What is a privy restroom?

So what is a privy? You may know it by a different name: head, john, latrine, lavatory, outhouse, potty, restroom, the can, throne, washroom, water closet... Simply, a privy is an outdoor toilet.

Why is the toilet called a privy?

The oldest word on the list, privy dates back hundreds of years and derives from the phrase private place. Despite some persistent myths, the privy council does not take its name from when King Henry VIII would hold meetings in his toilet.

What is the difference between a privy and an outhouse?

In later times, the outhouse was sometimes called a “privy” —; an abbreviated form of the word “privacy.” Around 4500 B.C., the first collection system for human excrement was constructed by the Romans, who were among the first to build sewers underneath street level to collect both rain water and sewage.

Do outhouses still exist?

Outhouses were in use in cities of developed countries (e.g. Australia) well into the second half of the twentieth century. They are still common in rural areas and also in cities of developing countries. Outhouses that are covering pit latrines in densely populated areas can cause groundwater pollution.

What's a privy pit?

Pit-privy means a hole, pit or trench in the ground used to dispose of human excrement without the use of addition of any water, and including the structure surrounding the hole, pit or trench. Pit privy includes the terms trench latrine and bored-hole latrine.

The History of Toilets

What breaks down poop in an outhouse?

A type of lime called calcium hydroxide, available at feed stores, can be dropped down the hole to reduce odor. But lime might halt decomposition. Ash from a wood-burning stove is better for decomposition, but less effective on odors.

How do you keep an outhouse from smelling?

Why do outhouses smell?

A well-built outhouse usually had a vent along the roof to vent out the chamber and a pipe from the box through the ceiling to vent out the gases. To avoid the odor reaching the home, most outhouses were built between 50 and 150 feet from the main house, often facing away from the house.

Why is there a moon on an outhouse door?

Supposedly before the adoption of the more familiar male and female bathroom symbols, it was common to use a crescent moon to denote that an outhouse was for women and a sun to denote that it was an outhouse for men.

Which U.S. state has the most outhouses?

This state has more outhouses than any other. A: Alaska!

How did they clean outhouses in the 1800s?

Most outhouses were cleaned periodically. On certain wash days, leftover soapy water was carried to the outhouse and used to scrub everything down. In addition, some outhouse owners kept a bag of lime with a tin can in the outhouse, and occasionally dumped some down the holes to control the odor.

How deep is a privy?

Some privy vaults are less than 2 feet deep and others are more than 25 feet. They can be as narrow as 2 feet or as wide as 10 feet, particularly in urban settings where a large privy shed with multiple doors and inner compartments once stood. Some vaults are cylindrical, these are usually made of stone or brick.

Are there outhouses on Appalachian Trail?

One of the most important features of the Appalachian Trail shelters are the shelter privies (outhouses). Almost every one of the more than 200 shelters along the Trail has its own privy and the availability of these facilities is a major attraction for hikers passing by or planning to stop for the night.

What is the posh word for toilet?

In this page you can discover 63 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for toilet, like: restroom, john, bathroom, latrine, loo, ablutions, poet's corner, crapper, commode, ladies-room and can.

What do the Irish call a bathroom?

In Ireland, 'the jacks' means 'toilet', most commonly used to refer to public bathrooms.

What do they call toilet paper in England?

Bog roll, naturally, is an idiom for toilet paper. This will come in especially handy if you find yourself in a dire situation in the loo.

How long does an outhouse hole last?

With a traditional pit toilet, you cover the hole and move to a new location. It's simple and effective. A hole that's three feet wide and five feet deep will last five years for a family of six.

Why do outhouses have a crescent?

Bollinger's book goes on to suggest that men's outhouses were not as well kept up, so eventually, to conserve resources and labor, male stalls were taken down, and the remaining moon-doored stalls became a symbol of unisex bathrooms, and outhouses in general.

What did the pioneers use for toilet paper?

Through the 1700s, corncobs were a common toilet paper alternative. Then, newspapers and magazines arrived in the early 18th century.

How deep is an outhouse hole?

For the pit outhouse, dig an excavation that measures 3 1/2 feet x 3 1/2 feet and is five feet deep. This hole may later be cribbed in, but the cribbing is not absolutely essential. A properly managed privy is at least as healthful for people and land as a septic system and is far more than a place to evacuate waste.

How did Pioneers go to the bathroom?

People used leaves, grass, or even dry corn cobs for wiping. Chamber pots had to be emptied each day. This was usually done by emptying them down the privy hole. With liquid waste, some just threw the contents out in the yard.

How do you take care of a pit toilet?

How long does a pit toilet last?

Deep pits can last up to 20 or more years. As liquid leaches from the pit and migrates through the unsaturated soil matrix, pathogenic germs are sorbed to the soil surface. In this way, pathogens can be removed prior to contact with groundwater.