through a combination of factors. A high differential between the ambient temperature of the liquid inside the system and the air temperature which passes over the surface of the liquid as well as the volume and rate of air change. For every 10 degrees of heat that can be generated or brought into the system the composting rate can be doubled and the evaporation rate significantly increased. The site and installation of the Rota-Loo is therefore very important. The air inlet for the Rota-Loo should be placed in an area or position where naturally warmed air occurs and the system should be insulated, preferably in adedicated room. Where possible small Soltran™ modules can be incorporated into the building design to provide the ultimate environment for the composting system. Not everyone is able to provide the best possible position or enviroment for their new proposed composting toilet so please ask if advice is required.
Toilet pedestal (pan) options
We have developed of the “Separating Pedestal” . This separates the urinefrom the faeces. The separating pedestalcan help in the elimination of odours whilstincreasing the rate of decomposition(regardless of the temperature range) andproduce a reusable product.This development increases the range ofinstallation possibilities and can ensure ahigh degree of operating efficiency,because when urine is taken out of the composting process the Carbon to Nitrogen ratio is much closer to its optimum relationship. The amount of liquid in the pile will be significantly reduced leaving the system in an aerobic condition and the Urine can be stored separately to be used as a natural organic fertilizer.
A Cutaway view of the Rota Loo one of the World’s finest composting toilets
Need to know more about this system of composting toilet them please contact us
http://www.scrollart.co.uk/rotaloo.htm
