what is a cassette toilet how does a cassette toilet work how do you dump a
cassette toilet these are questions we get asked all the time about our
cassette toilet system in our class b campervan I'm Kait, I'm Joe and we're the
Russos we've been using the Thetford cassette toilet system for over a year
and in this video we're gonna answer all of those questions and share our
experiences with the cassette toilet let's tackle the first question what is
a cassette toilet essentially it is a permanent toilet with a portable black
tank our toilet is installed in our camper van and this is the portable
holding tank this one is made by suffered and it is four point six
gallons they do have other models but this is the one that we have in our van
cassette toilets have been used in Europe for a very long time and they're
quite popular there they are becoming more widely used in North America you
might be wondering why use a cassette toilet system over a traditional black
tank that's popular in RVs in North America well for us it's because it's
simple and easy to use but more importantly we have more options in
terms of dumping this cassette over a traditional black tank in the RV when we
took delivery of our van over a year ago we weren't so confident the idea of
using a cassette toilet was a big unknown the big question mark for me
once we get moved into our camper van is the cassette toilet situation how easy
is it for them to dispose of their cassette toilet and does it really give
them the freedom of it they think it's going to I'm curious to see how long
because that toilet is gonna last us and how we're gonna go about dumping I think
that's going to be interesting
it's time to dump the cassette Kate was hesitant for her first dump but quickly
learned that it was nothing to be afraid of so how does a cassette toilet work
well the system is actually fairly simple and we're gonna focus on the FET
fir'd system that we have installed in our Class B camper van there are three
main components the toilet the black water tank and a water source let's go
inside take a look at the toilet the toilet bowl turns on its base to
maximize the small space there is a handle along the outside of the toilet
bowl that will open and close the valve with a waist holding tank below once the
valve is open push the flush button and close the valve after the water has
drained the water is connected to our freshwater tank next to the flush button
a red light will indicate when the waste tank is full to access the cassette
there is a door on the side of the van that you open up pull the cassette out
now the door does have a lock on it but we've never used a lock we're really not
worried about someone stealing our used to cassette it would be kind of gross
it's really easy to pull open two tabs open the door drop it down lift up the
handle and then pull the cassette straight out the cassette holds 4.6
gallons we never let the cassette get completely full one of the reasons is
because water is over 8 pounds per gallon and if this were full it would be
close to 40 pounds for this little guy the nice thing is they do provide wheels
and an extendable handle so you can put it along the ground and drag it like a
suitcase that's why a lot of people nickname these suitcases for the past
year kate has been the person dumping the
cassette yes for the second year I've taken over but I'm gonna let the expert
explain how to take care of everything that's in this cassette all right here's
how you dump a cassette toilet to dump the waste tank make sure the valve blade
handle is in the closed position open the cassette door outside and pull on
the safety catch to pull out the tank carry a roll the cassette to a dump
station or a bathroom once you're there remove the spout on the tank and lift it
over the dump hole once the spout is pointing downwards press the event
button hold the tank over the dump hole until all the waste is emptied pour
water into the waste tank gently swish it around and empty the tank again until
the liquid is clear and that's how you dump a cassette toilet now we are
staying at a full hookup campsite at narrows to a campground in Maine we
don't always stay at campgrounds a lot of times we like to boondock so other
options to dump this cassette is let's say a public park I'd take the cassette
walk into the restroom and dump the content directly into the toilet another
option is porta-potties we preferred this over the traditional black holding
tank that was in our class a RV because we were limited to going and finding
specific RV dump stations to dump our black holding tank here are some tips
that we've learned after using a cassette toilet for a year to save tank
space and for easier rinse of the cassette only use it for number one
which is how we've been using it for over a year now we have used it for
number one and number two the cassette works fine for number two we just choose
not to use it for that plus it also avoids the use of chemicals to keep any
smell down now we've met fellow cassette toilet users and they tend to follow the
same rule it just makes life easier another way to save tank space is we put
the toilet paper in the trash can and we followed this rule when we had the class
a as well and another perk of doing that you don't have to worry about what kind
of toilet paper to buy dump frequently we like to dump every few days
regardless of whether we're full or not the reason for this is it helps keep
down odors and it gets us into a good habit of dumping so that we don't get
fool in the middle of the night and have to run outside to take care of the
toilet well you don't want is for that red light indicator to come on in the
middle of the night and you don't have a place to dump your coz that keep the lid
down at certain times pressure can build up inside of the cassette so by keeping
the lid down you avoid any sort of splash when you go to flush the toilet
and trust me you don't want to be in the splash zone cleanliness really is next
to godliness keep your cassette clean to avoid any
bad odors which leads us into an ounce of prevention is definitely worth a
pound of cure make sure to read all the directions on how to use the cassette
properly with regards to cleaning and maintenance the valve blade in
particular does require maintenance so that's something you want to stay on top
of one question we've been asked a lot as well is what are we doing we're
boondocking we're out in the middle of nowhere and there isn't a place to go
dump the cassette well the answer for us is pretty simple we go outside so we
make sure to follow any rules about wastes outside by either digging a hole
or picking up after ourselves but we find that to be a really good solution
and we don't have to worry about filling up the cassette a lot of times what
we'll do especially if it's really cold outside is we'll save the cassette for
those moments during the middle of the night or early in the morning when you
don't want to go run outside and then the rest of the day we'll spend going
outside whenever we make that trip into town then we'll take the time to go dump
the cassette clean it out and it will go right back out boondocking so we haven't
had any problems in that regard what do you think about the cassette toilet I
like it and I think I've said in multiple q and A's that I would never go
back to a black tank because I find it so easy to use and so easy to dump yeah
day to day life I find the cassette a lot easier
there was a little bit of adjustment getting used to saying hey you know got
to go in the morning let's go find a place to go to the bathroom if we're not
at a campground but once I got into that routine I don't miss having that
old-school black tank I think as with anything
van life RV cassette toilet black tank it's not for everybody
no and you sort of have to adapt to a new way of life just as we adapted to
living in a tiny space from a 1200 square foot home to a class-a our being
now down to a van and we adjust it to the cassette toilet it really works out
well for us now and I don't think we would give it up so that is everything
we've learned over the past year about the cassette toilet how we use it how we
dump it and it's certainly not the end-all be-all it's just how we do it
and it's not for everyone but we enjoyed the cassette toilet and you might find
that a black tank is better suited for you whatever you end up choosing at the
end of the day hopefully you are getting out on the road and exploring thanks for
watching guys and we'll see you on the road
you