Analysis
Below I have used the SWOC analysis method to help clarify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and challenges of the methods of humanure composting I have looked at so far.
The big drop in a container
STRENGTHS
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WEAKNESSES
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OPPORTUNITIES
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CHALLENGES
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The big drop in a hole
STRENGTHS
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WEAKNESSES
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OPPORTUNITIES
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CHALLENGES
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The bucket and compost heap system
STRENGTHS
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WEAKNESSES
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OPPORTUNITIES
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CHALLENGES
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My thoughts on this
Looking at our needs, I felt that the bucket system would be the best for our situation. We needed a toilet that was easy and fast to make, and for the moment at least was only needed for our small family to use. When we have more visitors in the future we may decide to look again if we find a larger volume of waste hard to manage. But for now this will hopefully work really well for us.
An important thing for us was to be conscious to design a system where we would be sure not to leave a problem behind if we were to leave the land earlier than expected. As we can monitor the compost with this design we have the best chance of getting well rotted good compost to use on our fruit trees, hopefully within a year.
I looked at many pictures of these style of toilets to get some inspiration. Here are just afew of the images I found.
Looking at our needs, I felt that the bucket system would be the best for our situation. We needed a toilet that was easy and fast to make, and for the moment at least was only needed for our small family to use. When we have more visitors in the future we may decide to look again if we find a larger volume of waste hard to manage. But for now this will hopefully work really well for us.
An important thing for us was to be conscious to design a system where we would be sure not to leave a problem behind if we were to leave the land earlier than expected. As we can monitor the compost with this design we have the best chance of getting well rotted good compost to use on our fruit trees, hopefully within a year.
I looked at many pictures of these style of toilets to get some inspiration. Here are just afew of the images I found.
A little on pattern language
Here's a pattern map I made showing the relation between some of the elements of this system.
Deciding on the placement of the toilet - Mc Hargs Exclusion method
This method helps you to decide on the best placement of an element, by first deciding where not to place it. By working with the base map of the site, and using a series of map overlays, I can explore where the best place to site the toilet may be.
From using this method of excluding the unsuitable or undesirable areas, it becomes clear that the space above the house will be the most suitable for placing the toilet and compost heap.
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