The Compo Closet Cuddy Composting Bathroom

Sara Baird investigates a conveyable various in composting bathrooms with the Compo Closet Cuddy.

This summer time I wrote about testing out a composting rest room and the liberty it supplied after we went tent tenting.  I liked having the identical freedom from utilizing an outhouse or ready in line for the bogs we had when tenting in a Camper with a rest room with out the trouble of hauling a camper.

The dear composting rest room I reviewed was small and designed for portability, it labored completely for tenting for a couple of days and as a backup when a full lavatory was not obtainable.  I had thought-about utilizing it in our camper transform however after we journey in our camper we regularly keep locations the place we fully depend on our camper lavatory and whereas it could work I didn’t assume it could be supreme.

When Compo Closet reached out to see if I needed to check out their Cuddy Composting rest room, I believed it may very well be the answer that we had been searching for.

Compo Closet

Richard Peter dreamed up Compo Closet throughout his time as a traveler.  As he explored choices for bogs of their self-converted van he fell in love with composting bathrooms and located the entire current fashions left him wanting.  He then designed the Cuddy Composting Bathroom and Compo Closet was shaped.  Compo Closet strives to help its clients in residing a sustainable and adventurous way of life.

The Cuddy Composting Bathroom

Compo Closet sells two variations of the Cuddy Composting Bathroom, the Cuddy, which comes with an agitator, and the Cuddy Gentle which has all of the options of the Cuddy with out an agitator.  The Cuddy Composting Bathroom.  The Cuddy is constructed to be compact and moveable.  It’s 16.3 inches excessive, 15.1 inches huge, and 16.8 inches deep and has stainless-steel hinges that help you place the bathroom flush with a wall.  It weighs 21 kilos.

The Cuddy is stuffed with options.  It has a 1.7-gallon liquid container with an LED liquid degree indicator to point when the liquid container is full.  The solids container is 3.9 gallons and has an agitator to combine waste along with your chosen medium to start out the composting course of and scale back any scent.  It additionally has a carbon filter to eradicate scent and a fan that enables it to be vented exterior.

The Cuddy is designed for straightforward set up: “Put it down, plug within the energy, and accomplished!”  The one energy sources wanted are a 9-volt battery for the liquid indicator and an 11 volt for the fan.  Each of those usually are not required to make use of the bathroom.

How Composting Bathrooms Work

Composting bathrooms separate urine and strong waste to stop scent and make disposal simpler.  To eliminate the waste you possibly can both dump the urine into a rest room or outhouse or dilute it and put it in your backyard.  The strong waste will be composted or thrown right into a rubbish can.

Composting bathrooms don’t require any chemical compounds, making them environmentally pleasant.  The solids container will be stuffed with fill of your selection.  Decisions embody wooden shavings, peat moss, coco peat, or litter.  The Cuddy has an agitator so you’d merely add your fill after which combine it after every use to start the composting course of.  The Cuddy Gentle doesn’t have the agitator so you’d add some fill after which add extra fill after every use.

The benefits of a composting rest room are that you do not want to cope with a black tank in a camper, portability because it doesn’t must be plumbed in, and it doesn’t require chemical compounds like different moveable rest room choices.

The way it Works

To put in the cuddy you merely set up the batteries, add medium to the solids bin, and make sure that the right valve is on the liquids container.  Then you possibly can merely place it the place you want to it and start to make use of it.  You should use it in a cabin, a camper, or perhaps a tent.  Relying on the place you employ it it’s possible you’ll select to vent the bathroom exterior or not, directions are supplied on how to do that.

Testing It Out

 The Cuddy arrived in October and I hoped to get in a fall tenting journey to check it out however unhealthy climate and sickness foiled our plans.  As a substitute, I performed round with it at residence to determine all of the options.  I discovered the batteries and filter simple to put in and wanted to take away the cardboard from the agitator for the Cuddy to be totally arrange.  Compo Closet was even good sufficient to ship some Coco Noir for me to make use of as a medium within the solids container.  It was tremendous easy to hydrate the coco noir and add it to the solids container.

The seat of the Cuddy was very comfy and felt very very like sitting on an everyday rest room.  The peak is decrease than a typical rest room however not extraordinarily low.  I poured in water to check out the liquid container. I observed that it was in no way exhausting to ship the liquids into the liquid container.  The diverter is deep sufficient that it may tolerate some quantity of unlevel floor and nonetheless divert the liquid into the right container.

I used to be intimidated by the thought of dumping the solids container right into a bag somewhat than simply having it bagged up.  I made a decision to offer it a dry run and see how tough it was to empty the coco noir right into a bag.  It’s good that the container pulls proper out and is straightforward to deal with.  There isn’t any want to maneuver the bathroom.  It was not tough to place a bag over the container and empty it.

My Advice

My primary curiosity in a composting rest room was to find out if it could be a great match for our Fifth-wheel camper transform.  We frequently camp in locations the place we depend on the toilet in our camper and infrequently it may be difficult to discover a dump station.  There are additionally occasions when the black tank is full and we don’t wish to transfer.  I’d be pleased with the Cuddy in our camper.  I discovered it was comfy and simple to make use of.  Since I didn’t get to check it out on the highway, I learn opinions of others who’ve them and located that individuals didn’t have points with scent and had been pleased with the Cuddy.

I appreciated that’s it comfy to make use of and that it’s compact and will be positioned flush with the wall.  The diverter was designed effectively and works because it ought to.  The scale of the Cuddy is massive sufficient that it may be used recurrently with out consistently needing to empty it however not so massive that it may’t be moveable.  It would slot in a cabin, camper, van, and even an choice when tent tenting in a automobile.

I used to be very impressed by the customer support provided by Compo Closet once I picked out the mannequin. They even provided to ship me to “potty coaching” to make sure I knew learn how to use the bathroom appropriately.  There may be additionally a Fb group for Cuddy house owners to debate experiences and Compo Closet workers are lively on the location offering help as wanted.

My solely reservation in regards to the Cuddy is that I’m undecided I would like an agitator.  I’d really feel higher about utilizing a compostable bag to line the solids container.  I feel that is solely one thing that I can work out with use.  I feel whereas touring I would favor a liner however might see how an agitator can be useful when utilizing it in a cabin or when stationary.  The cool factor is that I should purchase a solids container with out the agitator for under $35 from Cuddy and use that rather than the agitator.  That manner I can use both choice because it suits my consolation degree.

Have you ever used a composting rest room or would you take into account one in your van, camper, or rustic cabin?  I’d love to listen to your ideas.  You may take a look at the Cuddy at https://compocloset.com/product/cuddy/