Why We Chose an Air Head Composting Toilet
The day has finally come…our composting toilet is here! Though we knew we’d likely switch to a composting toilet when we bought Rhiannon, we didn’t actually plan for it at the time.
It was later we realized that our bathroom was way too small, and we'd have to buy a different RV to make our composting dreams come true.
Enter the Air Head Composting Toilet.
This system is pretty much perfect for our needs, at least we hope it will be. Don’t worry we’re going to be sharing our experience with this system as we get used to it over the next few weeks.
For now, we’re going to share all the reasons we went with an Air Head instead of keeping our Sealand Dometic or getting a Nature’s Head Composting Toilet. We’re also going to share our first impressions and mishaps.
*Before we get started, we want to make it clear that we are not affiliated with Air Head in any way. We do not receive any kind of compensation for writing this. We are customers of Air Head, and strive to keep all of our opinions and reviews as objective as possible.
Why A Composting Toilet?
Here are the tanks - when the seat is on, it automatically separates liquids into the front and solids into the back.
As Camp Hosts, we typically have full-hookups. We invested in this system because we want to, eventually, explore the coveted boondocking and travel more in the coming years. This is only going to be possible if Loren has a reliable bathroom setup that isn’t ever compromised by whether we have hookups or not.
A composting toilet with a diversion system automatically separates liquids and solids, thus eliminating the normal sewer system found in RVs. Anyone that uses an RV regularly probably has a story or two about the black tank. We certainly do… things can go very wrong with a black tank. Very… very… very wrong. Even when they’re going right, it still puts you and your family in close contact with raw sewage. Enough said.
So, why is it so great for dry camping? It doesn’t use any water, making your fresh tank last much longer. According to Air Head’s website, the solids tank should last about one month for two full-timers (compared to a week with a traditional RV black tank). The liquid tank has to be emptied more frequently. We opted for the smaller liquid tank, but the normal one should get two people through 2-4 days.
To sum up:
no black tank
no sewage
no leaks
dumping monthly (instead of weekly)
no fresh water usage (better for us and earth)
more free-camping
Why the Air Head?
Because our floor is not even with the wooden base the toilet sits on, we had to wedge some paper under the liquid tank for it to seal properly. We’ll be adding tile and paint soon, and come up with a better solution for the tank to seal.
In our initial research we mostly found information on the Nature’s Head, and assumed it was a one of kind setup. This was a bummer after we measured our bathroom space, and found it is WAY too big for our RV.
Then one day, a random google search showed us the Air Head. This system is the same type of self-contained diversion toilet, but available in different sizes with lots of customizable options. The Air Head was originally designed for boats, which have even smaller bathrooms than RVs. We were able to order a marine-style seat that is compact enough for our tiny bathroom. They do also have a regular RV seat option. Though it’s smaller than competitors, it’s capacity is not compromised.
Another big bonus for Air Head is that they designed it so you can dump the liquids without taking the toilet apart or lifting the seat. This is pretty great, since we got the smaller tank. The whole thing is round, which (according to their website) makes dumping easier. We think it looks nice too.
A few more perks of the AirHead - it was the original self-contained diversion composting toilet, it’s made in the USA, and it’s priced at $1029 (comparable to other composting diversion systems).
First Impressions & Mishaps
We’ve been using this toilet for about a week now, so we’re still getting used to it. We can say that there are no odors. Seriously. NONE. Even after reading other people’s reviews, we had our doubts. The liquid tank doesn't smell-we add a splash of vinegar to it after each empty and the odor is neutralized. It smells less than our black tank setup and even less than residential toilets we’ve had in the past. Of course it’s only been a week, so we’ll be sharing more of our experience over the next month.
I would recommend the larger tank if you’re full-timing. Our little one gallon over-flowed the second day. Oops! OK, it sounds really bad, but think about an over-flowing residential toilet or a black tank back up. I’ll take the small pee mess over that any day. We plan on getting the two gallon tank soon, so we won’t have to empty it so often. It’s not difficult to empty, as you can just unscrew it and remove it without adjusting the rest of the toilet. As of now, I’m emptying it every morning and evening, so it never gets very full.
It’s too soon to tell when we’ll need to dump the solids tank. Don’t worry, we’ll soon be sharing all about that experience… if you’re interested.
Would you ever get a composting toilet? Why or why not? Leave us a comment below!