I Google-Own Incinerator Toilet
I’m now the proud owner of the top link on Google for the search terms incinerator toilet. I thank each and every one of you who has searched on that phrase (or “incinerating toilet” or “Incinolet” or “toilet that incinerates”) and then clicked through to read my story about the incinerating toilet at our cabin. Being a mover and shaker in the lofty realm of incinerating toilets has been a lifelong dream of mine, and I can hardly believe that it has finally happened (wipes tear from eye). Maybe it will all sink in after I get a cease and desist letter from Incinolet.
My main wish, though, is that I could get Google to drop the link to the story on my old weblog. Most people click that link, to no surprise, instead of the indented one that links to the story on this weblog. I recently replaced the story on my old weblog with a page that just redirects to the story on this blog.
In case you’re curious about the world-wide demand for incinerator toilet info, I get an average of five visitors a day who follow a link to my site after searching on some form of incinerating toilet related criteria.
January 13th, 2003 at 5:54 pm
Here’s what Robert DIDN’T tell you:
“The waste gases from an incinerator toilet have some odor and, under certain atmospheric conditions, may settle to the ground and be objectionable to occupants or neighbors. There have been reports along lakeshore areas, where temperature inversions are common, of incinerator toilets causing serious odor problems. The firepot requires regular cleaning to remove ashes and other residue and will need to be periodically replaced, depending upon the amount of use.”
(see, for example, http://septic.coafes.umn.edu/SystemOptions/Separation.html )
January 13th, 2003 at 8:15 pm
Shhhh, Paul. I told the neighbors that the smell is coming from roadkill on Interstate 80.
With our fine Incinolet brand incinerating toilet, full time use by two people would require only a once or twice a week emptying of the ashpan. As the detailed marketing brochure informs us, “Ash is inorganic, has no plant food value, may be disposed of in garbage can.”
June 25th, 2003 at 8:34 am
I agree with Paul. Have you ever peed in a smoldering campfire and then wished you hadn’t? That’s what the incinolet burning cycle smells like outdoors.
September 10th, 2003 at 7:30 pm
Right-o. I’m desperately looking for an incinerating toilet. I live on a boat. I’m on a limited budget and I’ll happily take a used one.
Sorry if this is an inappropriate place to ask for help, but HELP! Incinolet is kinda pricey for me. That’s all I’ve really found.
Thanks!
September 11th, 2003 at 10:33 pm
Now, if this isn’t the place to be asking about incinerating toilets, I don’t know where is.
As of Sept. 11, 2003, you’ve got 8 days left to bid on an Incinolet on EBay. Bidding started at $600 and is now up to $620. This appears to be the same model we have. The seller claims it’s worth $1000 and it would retail for $1750.
January 17th, 2004 at 11:56 pm
I have been looking for an incinerating toilet for my RV. Incinolet tells me this would work well. Reading their site info, the incinolet is oderless, and efficient(see the pretty lady smiling, standing next to the Incinolet as she presses the AfterBurner button).
All the info from users states that they stink and break down a lot. Is this so??? What gives??? Is this a good selection for an RV???
Cd
January 19th, 2004 at 11:01 pm
There is a noticeable odor for an hour or two after you run a burn cycle. I don’t know if this varies with the climate, the altitude (6100 feet at my place), or diet, but the smell reminds me most of french fries cooked in slightly rancid oil. Hmmm, I do always stop at In-n-Out Burger in Auburn on the way up there. Never mind.
In my opinion, the smell really isn’t that bad. At the very least, it is way, way better than the smell of a composting toilet. My recommendation, assuming you decide it makes sense to buy one, would be to make sure it is really well vented. Also, you may want to try to park where as few people as possible (at least people you like) are immediately downwind. For the occasional inside smells, a can of odor neutralizing aerosol spray works great.
As far as reliability, we have yet to have a problem with it, even after someone accidentally dropped a metal rod into it during a burn cycle. We’ve had the cabin only a little over a year, though.
I haven’t really tried to figure out how much current it draws when running. If you try to use it while running off a battery, you might have a problem. I don’t know much about RVs.
November 27th, 2004 at 4:09 pm
Incoinolet sounds good to me??? I’m buying a house that has one but don’t know how to use it or geta boklet from somebody?????
March 27th, 2005 at 8:28 pm
For usage instruction or owner’s manuals, check http://www.incinolet.com . That’s where you’ll find it.
April 3rd, 2005 at 11:28 am
I live on a boat. My neighbor at the marina has an Incinolet. It smells and ashes fall over my boat. I think it is rude and selfish that my neighbor has no concern for others. Any comments would be appreciated. thanks
April 3rd, 2005 at 10:06 pm
Yeah, based on my experience with the incinerating toilet at my cabin in the woods, I don’t think I would put one on a boat in a marina, assuming other boats were close by. We have only one close by neighbor, and their cabin is about 250 feet away from ours. Their cabin is also about 30 feet lower in elevation, so I expect it’s pretty rare that they would ever smell the exhaust from our toilet. They’ve certainly never mentioned it to us.
I’m kind of surprised about the ashes coming out of the vent. Maybe your neighbor hasn’t done a very good job of venting it or the toilet is just defective. I have never seen ashes coming out of the vent of ours. Then again, maybe he has done too good of a job of venting it, and he has a fan that is sucking up the ashes, instead of allowing them to just settle at the bottom of the pan.
At least for the ashes, maybe you could ask your neighbor to put a better cap on the exhaust pipe. We have a spark arrester on the chimney that has a screen that is supposed to catch hot ash. Maybe he can find a vent cap with a tight enough screen to catch the ashes.
As for the smell, I’m not sure what to suggest, other than to set up a big fan that blows back toward his boat. I don’t want to suggest an escalating arms race, though. That seems to always end up bad for both sides.
August 26th, 2005 at 8:50 am
Just found this blog and I am seriously looking into
an Incinolet. I had a Sun-Mar in a cabin on the
an island and I hated it! If for some reason it
wasn’t quite working properly etc. Cleaning it
was really gross. Not for me. What’s the usual
cost of one for a small cabin.
February 28th, 2006 at 5:44 pm
Is it possible to use something other than the paper liners that Incinolet supplies? Maybe newspaper or something?
March 1st, 2006 at 10:18 am
I suspect you could, but the main value of the Incinolet liners is that they have just enough water proofing to not let liquids seep through until you have had time to finish up and open the trap doors (which, by tradition, must be accompanied by a shout of “Release the hounds!”). Since regular paper absorbs liquids quickly, the steel doors would get wet, making for more clean up work. Too much water proofing, though, and the liners might not break down completely to ash.
Also, there is the issue of any dangerous chemicals that might be released by burning an alternative liner, such as sheets from a roll of regular household waxed paper. Of course, I’m just assuming that burning the Incinolet liners doesn’t release hazardous chemicals. I really have no idea.
June 24th, 2006 at 4:29 am
heys wells the thing is i wanted to know WHICH TOILET PAPER BRAND ABSORBS THE MOST and you didn’t give me that ????
May 2nd, 2008 at 4:59 am
I don’t know about all this, I was thinking about getting two, one for our farm and the other for a pool house, since our home is stone and it would be almost impossible to get water lines, septic etc. through the wall. But hey on the bright side we do still have a 2 hole privy, WPA style, and I think if the wasps and hornets will let us, we will just use it and save some money and headache, and when the pit gets full the honey wagon can back right up and drop a line. Thanks for the info.
February 21st, 2009 at 6:22 pm
Hi, all.
I’m planning to build an RV for travel through South America (where I live). There are no RV facilities down here, and hence no place to empty a black water tank. It would seem that an Incinolet would solve the problem.
HOWEVER – wouldn’t it make a lot more sense to be able to use a propane burner instead of electricity from an on-board generator???
Any suggestions from knowledgeable readers?
Thanks
February 22nd, 2009 at 11:32 pm
Check out the comments on one of my other related posts.
April 6th, 2009 at 11:05 pm
hi im planning on using a small wood stove..
place a stainless heavy guage pot in it …
with waste in a bio bag…placed in it….
plumb a propane nozzelburner thru the sidewall of stove,,and pointed into the pot…and was thinking of a second smaller ring burner placed above the pot..to act as a oder baker.. as it rises up and out…
…use stainless vent pipe with 1 90 degree bend out then up..
the stove is an air tight style …
use timer to remind to turn off propane…
anyone with ideas and pictures.. please mail me…
this is for small waterfront cabin..for boater friends to useon shore..by dock.
paul skypilot340@hotmail.com
September 15th, 2009 at 5:51 am
I’ve had the 220 volt (industrial) Incinolet in my cabin for several years. It does give off an odor when burning but is much better than dealing with the composting toilet installed previously. The main problem is capacity. We sometimes have 25 or 30 people over after a bike ride for a pot luck. Needless to say, the ladies don’t like it when liquid in the pot over flows. This has happened even when I make sure that the burn cycle is on constantly. The rule during the party is: go in the woods unless you NEED to use the pot. For perspective, the women prefer the woods to the over flowing pot.