AirHead Composting HeadAlto has a composting AirHead toilet (a $1000+ upgrade) that stores solid waste in a removable container. Below, you can see the front “liquid tank” where pee goes to keep it separate from the composting solid materials. The solids tank is filled with peat moss, and aerated after each use by turning the crank you can see below.
Alto’s pee tank now has a valve (not shown) and a thin vinyl hose that goes under the floor to a pump. You to flip a switch to drain the pee tank overboard every couple days, saving the hassle of removing it and carrying it somewhere empty. It’s all legal as urine is sterile and there are no rules forbidding its discharge into the water. But it’s not classy to be seen dumping a tank of pee overboard, not to mention messy in the wind, so Alto’s subtle pump system is appreciated.
Alto’s pee tank now has a valve (not shown) and a thin vinyl hose that goes under the floor to a pump. You to flip a switch to drain the pee tank overboard every couple days, saving the hassle of removing it and carrying it somewhere empty. It’s all legal as urine is sterile and there are no rules forbidding its discharge into the water. But it’s not classy to be seen dumping a tank of pee overboard, not to mention messy in the wind, so Alto’s subtle pump system is appreciated.
The solids tank is directly under the seat and it aerates continually via a vented hose (not shown) using a tiny computer fan that draws very little current. Thus, the contents compost. A couple using this boat for weekend overnight cruising over an entire summer
might empty the compost tank just once at the end of the season. This writer met a couple living on a catamaran who both used their AirHead daily and would empty the tank once a month. At the end of the
season, on Cape Cod, I empty our’s out on the garden, it looks like coffee grounds and doesn’t smell at all.
With daily use, it can take a couple extra weeks to fully compost (you can add cheap enzyme packs to accelerate the process) to the point where it looks and smells like coffee grounds, so the catamaran couple would switch out a spare tank and cover the full tank for a week or two until it fully composted. Of course, Alto comes with a spare tank with a cover, so you can switch out the tanks to allow the full one continue to compost and make it easier to dispose of. That would work for a liveaboard.
So why is this all important? Well, to start with there is no need to worry about calling for a pump out or finding a marina with that service. There is no black water tank to overflow when you lose track–which is gross. Alto carries no sewage at all, which means no plastic fittings, rubber pipes or clamps to eventually leak and smell–and this happens eventually on all freshwater toilet systems. There is no marine head with pumps, gaskets and fittings that needs repair and periodic maintenance.
It is simpler, cleaner and better for the environment. The Coast Guard loves this system when they inspect as there is no sewage hose going to an over-board discharge point to “tie off” as required by the CG. When they randomly inspect boats, they look for a lock (usually a plastic tie) on the discharge hose at the Y-valve, and you get ticket if it is missing. Not a problem at all on Alto. Even in the crystal clear waters of Key West the harbor master approved Alto as ideal.
Without the need for weekly holding tank pump-outs, you can moor in a secluded location for more than a week; we’ve done this on Martha’s Vineyard in Tashmoo pond and in the Florida Keys (pictures in the next section). We don’t run the diesel preferring to use cheap Ryobi (Home Depot) lithium powered fans when its hot, and we just charge them every couple days on Alto’s 12-volt system. Our double-sized solar panels keeps our batteries charged and refrigerator going strong. We use a butane stove for cooking and even heating at times, and skip running the generator to power the range. Although, we would use it for AC on hot, humid nights. Alto is completely self-contained with this head (toilet) and her other systems.
And, perhaps the best feature is that since we bought Alto new– the black water holding tank was never used. We repurposed it to carry an extra 30 gallons of fresh water which we pump into the standard 30 ga. FW tank if needed. The macerator works as a pump, in reverse to do this. No need to ration showers or avoid dish washing. There aren’t many trawlers under 35-40 feet with a 60 gallon FW capacity. Use the generator, or run the main engine for 20 minutes, to heat the 6 gallon hot water tank which stays warm for up to two days for showers. Cool!
Use/Recharge the Solids Tank
Stored under the V-berth to port is a plastic container of peat moss bricks. You can buy them on Amazon or any garden center. They are compressed and need to be “expanded”; so unwrap one and put it in a plastic garbage bag, Break it up a little and add 1.5 cups of water to the bag and let it sit over night. Periodically, break it up by manipulating the contents through the bag, you’ll have to add water at times. You don’t want it mushy or slimy-wet. Just get it to as close as powder-like as you can, and it should be only slightly damp.
Ideally, the solids tank, once removed, sits for a couple weeks to complete its composting. This is why you have a spare solids tank and lid, so you can rotate them. From AirHead you can buy small packets of enzyme to speed this process, there is a packet stored (I believe) under the shower valve. If you’re impatient, just empty the thing on your lawn, garden or in the woods. Hose out the bucket, and then add the new compost from the brick you prepared as described above.
After each use, turn the agitator handle 1/2 turn, to keep air circulating. The air fan is never turned off, it draws almost nothing and the solar panels easily keep up with it. The hose goes under the floor and terminates at a 12v computer fan leading to a round vent on the transom high up. Listen carefully at the transom to make sure the fan is running. If it needs to be replaced (cost is like $20), just remove the plastic bait well and you’ll have easy access to the components. The on/off switch is labelled, and covered to prevent accidentally turning it off, at the circuit breaker panel. Note, the cover pops up, so you can turn it off when storing the boat on-the-hard for a winter.
The mulch should last for close to a whole summer season for a couple using the boat every weekend. Or, if a single person is living aboard, it might last two–three weeks with two uses per day, or even longer.
Tip: It is feasible that some form of bug can get into the solids tank; e.g., lay larvae in the mulch just like might happen in your garden mulch bin at home. A precaution is to add a couple table spoons of diatomaceous earth (find a bin of it under the bathroom sink). This is, I believe, from ancient seashells and is made up of tiny razor sharp particles. As you agitate the solids tanks, the earth literally cuts up the larvae (or insects) and then they mulch like any other organic matter.
Using the Urine Tank
The pee tank never needs removal. Leave it hooked up to the hose leading under the floor to the starboard cockpit floor lazarette. You’ll see the tube going to a long, think pump. The pump has no neoprene in it, as urine gradually dissolves neoprene. If you ever need to replace the pump, get the make and model # off the pump. Wires lead to the circuit breaker panel where there is a switch to turn it on and empty the pee tank. You’ll hear when it runs dry, and turn off the pump at that point.
The discharge of urine overboard is at the hull fitting where the macerator normally would discharge sewage from the holding tank. There is not sewage in the holding tank on Alto, so the sewage overboard hose was removed, and the thin urine tube was diverted to that port (shown at the red arrow below) for urine tank discharge. It is unnoticeable when used, seeming to be like any other boat’s grey water discharged from the side of the boat when using the sink or shower. Flip the switch for a minute and your tank empties, discharging sterile urine overboard.
So why is this all important? Well, to start with there is no need to worry about calling for a pump out or finding a marina with that service. There is no black water tank to overflow when you lose track–which is gross. Alto carries no sewage at all, which means no plastic fittings, rubber pipes or clamps to eventually leak and smell–and this happens eventually on all freshwater toilet systems. There is no marine head with pumps, gaskets and fittings that needs repair and periodic maintenance.
It is simpler, cleaner and better for the environment. The Coast Guard loves this system when they inspect as there is no sewage hose going to an over-board discharge point to “tie off” as required by the CG. When they randomly inspect boats, they look for a lock (usually a plastic tie) on the discharge hose at the Y-valve, and you get ticket if it is missing. Not a problem at all on Alto. Even in the crystal clear waters of Key West the harbor master approved Alto as ideal.
Without the need for weekly holding tank pump-outs, you can moor in a secluded location for more than a week; we’ve done this on Martha’s Vineyard in Tashmoo pond and in the Florida Keys (pictures in the next section). We don’t run the diesel preferring to use cheap Ryobi (Home Depot) lithium powered fans when its hot, and we just charge them every couple days on Alto’s 12-volt system. Our double-sized solar panels keeps our batteries charged and refrigerator going strong. We use a butane stove for cooking and even heating at times, and skip running the generator to power the range. Although, we would use it for AC on hot, humid nights. Alto is completely self-contained with this head (toilet) and her other systems.
And, perhaps the best feature is that since we bought Alto new– the black water holding tank was never used. We repurposed it to carry an extra 30 gallons of fresh water which we pump into the standard 30 ga. FW tank if needed. The macerator works as a pump, in reverse to do this. No need to ration showers or avoid dish washing. There aren’t many trawlers under 35-40 feet with a 60 gallon FW capacity. Use the generator, or run the main engine for 20 minutes, to heat the 6 gallon hot water tank which stays warm for up to two days for showers. Cool!
Use/Recharge the Solids Tank
Stored under the V-berth to port is a plastic container of peat moss bricks. You can buy them on Amazon or any garden center. They are compressed and need to be “expanded”; so unwrap one and put it in a plastic garbage bag, Break it up a little and add 1.5 cups of water to the bag and let it sit over night. Periodically, break it up by manipulating the contents through the bag, you’ll have to add water at times. You don’t want it mushy or slimy-wet. Just get it to as close as powder-like as you can, and it should be only slightly damp.
Ideally, the solids tank, once removed, sits for a couple weeks to complete its composting. This is why you have a spare solids tank and lid, so you can rotate them. From AirHead you can buy small packets of enzyme to speed this process, there is a packet stored (I believe) under the shower valve. If you’re impatient, just empty the thing on your lawn, garden or in the woods. Hose out the bucket, and then add the new compost from the brick you prepared as described above.
After each use, turn the agitator handle 1/2 turn, to keep air circulating. The air fan is never turned off, it draws almost nothing and the solar panels easily keep up with it. The hose goes under the floor and terminates at a 12v computer fan leading to a round vent on the transom high up. Listen carefully at the transom to make sure the fan is running. If it needs to be replaced (cost is like $20), just remove the plastic bait well and you’ll have easy access to the components. The on/off switch is labelled, and covered to prevent accidentally turning it off, at the circuit breaker panel. Note, the cover pops up, so you can turn it off when storing the boat on-the-hard for a winter.
The mulch should last for close to a whole summer season for a couple using the boat every weekend. Or, if a single person is living aboard, it might last two–three weeks with two uses per day, or even longer.
Tip: It is feasible that some form of bug can get into the solids tank; e.g., lay larvae in the mulch just like might happen in your garden mulch bin at home. A precaution is to add a couple table spoons of diatomaceous earth (find a bin of it under the bathroom sink). This is, I believe, from ancient seashells and is made up of tiny razor sharp particles. As you agitate the solids tanks, the earth literally cuts up the larvae (or insects) and then they mulch like any other organic matter.
Using the Urine Tank
The pee tank never needs removal. Leave it hooked up to the hose leading under the floor to the starboard cockpit floor lazarette. You’ll see the tube going to a long, think pump. The pump has no neoprene in it, as urine gradually dissolves neoprene. If you ever need to replace the pump, get the make and model # off the pump. Wires lead to the circuit breaker panel where there is a switch to turn it on and empty the pee tank. You’ll hear when it runs dry, and turn off the pump at that point.
The discharge of urine overboard is at the hull fitting where the macerator normally would discharge sewage from the holding tank. There is not sewage in the holding tank on Alto, so the sewage overboard hose was removed, and the thin urine tube was diverted to that port (shown at the red arrow below) for urine tank discharge. It is unnoticeable when used, seeming to be like any other boat’s grey water discharged from the side of the boat when using the sink or shower. Flip the switch for a minute and your tank empties, discharging sterile urine overboard.
General Use
You’ll find a spray bottle with a mix of 50/50 (25/75 is adequate) vinegar to water. Set the spray to mist to clean the AirHead after use, or twist the bottle’s valve to a narrow spray to clean any spots of residue in the head after use. No touching or scrubbing is needed.
Try not to put toilet paper in, as it tends to wrap around the stainless steel agitator. Camping stores sell easily digested toilet paper, but it is very thin and of little substance. Best to just stick TP in a plastic shopping bag, store the bag somewhere out-of-sight and dump it when ashore.
When leaving Alto, after emptying the pee tank pour a quart of 25/50 vinegar to water solution into the toilet and use the pump to run it through the system just to neutralize the uric acid in the hoses. Uric acid can crystalize over time (like Gout) blocking the tubing.
Remember to OPEN the hatch when preparing to use the solids tank. You’ll only forget once, as it is a significant clean up using a lot of vinegar solution if you don’t! Close the hatch before urinating, as that direct the urine to the front urine tank, rather than allowing it to go into the solids tank where it interferes with the composting. Not a big deal if you do that once or twice.
You’ll find a spray bottle with a mix of 50/50 (25/75 is adequate) vinegar to water. Set the spray to mist to clean the AirHead after use, or twist the bottle’s valve to a narrow spray to clean any spots of residue in the head after use. No touching or scrubbing is needed.
Try not to put toilet paper in, as it tends to wrap around the stainless steel agitator. Camping stores sell easily digested toilet paper, but it is very thin and of little substance. Best to just stick TP in a plastic shopping bag, store the bag somewhere out-of-sight and dump it when ashore.
When leaving Alto, after emptying the pee tank pour a quart of 25/50 vinegar to water solution into the toilet and use the pump to run it through the system just to neutralize the uric acid in the hoses. Uric acid can crystalize over time (like Gout) blocking the tubing.
Remember to OPEN the hatch when preparing to use the solids tank. You’ll only forget once, as it is a significant clean up using a lot of vinegar solution if you don’t! Close the hatch before urinating, as that direct the urine to the front urine tank, rather than allowing it to go into the solids tank where it interferes with the composting. Not a big deal if you do that once or twice.
<– Previous Page ––– Next Page –>
