How to Make, Use, and Reuse an Arborloo

Step 1: Make the Concrete Slab Create 1 m Diameter ring of bricks and line with plastic and place brick/bucket in center. Pour in 6:1 mixture of clean river sand and cement Insert four reinforcing wires and cover with cement/sand mix Remove center piece and smooth edges Cover with plastic sheet Slab must be kept wet and covered for 10 days

Step 2: Make the Ring Beam Make an 80 cm inner diameter ring of farm bricks Add anthill mortar (anthill soil and water) between and above the bricks using a trowel Add a second layer of bricks and anthill mortar Ring Beams can also be made from a 6:1 mixture of clean river sand and cement and reinforcing wire

Step 3: Installation Dig a pit m deep within the ring beam Use excess soil to pack the inside of pit and around ring beam Pour a large sack of dried leaves into the pit Adhere concrete slab to ring beam with anthill mortar or 20:1 mixture of river sand and cement

Step 4: Build the Superstructure Use local materials such as poles or grass to construct a toilet house with a roof This structure not only provides privacy, but prevents rainwater from getting into the toilet that can attract flies and mosquitoes

Step 5: Use Add one cup of soil and ash to the pit after every bowel movement. This is not required for urination Leaves should be added at regular intervals to assist the composting process Food scraps can also be added. Never put trash such as plastic or rags in the pit! When the pit is nearly full, it is time to move the Arborloo!

Step 6: Relocate the Arborloo Remove toilet house, concrete slab, and break apart ring beam Cover the pit with a compacted layer of soil at least 150 mm thick Reuse toilet house, concrete slab, and bricks from ring beam to construct a new Arborloo Allow 6-12 months for composting process

Step 7: Results After the waste has been composted, fruit tree seeds or off shoots can be planted Mulberry, guava, mango, paw paw and banana are the best trees to plant Plants grown in regular soil vs. an Alterna Fossa soil mixture (if you look at the dates on the plants, the smaller plant was actually planted one month earlier!)