The humanure handbook
by Joseph C Jenkins · first published 1994
10mentions
6recommended by
10HN commenters
2014–2025first – last mentioned
60% recommend40% neutral
Why HN recommends it
A practical, detailed guide to building sawdust toilets and composting human waste safely. It serves as a definitive reference on humanure and a useful general composting resource.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
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I recommend The Humanure Handbook by Joseph Jenkins. The definitive guide to humanure composting, and the best reference for general composting I've read.
on “Gates Foundation spent $200M funding toilet research” ↗We used compost (sawdust) toilets in our house for a few months before we had indoor plumbing. Before I read "The Humanure Handbook" I thought the very idea was some kind of awful hippie bullshit. However now I have realized something that is really obvious when you try it: Some machines and designs have been perfected for centuries.…
on “Lavatory Laboratory: How sanitation is following the cell phone model” ↗Excellent book on the topic of "humanure": https://www.amazon.com/Humanure-Handbook-4th-Shit-Nutshell/d...
on “Separating urine from sewage could mitigate some environmental problems” ↗The Humanure Handbook (http://humanurehandbook.com/) goes into the specifics of how to build sawdust toilets and manage waste and compost safely. For those even remotely interested, the e-book is only USD$10, and earlier editions…
on “Amazon rainforest was home to millions of people before European arrival” ↗…is important for us to actively recycle our phosphorous and potassium, because there is no short term replenishment of these vital elements in the soil. For more information, I highly recommend "The Humanure Handbook": http://humanurehandbook.com/downloads/Humanure_Handbook_all.... Fertilizers do increase the growth rate of plants. However, there is mounting evidence that nutritional content is inversely proportional…
on “Building a Home Aquaponics System: The Basics” ↗The system I have experience with and the one that's recommended in Jenkins "Humanure Handbook" is a simple bucket. Spray sawdust on top after use and close the lid. Dump the bucket in compost bin when full, which should happen every 1-2 days in a household with a few people. Barely any smells,…
on “MycoToilet: Demonstration of a Mycelium-Based Composting Toilet” ↗…accumulate almost regardless, although I assume composting helps. After all, composting can break down gasoline, diesel, and TNT - though of course you shouldn't add them to a compost bin! Quoting The Humanure Handbook (4th edition) page 115: "About half the sewage sludge (biosolids) produced in the USA is applied to land, providing a significant opportunity for contaminants to enter soil systems and to bioaccumulate over time..."…
on “Separating urine from sewage could mitigate some environmental problems” ↗It's been a while since I've read the Humanure Handbook and I've not practiced many of the techniques in it but it does cover this topic in great detail: https://humanurehandbook.com/ I believe it is possible you just have to be really careful with how it's…
on “The Off-Grid Laws of Every State in America” ↗…again, house more, not less!), but it also prevents someone from just storing an RV on a plot of land they own. > Composting is not sufficient to destroy human pathogens. The studies aggregated in the Humanure Handbook suggest otherwise?: https://weblife.org/humanure/references.html Here is a link to just 1 study outside those references: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/288724214_A_pilot_s... (there are better…
on “What Going Off the Grid Looks Like” ↗See The Humanure Handbook. https://humanurehandbook.com/ See also, Paul Wheaton criticism of The Humanure Handbook ("No, do fear your poop! Fear it!!"). Timecode link, but I recommend the whole video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vZPTPIHO8w&t=4980s
on “In the US, regenerative farming practices require unlearning past advice” ↗