Where do you pee/poo at night?

Search “Disposa John” on eBay - 100 poos for £40 - without polluting the sea.
I read here that a single boat will have no effect - but the water company responsible for the Salcombe Estuary escaped a big fine when they argued that the high pollution levels were largely caused by boat owners!
 
Pavalijo said:
Search “Disposa John” on eBay - 100 poos for £40 - without polluting the sea.
I read here that a single boat will have no effect - but the water company responsible for the Salcombe Estuary escaped a big fine when they argued that the high pollution levels were largely caused by boat owners!
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Salcombe only gets a tidal Flush out once every 12 hours as there is no natural river flowing out of the flooded valley.

In contrast the fast flowing Afon Mawddach at Barmouth will clear any deposits also Barmouth is hardly as popular with yachts as Salcombe. I am sure the OPs contribution will not cause a major pollution risk to all those Brummies that come to swim in the crystal clear waters of Barmouth's Blue Flag beach.

https://www.bestofwales.co.uk/north-wales-coast-places/beaches/barmouth-beach
 
Surprised I am that no- one has mentioned composting toilets which seem to have a devoted following. I have no personal experience, but have been reliably informed that they are the definitive answer to your situation.
A cheap alternative is a porta-pottie. Where i sail it is illegal to discharge toilet waste within 2 NM of shore line. I have looked at installing marine toilet and holding tank but it doesn't stack up. Compared to a marine toilet with sea-cocks and joker valves and pumps and tanks and valves, a porta-potti has literally nothing to go wrong and only needs emptying every 2 or 3 days for a couple. Emptying is no-ones favourite job, but the chemicals make it tolerable at least.
 
John the kiwi said:
Surprised I am that no- one has mentioned composting toilets which seem to have a devoted following. I have no personal experience, but have been reliably informed that they are the definitive answer to your situation.
A cheap alternative is a porta-pottie. Where i sail it is illegal to discharge toilet waste within 2 NM of shore line. I have looked at installing marine toilet and holding tank but it doesn't stack up. Compared to a marine toilet with sea-cocks and joker valves and pumps and tanks and valves, a porta-potti has literally nothing to go wrong and only needs emptying every 2 or 3 days for a couple. Emptying is no-ones favourite job, but the chemicals make it tolerable at least.
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indeed!
 
in our new project boat in addition to the heads down below, we are installing a porta potty into one of the cockpit lockers, that way he will have a holding tank when needed/require, and will be less antisocial when we dry out on a beach somewhere.
 
WAG (waste alleviation and gel) bags. A few on board are a good backup for a number of unforeseen circumstances. We carry them on our sport boat for winter sailing, when the head would be frozen solid anyway. Just for emergencies. Handier than a bucket. So long as the head is pumped dry, you can just hang them in the bowl.

They hand these out by the thousands for hurricane relief. Truckloads after Katrina in New Orleans. The sewer plants were down for many months.

https://www.rei.com/product/662978/cleanwaste-go-anywhere-toilet-kit-waste-bags-package-of-12
 
Gypsyjoss said:
Hi Guys
Just spent nearly 15 years in the Med on boats with a holding tank. So, round the clock peeing/pooing facility!

I have just bought a bilge keel yacht with no holding tank (quite common in the UK) in Barmouth (which dries).

The public loos in Barmouth close at night (I'm reliably informed) and I like an 8 am dump! I'm further baffled because you can't flush the heads at low tide (no sea water) even for a pee!

My Mediteranean friends are rightly horrified. The only time they use a bucket on board is in the yard (for a pee at night) and the yard loos are open 7/24.

So what do you do?

What laws are there concerning peeing and pooing in estuaries and harbours in the uk?

I await your replies with interest!

Cheers!
Pete
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Porta-potti absolutely essential in your situation, much more pleasant than a bucket and not really that pricey. If you are lucky there will be just about enough room for it on the floor of your heads. It also comes in very handy when the boat is ashore and you are sleeping aboard. Some places though are a bit touchy about emptying a Porta-potti in the local loo, so use discretion.

People are a bit more complacent about dumping in the UK because the strong tides act as a natural flush. In the Med though it is an absolute no-no to dump poo in harbour.
 
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I'm guessing many of the posters have not read "The Ghost Map."
https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Map-Londons-Terrifying-Epidemic/dp/1594482691
FYI, Cholera is one of the few human pathenogens that is NOT killed by seawater. It is still a problem some places. Also, think about your practices next time you order seafood; many are filter feeders and accumulate microbes.

Is it really that hard to pump out offshore? It is quite illegal to pump out in a harbor in the US (3 miles out). This is the 21st century.
 
I'm in the Hamble and it's quite common when in one of the big marinas to see bits of pumped out paper of bits of 'chocolate' floating past towards all the kids swimming near Burlesdon. I won't even want to put my hand in the water let alone swim in it!!!
 
Pee is sterile unless you have a pretty serious illness and in any case dispersed readily by the sea. Poo is a different matter. As in Bristol channel and if away from Harbour facilities we wait to pump out till well offshore. No greater risk then than other sea going animals excrement - no one fears seal poo or dolphin poo contamination risks
 
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