Wanna Save A Ton Of Money On High Quality Compost? Stop Flushing

My wife saves everything when I cook.

Don't get me wrong, I feel like I'm a fairly conscientious person when it comes to environmental things. I recycle, I try to buy "green" products where it makes sense, etc. But, you've never seen a person get as tough as my wife if she accidentally catches me throwing out any veggie scraps or eggshells. She acts like I'm a landfill owner.

So in my house, there are several containers designated for just this purpose... saving all our veggie and food scraps that are biodegradable. Since we mainly eat at home and don't go out to eat much, we generate an awful lot of usable scraps. Ultimately, I'm glad to see it get used for something besides throwing it away.

But (no pun intended), I may not be totally on board with this idea.

I scoped a recent article in the BDN that talks all about a compost ingredient that I'm not sure even my wife will get into, and if she does, we're going to have a whole separate conversation. The idea is basically re-using your own bodily solid waste. I feel like I need emojis I've never even heard of yet to describe what I personally think.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not bagging on anyone who does it, or thinks it's a great idea. But you have to start with a "dry toilet." This is basically a way to catch that waste instead of sending it to the wastewater treatment plant, via your flush. It's collected and then sawdust, wood ash, or even newspaper are added to help it break down.

The return of thunder jugs and outhouses.

When I was a kid, a chamber pot was called a thunder jug because if you farted in it, it sounded like thunder. Hahaha. It's a great option for collecting liquid waste. But those into harvesting the solid stuff, the trusty old outhouse seems to be the best answer. In some ways, I'd love to have an outhouse, but come 3 AM, or in January, I'm flushing that.....stuff.

Is it odd? Absolutely. But if you're an avid gardener or farmer, you might as well get the most bang for your buck. It may not be right for everyone, but hey... it's free. And lord knows, it's a never-ending process. Just some food for thought..... that will eventually become compost.