Nature's head - composting head

Hi All,

I am a new member to this forum and am happy to meet all. My wife, young children, and I are proud new owners of Quaesita. T34C #428 located on the Chesapeake Bay. We are in need of a new human waste handling system and are leaning towards the Nature's Head. We noticed the post by Chris and his ringing endorsement has reinforced our interest in composting heads. Chris do you have any pictures of your installation and does anyone else have any experience with these heads on T34's?

Many thanks in advance,

Greg Myers

Welcome aboard, Greg! Congratulations on your "new" T34C. This is indeed a great place for support and advice from others who love the T34C.

We installed a 35 gallon holding tank on Jambalaya under the port v-berth, and would be happy to share our lessons-learned if you decide not to pursue the composting approach.

We're berthed on the Bohemia River at the head of the Chesapeake; where are you located?

Also, in case you haven't heard about it, the Good Old Boat Regatta 2011 will be held October 9 and 10 in Annapolis. It is a very low-key fun event that welcomes non-racers. This year, we have a class start for T34C boats (all of us so far are non-racers) and would love to have you join us for a casual orbit of the government marks on Saturday, Sunday, or both. let me know if you want any more information.

All the best,

Alfred

Alfred Poor
1973 T34C #288 "Jambalaya"
apoor@verizon.net

Hi Greg,

"Scara Brae", #289, did not have a holding tank when I purchased her earlier this year. After some research, $$ analysis, and talking to Chris C. I've opted for the Nature's Head. To get more room in the head, for my big butt and long legs (I'm 6' 8"), and eliminate 2 thru-hulls I tore out the head sink and cabinet. A new cabinet runs fore and aft from the bottom of the existing cabinet to the head sole. I re-used 2 rectangular access covers. Behind the forward cover is a panel for electrical disribution, windlass solenoid, etc. I'm building up the raised sole section with plywood to increase its width and allow the new head to be mounted fore and aft, next to the mast. Hopefully, this will all be getting glassed-in during the next month. I'm leaning towards using a solar vent. Also...this design gives me a possible shower?...if and when I find a sump solution that conforms to KISS principles:)


Bill

Hi Bill,

Thanks for your thoughts! K.I.S.S. is my guiding principle too, and that is what has drawn me to the Nature's Head approach....although I see the appeal of a conventional system too. Your idea to install a shower why doing this work is great idea, since you are already installing a new sole. Have you been using the new head yet? How do you like it? Any pictures to show off your work?

Kind regards,

Greg Myers

Hi Greg,

I can't comment on the Nature's Head utility yet, as it's not installed. The final sole rebuild is waiting for installation of a new G-10 mast step as mast foot disease required a 2" amputation:( The placement of a below sole shower sump/pump has me head scratchin'. Anyone have a solution?I'll get some pix up down the road. Earl rain just starting in CT.

Enjoy your weekend,

Bill

Hi Alfred (and any others who are willing to weigh in):

We are getting ready to install a head and holding tank on our 1973 yawl and would love to know if you had a design for this and/or any images that you could share with us. We would be interested to know what brand/model holding tank you used, where and how exactly you situated it, and how you ran the plumbing and pump out. Additionally, any information on how you configured the head, that would be great, too.

Many thanks,
Matt

Hi Greg,

Just found your question about Nature's Head. My husband Tom and I (Bianca) own T34 #441 which is still under total reconstruction in our back yard in Charlottesville, Va. We also have a 1984 Pearson 34 "See Hexe", which we refitted for the last 18 months. The boat was in bad shape when we bought her and one of the worst jobs was to take the old marine toilet and holding tank plus plumbing out, yuck!!. We thought there has to be a better solution to this problem. After lots of research, we decided to give the Nature's Head a try and installed it on "See Hexe". She was launched this August in Deltaville, Va and we spent every weekend on her. Of course we were a little sceptic how well this really works. But! now I can say that it is amazing that anyone would want to deal with a traditional toilet holding tank and all the necessary plumbing. The Nature's Head works better than we hoped for. The installation was very easy, we opted for the "Nicro Solar Vent" which works like a charm. The whole installation took one afternoon. Using the head is very easy and absolutely odorless. I started with the 2 gallon peat-moss last summer and it seams that we won't have to change the tank until maybe next summer. The urine bottle is easy to empty, we put it in an old grocery bag and take it to the marina bath house. This is a no brainer: NO odor and almost no maintenance. We will also install Nature's Head on our T34.
Any more questions? I'd love to tell you all about it.
Good luck, Bianca

Hi Bianca,
Your information and pictures are excellent. Many thanks for taking the time to send them. Best of luck with your reconstruction effort!

Kind regards,
Greg (#428 Quaesita)

FYI...for those interested in the Nature's Head...we installed one this month on Quaesita (#428). The install was easy and so far we've been very pleased with it. We've had the boat out twice so far this year to shake everything down, including the head and the kids love it and we do too.

We've gone on to remove the 30 year old waste plumbing and holding tank...a job which was unpleasant in cold weather. I don't want to imagine that job in hot weather. It is interesting to note that with all the old waste system removed, the whole smell of the boat has improved. It now only smells of atomic 4 and whatever food crumbs the kids leave behind.

In any case...here's a picture of the installed unit.

Greg