Composting toilets are a staple at many hard-to-access cottages. They don’t require a water hook-up and they take care of human waste the natural way, through decomposition. But Ontario cottagers may have to start looking for alternative options.
Last year, the province implemented changes to its building code that limit the installation of composting toilets in new builds. Those changes took effect on January 1 of this year.
“I think this code change was meant to bring [the Ontario Building Code] more streamlined with the national code. And the national code never allowed for composting toilets as a required fixture,” says Matthew Wesley, the deputy chief building official for the Municipality of Trent Lakes.
Previously, the Ontario Building Code required dwellings to have either a regular toilet or an alternative, drainless option, such as a composting toilet. Many water-access cottagers took advantage of composting toilets because they don’t require a septic system.
These cottagers paired a composting toilet with a Class 2 sewage system, also known as a greywater pit. This type of sewage system is only designed to handle wastewater from household plumbing fixtures such as sinks, showers, and laundry machines. Not human waste.
Three alternative toilet types to consider for the cottage
The changes to the Ontario Building Code, however, remove the option of using a composting toilet as a cottage’s sole sanitary fixture. The code now stipulates that any dwelling with a water distribution system, meaning pipes that convey potable water to the property, must have a water closet, a.k.a. a regular toilet. And with a regular toilet, you need a septic system.
But don’t panic, the code change mostly affects new builds. “The building code doesn’t apply retroactively to existing buildings,” says Wesley. This means that if you already have a composting toilet installed, you don’t have to get rid of it.
However, if you undertake any serious renovations that require a building permit from the municipality, you may have to upgrade your toilet and sewage system.
The same applies to new buys. If you’ve purchased a cottage that has a composting toilet as its sole sanitary fixture, you can keep it as long as you don’t make any major renovations.
Wesley says he supports the phasing out of composting toilets. In his time as a building official, he’s seen multiple composting toilets DIY’d or installed incorrectly. Some cottagers try to get away with connecting the composting toilet to a drainage system. But the drain either causes the human waste to leak underneath the cottage, or it pumps the human waste into the greywater pit, which can’t handle it. Either way, human waste ends up in the environment.
“No sewage should ever be just dripping onto the ground where your kids, pets, vermin, or whatever can get into it,” he says.
Owners’ advice on alternative toilets
Also, most composting toilets can only handle about 1,000 litres of human waste per day. So, if you have guests up or a busy household, you could run into trouble if the toilet’s overused.
And Wesley points out that a composting toilet and greywater pit can end up being just as expensive to install as a regular toilet and septic system, as composting toilets can cost thousands of dollars.
But if you’re still set on a composting toilet, there is some leniency in the building code. The decision on whether a composting toilet is allowed as a building’s sole sanitary fixture will fall to the area’s chief building official. The code change stipulates that a regular toilet is required if the cottage’s water distribution system conveys potable water. If your cottage doesn’t have potable water, you may have an argument for a composting toilet.
“It’s always best to check with your local building departments to see how they may view these things,” says Wesley. “The building code covers what are called ‘acceptable solutions’, so each individual building department and chief building official may accept applications for alternative solutions.”
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