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General:

Sanitation Guide to the Development of On-site Sanitation. The book has three parts. Part I deals with the background to sanitation - health, sociological, financial and institutional issues, and the technologies available for excrete disposal. Part II provides in depth technical information about the design, construction, operation and maintenance of the major types of on-site sanitation facility, while Part III describes the planning and development processes involved in projects and programs. Annexes on reuse of excrete and sullage disposal are also included; although connected with on-site sanitation, these are primarily off-site activities.

Do I need a plumbing permit? Better find out first!

Plumbing FAQ. May or may not be useful.

The complete History of Plumbing. Incredibly detailed, fairly interesting, and chock full of information from days of yore - all the way back.

Operation and Maintenance of Water and Sewerage Systems

Inside Plumbing

Polybutylene Plumbing - What is Polybutylene? Polybutylene is a form of plastic resin that was used extensively in the manufacture of water supply piping from 1978 until 1995. Due to the low cost of the material and ease of installation, polybutylene piping systems were viewed as "the pipe of the future" and were used as a substitute for traditional copper piping. While scientific evidence is scarce, it is believed that oxidants in the public water supplies, such as chlorine, react with the polybutylene piping and acetyl fittings causing them to scale and flake and become brittle. Micro-fractures result, and the basic structural integrity of the system is reduced. Thus, the system becomes weak and may fail without warning causing damage to the building structure and personal property.

Toiletology 101 Welcome to the Toilet Repair Lessons: Toiletology 101 ... A Free Course on Toilet Repairs to Save Water and Money.

Easier Plumbing with PEX Next time you need to replace pipes in your home, consider an alternative to rigid piping that comes in rolls, can be cut easily to any desired length, and requires no soldering and very few joint fittings. Generically called PEX-AL-PEX, this flexible plastic piping is so easy to install that you can handle most projects quickly on your own.

'Green'

Compost Privy Toilet The composting privy described here consists of a covered pit and a shelter. When the pit is full, the shelter is taken down, the pit covered, and a new pit prepared. The first pit, after an interval of at least six months, yields compost that can be used to fertilize fields. This Bulletin gives guidelines for digging the pit, preparing the floor, building the shelter, adding other composting materials, and moving locations when the pit is full. Although prepared for use in Bangladesh, this privy could be constructed anywhere in the world. It is low in cost, easy to build, and requires no special materials. It can be designed to meet a number of cultural requirements.

Safe Use of Household Greywater. Greywater is water that has been used for washing dishes, laundering clothes, or bathing. Essentially, any water, other than toilet wastes, draining from a household is greywater. Although this used water may contain grease, food particles, hair, and any number of other impurities, it may still be suitable for reuse. Reusing greywater serves two purposes: it reduces the amount of freshwater needed to supply a household, and reduces the amount of waste water entering sewer or septic systems.

Graywater Stub Outs: Construction and Inspection Points Graywater collection plumbing is the plumbing inside the house to either the surge tank if there is one, or a point a few feet outside the house (depending on how you define it). Stub outs are greywater collection plumbing which dead ends at a cap. They provide for for easy diversion of graywater to a future graywater system to be made during the construction of a house, without having to install the complete graywater system.

Operation and Maintenance Manual for Crag Camp Composting Toilet Randolph Mountain Club, Randolph, NH 03570, (* contains 2 photos) Crag Camp is an enclosed backcountry cabin which is owned and operated by the RMC on National Forest land under a Special Use Permit by the United States Forest Service (USFS). The cabin and the new composting toilet are located on the western rim of King Ravine on Mt. Adams in New Hampshire (elevation 4,250 feet). The old Crag Camp structure was first built in 1909 and acquired by the RMC in 1939 to be used as a public overnight facility.

The state of the stool: Designing your own River Toilet By Mark Donahue, NOLS Utah Whitewater Base Co. Director, The Leader, NOLS newspaper, Oct. 1994. This is one of those subjects that most do not like to talk about, and those who do, can talk for hours: How to deal with human waste on river trips. Technology and regulations have changed, and so has the river runner's outlook on this topic. In the past all you needed was a 20mm rocket box lined with a trash bag to collect waste. The bag was then deposited at a landfill after the trip. Those days are a thing of the past, however.

Compost latrines: Frequently asked questions study.

The Sawdust Toilet Composting human manure - lengthy, informative article.

How to make and use a simple "sawdust toilet" version of a "sawdust toilet" (as described in the Humanure Handbook) consists of a receptacle bucket, a removable toilet seat that slips into the top, and a bucket of sawdust for covering after each use. Good text with photos.

The Humanure Handbook A Guide to Composting Human Manure. Complete book, online!

The Sunny John - Design for a Solar Moldering Toilet a moldering toilet is simply a composting toilet that is built to allow for very long term slow composting in place - the waste molders, rather than composts, much as leaves and plant debris "molder" on the surface of soil through the action of bacteria, fungi, and microorganisms. With moldering, the "technology" applied for waste treatment is mainly isolation, and time itself! Full length online manual. See Also Original "Sunny John" Solar Moldering Toilet.

Anaerobic Waste Treatment I and AWT  II and AWT  III and AWT  IV and AWT  V

Outhouse

Basic sanitation and human excreta disposal in latrines: This technical information will present different technological solutions for toilets. The systems range from simple pits up to sophisticated designs, varying decisively in expenditure, environmental and hygienic effects and costs. Generally speaking, all of them may be suitable for household as well as for communal implementation – however always depending on the given local circumstances.

Basic Sanitation & Latrines

POUR-FLUSH LATRINE This Technical Bulletin explains how to build a pour-flush latrine. This is a simple latrine that disposes of human wastes and improves sanitation. Storing wastes in a single place produces a cleaner home and water. The directions are clear and simple. You will need land, labor, and some materials and tools to build this latrine.

Affordable Sanitation for Low Income Communities Describes pit latrines, but no drawings or photos.

WASTE WATER TREATMENT TECHNOLOGIES: UN Document 132 detailed pages.

Backcountry Toilet Mailing List Subscribe to the mailing List dealing with Backcountry Waste Management for the U.S. National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). It's purpose is to share technology, ideas, and practices of treating, handling, and disposing of human waste in remote locations such as backcountry camps, alpine huts, mountaineering routes, and river camps.

Sanitation & Pit Latrines Casual defecation ‘out in the bush’ spreads disease. Any latrine, provided it is used, is an improvement on no latrine. In rural situations family pit latrines can provide satisfactory and acceptable sanitation. They are all that most developing-world people can afford. Given sensitive guidelines and a little technical help, families can build latrines for themselves, at very low cost. Some decent line drawings accompany this good article.

Public and Institutional Latrines This manual has been prepared to facilitate the planning, construction and use of public and institutional latrines in Tanzania. As the problems and conditions are similar in many developing countries, it is hoped that the manual will be used also outside of Tanzania.

Affordable Sanitation for Low-income Communities By far the most common sanitation system in developing countries is one form or other of pit latrine. Pit latrines can be low cost, but many donors and other agencies make designs that are too expensive for low income people. Much of this paper is concerned with selecting designs, materials and methods of construction to make pit latrines affordable.

HOW TO BUILD A BAJA LATRINE ABOVE GROUND - THE OUTHOUSE. This part of the plans are subject to your interpretation. You can build the outhouse out of locally available materials or download the plans from this site. You might want to start here: Ground Work

Sewer

Water and Sanitation technologies: A Trainer's Manual Written by BRADLEY D. HANSON, Illustrated by Karen Munsterman; Peace Corps Training Manual T-32. The manual is primarily a technical training guide, providing the trainer with an outline of instruction designed to equip the technician and engineer with the necessary skills for successful field work as a Volunteer. Therefore, it may be used as the principal training guide for a water and sanitation course, or supplemented with material from the Role of the Volunteer in Development manual for a complete Pre-Service Training Program. Portions of the manual may also be used separately, for specific instruction in a single subject, such as ferrocement construction, or spring capping.

UNDERSTANDING SEWAGE TREATMENT AND DISPOSAL By Hank Stonerook. This paper is not meant to be an in-depth study of many kinds and types of sewage treatment systems in use throughout the world. Rather, it serves only as an introduction. Included is a discussion of sewage and its characteristics; the collection of sewage; and a brief discussion of physical, biological, and chemical treatment systems. Appropriate sewage treatment technology, including on-site, composting, land application, and aquaculture systems, are discussed as possible alternatives for developing nations. A glossary of terms used in this paper and common to discussions of sewage treatment systems is also included.

Sewer Back-Flow Valves One example of flood protection is installing a backflow valve to prevent sewage from backing up into your house. This is something that only a licensed plumber or contractor should do.

Septic

How Sodium Contributes to Soil Failure sodium buildup makes soils non-porous, causing septic field failure, by Mary Gayman

Septic Tank Maintenance. As you use your septic system, sludge will accumulate in the tank. Properly designed tanks have enough space for up to three years of safe accumulation. Once the sludge has reached this level, the separation of solids and scum no longer takes place, and sewage may overflow into the absorption area. This can be prevented by periodically pumping the accumulated sludge. This article tells you how to "take care of business."

A Septic Tank System for Sewage Treatment. A properly designed, installed and maintained septic tank system is an approved method of sewage treatment for private residences in rural or urban areas where public sewage treatment systems are not available.

Texas On-Site Wastewater Treatment Research Council. Check out the subject index and research areas of this web site. Excellent and informative articles on waste disposal and septic systems for single family to community size systems.

Ideas for New / Replacement Septic Tanks. before you install a new or replacement septic tank, go over this list.

Do-It-Yourself Septic Tank Repair Page - if you have found a way to fix an unhealthy septic system, or if you are looking for a fix, check here

Get to Know Your Septic Tank article by Roger Machmeier, Ph.D., P.E., Professor Emeritus. One of the best articles yet on home septic tanks.

Bioaugmentation using bacteria and enzymes to decompose wastes, by John Lancaster. Great article!

Intermittent Sand Filters an ancient solution to modern wastewater problems, by David Venhuizen. Complete, online book on the subject. Highly recommended reading! Have patience, it takes awhile for the site to load but is worth the wait.

Septic Systems: Operation and Maintenance of On-Site Sewage Disposal Systems 1989, 8 pages - 357 k. Download the .pdf manual from this site. This publication explains how septic systems operate and how they can be maintained to prevent health risks and environmental damage

Tools & Techniques

Ace Hardware - Learn About Plumbing Tools Plumbing tools are specialized-they fit the job. For example, if you buy a handle puller to pull tub or shower faucets, you will also need a box end or hollow-core socket wrench to remove packing nuts which are soft brass, easily distorted and practically impossible to replace. If you need tubing cutters you may also need flaring tools. If the job doesn't require flare fittings, you may need solder, paste, gate, globe or swing-check valves, torch kit, replacement tank, sanding cloth, slip-repair coupling or tee, tapping saddle, etc.

Miscellaneous

The Plumber's Pipe (Making PVC Flutes, Make a Flute) Plastic plumbing pipe is nearly ideal for simple flutes. There’s no easier material to work with. Sanded clean and smooth, it’s attractive, requiring no finish. It’s waterproof, crack-proof, and nearly unbreakable. It’s fine acoustically, if you use the right dimensions. And once you develop a pattern, the pipe’s regularity allows a perfect flute every time.

Innovations: How Do They Do That? Making Copper Plumbing Tube Copper plumbing tube is one of those products we practically take for granted, an understandable reaction because most of the tube we use is hidden behind walls, where we never see it or because, well, copper plumbing has been around for as long as most folks can remember. Which is also understandable, since this trustworthy, familiar product first came into widespread use in the U.S. in the 1930s. And it lasts. If you know of a 65-year-old building that still has its original plumbing, chances are good that the plumbing is copper.

HISTORY OF TOILETS The paper presented by Dr. Bindeswar Pathak, Ph.D., D.Litt., Founder, Sulabh Movement at International Symposium on Public Toilets held in Hong Kong on May 25-27, 1995. Lengthy, interesting.

The complete History of Plumbing. Incredibly detailed, fairly interesting, and chock full of information from days of yore - all the way back.

History of Public Toilets

in Babylon - in Egypt - in Crete - in Greece - in Jerusalem - in Pompeii and Herculaneum - from Roman to old English Times - terrible plagues and epidemics Sir Thomas Crapper Myths and Realities - the water closet - in America - the White House plumbing to Chinese toilet discovery information "When you consider the contributions that plumbing and sanitation makes to the quality of our lives, then much of the other things that we do just seems so much less significant." - 1995 our founder to our poop page - to 1912 Dutch toilet

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