Out House

[Anonymous Poster]

I am thinking of building an outhouse. This one would be a usable one that I might use a 55 gallon drum cut in half for the catch area. Anyone had experiance building an out house?

 

[Gatorboy]

I've thought about it, but have yet to build one.

Here is a website that might be of interest to you:
The Privy Page

 

[rancar]

<font color="blue">I might use a 55 gallon drum cut in half for the catch area. </font>

Are you thinking of a portable or permanent outhouse? How would you empty this drum of waste when filled to capacity? Manually?? If a portable one, then this might be feasible if the outhouse was sitting on a raised platform and the half drum had a separate entrance door from the back that you could readily access for servicing. If a permanent one, then I'd go with an old fashioned hole in the ground, dug deep and at least 100' away from your drinking water supply (drilled well) or at least 150' away (shallow dug well) that would accommodate leaching.

Portable outhouses can be built that are easily transportable by forks on your tractor. Small sinks can also be installed that hook up to your garden hose.

I've never built one myself but I've used them in my younger days on the farm and I've seen others who have built their own.

...Bob

 

[dourobob]

Great site

Almost makes me want to go back to my growing up days - but not quite.

Bob

 

[RanchMan]

<font color="blue">I might use a 55 gallon drum cut in half for the catch area </font>

Hmm. Never seen a "catch area" in an outhouse other than your standard "Port-a-Jon." All of them I've ever seen had a basic earthen pit (sometimes reinforced on the sides) where the "deposits" went. I could see where your drum might work for this if you turn it in to a tube by cutting off one end. (is this what you meant?)

Regardless, here are a couple more links to folks who have more experience than I in this area.

Link 1 Link 2 Link 3 Link 4 Link 5

Hope this helps. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[CTyler]

There are lots of links on building an outhouse. I was thinking on building one on my farm. I'd use the whole drum myself that way you only need to have it pumped much less often if at all. You didn't say how much use it would get.

One of the things I found interesting on one site was the vent pipe. He stated to use black plastic pipe and put it on the South side. This way the heat from the sun creates a natural draft so it doesn't smell inside.

The only problem I see with a straight hole is the sides slowly caving in over time. You could use sinder block, barrels etc.. just something for support. You also want to build up the area under the outhouse for drainage. This prevents rain water from filling up your hole.

Speaking of water, if you have water in your outhouse you'll probably want some kind of a drain field. This could be holes in the barrel but some perf pipe would be better. Of course then you want some kind of a baffle to keep floaters from blocking the hole/pipe. Either that or a seperate barrel just for water.

As for the frame 2x4's would be fine and you can side it with anything. Pressboard siding is cheap but youd need to paint it, you can use 1x or 2x boards, tin etc.. For the base I'd go treated timbers with a place to stick pallet forks if you need/want to move it. Fiberglass for the roof would let in plenty of light.

 

[gator]

The way we did the half drums in the Marine Corps is dump a couple of gallons of diesel in it, add a little gasoline to help ignite the diesel then stir every now and then. When done, bury the ash. Would not recommend cooking hot dogs or marshmallows over the flame though. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[RanchMan]

<font color="blue">Would not recommend cooking hot dogs or marshmallows over the flame though. </font>

/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Probably wouldn't add the same flavor as mesquite chips! /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[CTyler]

Yeah....it would probably taste like crap...LOL!

A couple X military guys here were talking about burning it as well. What a fun detail that would be /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif Never experianced that joy myself.

 

[gotrocks]

This reminded me of a story I heard long ago.
Seems the old family out house pit was getting almost full. At the same time the well driller had gone down 600 feet for the new well but came up dry. Well the young boys whose job it was to look after the out house decided to move it over the "new" "dry" well.

Next morning at breakfast everyone was seated waiting for grandpa but he was not there, after searching everywhere they found him sitting in the out house... dead.

The coroner said he died of Asphyxiation. Then the family remembered,
Grandpa ALWAYS held his breath until he heard the first splash.

Sorry to get off topic /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[MarkV]

/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Anonymous Poster]

i just came back from 9 days in the canadian wilderness
and from experience don't think you need to even think
about this one. get i real toilet or a port-a-jon they come
and clean them out once i week.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I think you and I must of been at the same camp.. .MUDCHUCK.. in Korea... Looking at your dates in I bet we past ways... 1975 - 1995.

 

[Egon]

Toilet paper????

Try some dried grass thats real fine. Nothing but heaven feeling!
Stay away from the slick pages on the cataloges.

Egon.

 

[Chief]

Here is a much more practical outhouse that you can locate in convienient areas throughout the farm or where ever you may need. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif Outhouse

 

[gator]

Maybe, in '91 I was at Dry Net (boy, what a wrong name) about 5 miles from Mc P. It was the ROK Marine boot camp built over an old dump. The dirt was something else, baby powder like dry, but when it rained, it was waist deep mud. We got a 5-ton buried up to the doors in it.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Yep... Mud everwhere.. Muchuck I think was the real name. At the ROK base. We burned all our 55 drums like you discribed. Can't rember the date... I was there a couple of times. Oh.. the good old days and all the crabs in the hooches... lol