Reducing toilet smells
Hi. After lockdown ends, to stay safe, lots of us are going to have to use our loos for all of our bodily functions instead of using the toilet blocks (as we do at the moment). I will come straight out with it, is there any way of reducing poo smells while you are using the chemical toilet?
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1. Open bathroom window.
2. Eat less baked beans, Jerusalem artichokes etc..
3. Don’t open bathroom door for at least 30 mins later.
4. Don’t let this spoil your time away, after being in lockdown for what seems like forever, a temporary pong is a minor issue..
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We use the normal blue chemical in the holding tank and diluted Zoflora for sanitising the bowl and don't have any issues. As already said, keep bathroom door closed and open the window and/or roof light. You could also keep a spray of something with a pleasant fragrance handy.
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The most important tip is to open the slide before you start, this way the solids fall into the water below (just like at home) minimising the smell.
Some people will suggest lining the bowl with paper and only opening the slide on completion but this is the worst way of all.
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SOG toilets claim to do away with smells due to the extract fan creating a partial vacuum in the pan when the seat is closed and venting the air through a filter to the outside of the van. They use no chemicals.
I would be interested to know whether they work although I imagine a retrofit would be quite costly.0 -
We have been using our own facilities for the last 30 years, with no issues. It’s about getting the tank mix right, (we now use a couple of washing bio pods), line the bowl for other than a wee, flush with pink liquid, empty at least every couple of days, and to be honest, just get on with it. It’s a human bodily function, every single human being has to do it............
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Using the biopods the smells are minimal from the toilet. We did think we had a problem but it was actually the smell from the hand basin drain. Putting the plug firmly in and some tank freshener in the waste sorted that. There are no windows in our bathroom just the roof light. We always open this. If rain should come in it just goes down the shower drain. We also have a pleasant smelly thing, that lives in the cupboard when traveling.
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I can honestly say I’m not thinking about it and never have. It’s part of life🤷🏻♂️
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I will come straight out with it, is there any way of reducing poo smells while you are using the chemical toilet?
That is the best way I find
But rather than being a chore turn it into something more pleasurable, read the CAMC magazine and it will have you out of there in no time 
Besides the window being open we also have a scented spray push type thingy, but even that meets its match at times.
After years of marriage it just isn't a problem anymore 👍
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Chemicals should mask the odour. A chemical free solution, and the one I advise, is to fit a SOG system. This breaks down the waste and vents the smell. However, if you go down this route, ensure you change the charcoal filter otherwise you will simply be exporting your smells to the pitch next to you.
Emptying the cassette more frequently may help.
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I doubt that you are the only one thinking about it, but I also don’t think it’s a big issue. It might be for someone with mobility issues, given the limitations of space of some onboard bathrooms, but as far as a simple bodily function goes, you simply just need to get used to dealing with it as a simple fact of life, get the science and emptying bit right and you are away. It’s a whole lot easier, warmer and less of a faff than traipsing off to the communal loos at 4am in the morning.
The other thing of course is that if you are used to using your bathroom for storage, you might need to travel a tad lighter. Given the weather at the moment, you could safely leave the outdoor chairs, table, cadac, swingball, Etc.... at home😁
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We used to use chemical toilet additive in the rinse tank and waste cassette. About 10 yeras ago we came across people (mainly Germans at that time) using a SOG system. We thought they were typical Germans and very tight with their money in the house keeping department, but eventually realised that this was the right way to deal with the issue. We also came across ceramic toilet bowls used often by the same people and these are much cleaner than the plastic ones, because they rinse easily. They are very easy to clean just as at home.
We have had ceramic toilet in our caravans ever since, and always a SOG. We stopped using the horrible smelling chemicals which we find are worse than the smell they are trying to hide. A properly installed SOG, used correctly, is the cleanest and most hygenic system. We get no smell in the caravan and we dont use chemicals.
The SOG system evacuates air and odour from the toilet bowl, and partly from the toilet room. Anyone who has used a toilet on a ferry or an aircraft has experienced the same thing.
Air moving over the matter in the cassette breaks down the solids in the cassette quickly. When it's time to empty the cassette there is a short time of smell at the disposal point. Not a smell of horrible chemical, but of decomposing human waste. So what? That's what it is and it will not hurt anyone. Whistle a happy tune whilst pouring and all will be fine.
For those with a plastic toilet bowl the rinse water really needs a small amount of additive in the rinse reservoir to soften the water and help clean the bowl and leave a coating on the surface of the bowl. This makes the surface slippier, and avoids staining. A bio toilet pod is fine for that, Avoid softener as this can clog the rinse pump and may solidify when the reservoir is drained.
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@Obbernockle: Anyone who has used a toilet on a ferry or ....
Toilets I've used on ferries have use the same/similar set up to a Grey Funnel Liner ie it uses some of the sea water it's sat on/in to flush the toilet. Grey Funnel Liners used to just flush overboard .... they might very well have improved over the years 🙄
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Nor our MH. I don't think it would make the drinking water taste very nice.😂 It has the advantage that you don't run out of flush water unexpectedly. Plus the pink fluid used to cause horrible black bits, that took lots of tank flushing to get rid of.
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Thanks for the comprehensive reply. I have a C400 series Thetford toilet and had never heard of the SOG system until this thread so I'm grateful for you and the others who have mentioned it. Sounds like a good solution to me. The two options seem to be vent through the door or through the floor. Either would be fine for me as our awning doesn't cover the cadette door. I wondered whether you've fitted the kit yourself or whether you got someone to fit it? If you did it yourself, how easy was it? I'm pretty good at DIY but don't mind paying someone local to Cardiff to do it.
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We always use our own toilet. Neutradol gel, the one in the little white pot is the best for smells we have found. They do a regular and stronger one. Cheap and lasts for ages. Keep the box and foil lid and pack away for travelling. Always use the proper chemicals and leave a little of the pink liquid after.
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I have fitted the same kit to 3 caravans since 2008. They have all had the door outlet. Leave the filter housing in the door when you sell the caravan and re-use the rest of the kit. Have a look on the SOG uk web site and you will see the models for different toilets and the installation. Provided you are a reasonable DIYer you should be fine. I change our carbon filter once a year when I deep clean the toilet grey waste and fresh water installations. We were doing about 140-150 nights per year including 3 months or so in Spain/Portugal each winter until recently, but last year we did 70 nights (getting older) so the kit gives good service for the cost. Weve had the SOG kit for 12 years, so 1450 nights is not a bad for the original £111. We are stil using the original air pump!
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Always amazes me why owners have a mental block regarding using the on board toilet facilities, they are absolutely brilliant we have a Coachman 675 Laser 2019 and it is beautiful, flush toilet an amazing size shower, heated, carpeted its stunning, why would you not use your own bathroom. We mainly use caravan and motor home sites and the facilities are excellent but we very rarely use them, I know we pay for them so some people will say we are wasting our money but if its the site you like there is no option. we do use club sites with no facilities without a problem. We have no issues with smells of any kind, no more than you get at home.
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How much do you put in? We use Zoflora for certain jobs and its excellent but its quite expensive.
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Use water - empty waste - fetch more water. Backwards and forwards all day long, although a bit easier with a motorhome. That’s why people use the sanitation blocks but needs must.
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