Heather and her husband have been living off-grid for over ten years, first traveling all over the US in their motorhome and now in their off-grid cabin in the northern US.
They’ve been using composting toilets for years, but only since they’ve switched over to the Throne composting toilet do they actually enjoy the process. Read their interview about their experience living off the grid, and why they’re convinced that the Throne Composting Toilet is the best solution for them.
Please introduce yourself!
My husband and I currently live in an off-grid cabin in the northern US, but lived full-time in an RV for 10+ years prior to that.
What did life look like before you moved into your off-grid tiny house?
We lived in major cities most of our lives and always dreamt of moving to the country and to live off-grid. More trees than people is our motto! We bought some land 15+ years ago, but decided to travel around the US in an RV before settling down again.
Tell us more about your off-grid tiny house!
We purchased a 38′ used RV and traveled around for a few years before settling down on our land. 2 years ago we started building our off-grid cabin that I designed and we built most of it ourselves, with the help of my folks. We have 2600 watts of solar, a Throne composting toilet, well water, and Starlink so we can stay connected and work from home.
Tell us about something you love about your space!
Our open floor plan and cathedral pine tongue and groove ceilings! And all the windows for the view and light. It’s south facing so we get as much sun as possible which is essential for our long, dark, and grey winters.
What’s something you’d want to change about your space?
Honestly, nothing, we love our Cabin! But if money wasn’t a factor, we’d definitely hire help to finish up all the projects we haven’t gotten to yet.
What are the biggest challenges with this type of lifestyle? What are the biggest benefits?
Definitely being off-grid in the winter since it starts getting dark by 3pm and most days are grey, so solar can be tricky and we have to run our generator more than we’d like to.
The biggest benefits are not being hooked up to the grid! We don’t even notice when the power goes out. And not living in the city is a plus, no traffic ever!
What does a typical day look like?
When we moved into our RV and hit the road, everything changed. We worked from the RV, so we were able to travel around which was an awesome way to see the US. It definitely had challenging moments though, but I’m very grateful for that experience. Now that we’re settled on our land, we still work from home and travel much less, but the peace and serenity is so worth it.
Tell us about your toilet solution!
Our RV bathroom footprint was too small to fit the Throne, so we went the DIY route and built a smaller toilet with the diverter. We originally had the Nature’s Head, but hated it because it was so hard to clean. But we loved switching to a composting toilet and not having to deal with a black tank!
I didn’t like having to dump the pee bucket, so my husband rigged it up so the urine went into the grey tank which was awesome because I pee a lot! Now we have the space in our cabin, so we were able to get the Throne. I esp. like how it looks like a real toilet, and the ease of cleaning it is my favorite feature. Also, a septic system was estimated to be over $10k, so the savings has been a key factor in continuing to compost.
Our liquids are diverted into our grey water system and we compost the solids. I know you can humanure, but we have a separate compost for our garden.
Has your Throne solved the problems you were trying to address?
Yes, we love our toilet. I only wish my husband cleaned it more often, lol.
Finances can be a major crux for getting into this lifestyle. Do you have any advice?
We were lucky because we work from home and were able to continue that on the road. Gas was expensive though, so we would boondock during the week to save money. Our friend Dylan owns VagaJobs and he helps travelers find work all over the US which is pretty awesome, esp. if you’re looking for seasonal work.
What is one question you frequently get asked about your lifestyle, and what’s your answer?
Mostly about our power. When it’s sunny out, we do ALL the things but we have to limit our power use on cloudy/rainy days. Not having a power bill makes it all worth it though!
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