A Smart Class B Bathroom Solution?

[gregmchugh]

Well, there are always a lot of different attitudes about the showers and toilets in smaller RVs. Some people want privacy and some people can live with something like the porta potti in a cabinet at the entrance with no privacy. If you travel alone then you clearly can have a different attitude than if you travel with another person. Many people travel the world for long periods of time in the Earthcruiser with the entrance shower/toilet setup and in the XP camper set up that has a cabinet with the shower and toilet below a countertop that tilts up and includes a shower curtain to get some level of privacy for the shower and cassette toilet.

http://xpcamper.com/versions/v1-full-size/

[Roadtrek Adventuous RS1]

Originally Posted by Davydd

I'm not a fan of convertible or dual use of space if I can help it and certainly where privacy is compromised or interferes with your partner's activity and definitely not in the same space where food is served. In a Class B that is everywhere, thus a defined enclosed bathroom with ventilation. You do have to compromise with a wet bath if you desire showering usually in a Class B but wet baths have proven to keep your bathroom cleaner.

If you are a weekender or solo traveler maybe you could tolerate it, but if you are out for several weeks on extended trips with a partner it can wear on you.

David is correct. It's not just privacy, it's cleanliness and sanitary conditions. A wet bath is perfectly designed for this, and actually, if you are talking about noise, you're going to hear something even in the private wet bath, unless you are running the exhaust fan... which is completely absent in the open cabinet pictured above.

I'm not saying that this is impossible to do, it just wouldn't be my choice .

If you are on a limited budget and this is all you can afford, and are OK with that, go ahead.

There's nothing wrong with it....OR, an alternative to this is just find bathroom facilities where you stay.

Not to mention... where's the shower??? And exhaust fan for that?

[GeorgeRa]

Originally Posted by afb

I don't understand why bathroom compartments/cabinets are not widely used. It has the same advantages (including privacy with the addition of a sound isolating curtain) as a dedicated bathroom, but is more space efficient because it also serves as countertop or seating area when not being used as a bathroom. A compartment/cabinet can accommodate any type of toilet (rv, cassette, porta potty, bucket, composting). So why isn't this design more popular?

We have a low height compartment for cassette toilet very similar to Safari Condo design. This design resulted from the set of primary objectives:

1. 20’ max length
2. 360° view so no obstruction of any windows. This was one of two key reasons why we took a DIY route.
3. Extensive use of bathroom facilities in our State and National parks, so indoor shower was not on the list.
4. No road clearance reduction from a factory van, so skirts, low hanging tanks were eliminated and this was the second reason for DIY.

Over the years we found the set of original objectives and derived from it design perfect for our needs. Height is good, cassette is easy to empty, padded top is used often as a seat or a double ottoman for swiveled front seats. On my left over to do list I have a curtain to separated the toilet space but other priorities are knocking this task down to the bottom.

In 2013 Safari Condo was the only one appealing to us, unfortunately buying one from Oregon was not trivial, we would have to deliver US spec van to Safari Condo and picked it up when ready.

[hepcat]

Originally Posted by InterBlog

The human waste moralizing is reminding me of the disposable dishes moralizing that recently happened on this other thread.

Whether it's a plastic bag or a plastic fork, the calculus is the same - there is so much pollution generated by any given Class B that to quibble over this or that fragment of plastic is an exercise in lunacy.

Some numbers to illustrate this perspective. I generate 3.7 tons of CO2 on my annual trip to Nova Scotia alone. Since buying the Class B, I've emitted approximately one million pounds of CO2 just from fuel combustion!! That does not account for the massive amount of waste that was generated or the massive amount of energy that was consumed during the initial Class B manufacturing process.

Obviously, if I were really serious about reducing pollution, the thing for me to do is to not give the slightest thought to plastic forks and bags, and simply drive less. Worrying about forks and bags is like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.

Unfortunately, you're equivocating. The trash-bag/human waste issue is one of immediate public health, and has the potential to be a substantial and growing public health hazard.

While it's true that greenhouse gas emissions and waste and emissions generated during the manufacture of RVs are likely our biggest issue, the other issues you mention are not trivialized in the least by that. What I believe you're saying is that because MacDonald's and Taco Bell contribute millions of tons of plastic waste into the environment annually, that the waste you and I contribute is inconsequential. In comparison, of course, that would be correct. As an absolute however, ANYTHING I contribute in extra waste is something that shouldn't be there. I can't do much about MacDonald's, Taco Bell, (other than not eat there) nor can I even manage other van owners' contributions to a significant environmental problem; the best I can do is manage what I do, and urge others to do the same. I carry a folding bike in my RV and I ride it whenever it's practical for errands so I don't have to drive.

This isn't a moral issue. This is a significant practical issue that each of us CAN impact, if even to a small degree. I'll concede that what I do is small, but if each of us would just do those things, there may not be the plastic trash footprint, and at least SOME of those greenhouse gas emissions would be lessened.

And yes, I'm the guy who walks around the WalMart parking lot picking up trash before I leave after I've spent the night... regardless of who left it, I want to leave it in better condition than I found it. And I encourage others to do the same. It benefits us all.

[VocalVirgo]

Originally Posted by hepcat

Unfortunately, you're equivocating. The trash-bag/human waste issue is one of immediate public health, and has the potential to be a substantial and growing public health hazard.

While it's true that greenhouse gas emissions and waste and emissions generated during the manufacture of RVs are likely our biggest issue, the other issues you mention are not trivialized in the least by that. What I believe you're saying is that because MacDonald's and Taco Bell contribute millions of tons of plastic waste into the environment annually, that the waste you and I contribute is inconsequential. In comparison, of course, that would be correct. As an absolute however, ANYTHING I contribute in extra waste is something that shouldn't be there. I can't do much about MacDonald's, Taco Bell, (other than not eat there) nor can I even manage other van owners' contributions to a significant environmental problem; the best I can do is manage what I do, and urge others to do the same. I carry a folding bike in my RV and I ride it whenever it's practical for errands so I don't have to drive.

This isn't a moral issue. This is a significant practical issue that each of us CAN impact, if even to a small degree. I'll concede that what I do is small, but if each of us would just do those things, there may not be the plastic trash footprint, and at least SOME of those greenhouse gas emissions would be lessened.

And yes, I'm the guy who walks around the WalMart parking lot picking up trash before I leave after I've spent the night... regardless of who left it, I want to leave it in better condition than I found it. And I encourage others to do the same. It benefits us all.

I too, pick up trash anywhere I see it. It amazes me how much people still toss their trash out of their cars, etc. It especially upsets me to see RV’rs leaving their trash in Walmart parking lots and- the unthinkable: dumping their tanks! It’s disgraceful and disgusting.

[avanti]

Originally Posted by VocalVirgo

I too, pick up trash anywhere I see it. It amazes me how much people still toss their trash out of their cars, etc. It especially upsets me to see RV’rs leaving their trash in Walmart parking lots and- the unthinkable: dumping their tanks! It’s disgraceful and disgusting.

The Tragedy of the Commons