Lowtech Graph lists low-tech options for every need of a home. Here you can compare them, find tutorials to build them, and link them together into a circular system. Why low-tech?

Extended pathogen-safe curing (secondary bin)

Passive

Note: Cost, carbon and footprint are broad judgements against comparable building approaches, not measured figures.

A separate bin where the contents of a composting toilet are left to finish breaking down for one to two years, after a hot phase that kills most germs. It is kept well apart from kitchen and garden compost. It is the step that makes human waste safe to use on soil.

Cost

Low

Upkeep

Occasional

Skill to build

Basic

Lifespan

Not applicable, a process/holding period (1-2 years curing), not a physical component; the secondary bin structure itself matches the managed humanure composting figure

Embodied carbon

Low

Space / material use

Medium

Output timing

Continuous process

Skill to repair

Basic

Regulation (FR example)

Dry toilets are explicitly permitted (arrete du 7 septembre 2009 modifie) but must be declared to the SPANC, and byproducts must be composted on the property without any discharge or nuisance to neighbours.

Inputs

• Compost

Outputs

• Compost

How does this solution compare to others for the same need?

The only option catalogued for this need so far, so there is nothing to compare it against.

Sources

• Cornell Composting (Cornell Waste Management Institute), "Temperature" fact sheet

Limitations of this page

We don’t list sizing or quantities, as the yield of each technique depends on the quality of its build. The catalogue compares options but doesn’t dimension them. Regulatory notes are indicative, with a French example, and need to be confirmed locally.