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Replacing toilet & dump system with waterless Laveo toilet. How thick bath floor
I need to know how thick the bathroom floor is under the original toilet of my 2008 24 foot twin king lazy days. Laveo has a conversion kit with a bracket that mounts to the floor behind where the back part of the toilet is. Need to drill some holes for screws and don't want to drill too deep and get into trouble. Any suggestions? Thank you in advance!

Re: Replacing toilet & dump system with waterless Laveo toilet. How thick bath floor
Reply #1

Welcome to the Forum.
Lazy Daze used either 1/2" or 3/4” plywood under the toilet, and there should not be anything in the area under the floor that will get damaged if the screws are a little long.
I suggest doing nothing to the existing toilet's floor flange,  so this modification could be reversed if it doesn't work to your satisfaction.

I have to ask why you are doing this? A Laveo has much smaller capacity than the Factory holding tank, and you will often need to eliminate the waste.
Dumping plastic bags of raw sewage in the trash doesn't seem very sanitary or ecological, besides the gray tank needs periodic dumping too.
I fail to see the advantage of using a Laveo for RVing. All RVers have to deal with dumping their holding tanks, there is no simple way to avoid it.

Larry
Larry
2003 23.5' Front Lounge, since new.  Previously 1983 22' Front Lounge.
Tow vehicles  2020 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon, 2001 Jeep Cherokee
Photo Collection: Lazy Daze

Re: Replacing toilet & dump system with waterless Laveo toilet. How thick bath floor
Reply #2
I actually was in the middle of my reply asking the same questions as Larry.  This is a link to the above mentioned toilet.

Laveo™ Dry Flush Electric Toilet | The Waterless Toilet

I’m also thinking those replacement bags are not inexpensive.  In an average day, we’re frequent visitors to our toilet and as a result, we’d have a good many silver bags stored somewhere.  In addition, we’re not a big fan of dumping gray water other than dump stations unless it’s approved by the local authorities.

At any rate, welcome to this Neighborhood. 

Re: Replacing toilet & dump system with waterless Laveo toilet. How thick bath floor
Reply #3
Hi SueM;  Welcome to the Group!  Your 2008 is 9 years newer than my 1999 TK.  I've never had a clog or anything like that. Standard use as designed, toilet waste drops into the tank directly below it.  I think you benefit from the E450 chassis, and have a larger tank than my 18 gallon black tank. (24 gal?) Modern chemicals are only slightly needed in warm weather. Normal dissolving RV toilet paper, (not instantly) insures that emptying the tanks is drama free. Over the years a new seal at the base, and adjustments to the gate valves were needed. (I think I had a handle break off of one valve once).
   Proper technique of using minimal water to flush as needed will minimize water use and extend dump intervals for the 'small' black water tank. Small motor home, small tanks. A friends trailer has 120 gallons of water and a 80 gallon black tank!
   To me the Laveo is for new or portable installations in places with no water, Vans, pickup trucks, sheds. Mountain cabins with no plumbing, tents, etc.  Standard RV shops will not know how to service the Laveo, and it will likely damage the resale value of your motorhome by a lot. (where exactly would you store those bags, and I certainly wouldn't want them in the trash of an RV park.) (where was that one with a do it yourself compactor?...Desert Hot Springs?)     RonB
RonB (Bostick) living in San Diego
Original owner of "Bluebelle" a '99 TKB

Re: Replacing toilet & dump system with waterless Laveo toilet. How thick bath floor
Reply #4
Welcome aboard.  The only bad questions are the ones unasked, as I learned.   I had a cartridge toilet on a sailboat once, and the Laveo seems to be a replacement for that.  Aside from the the difficulties I see in disposal,  the refills seem to cost a bit more than $20/each Laveo refills.
Morro Bay charged $10 to use their dump station in March; tank wasn't full after a week but we were leaving. 


Joel & Terry Wiley
dog Zeke
2013  31 IB   Orwan   / 2011 CRV Tow'd LWEROVE

Re: Replacing toilet & dump system with waterless Laveo toilet. How thick bath floor
Reply #5
Welcome aboard.  The only bad questions are the ones unasked, as I learned.   I had a cartridge toilet on a sailboat once, and the Laveo seems to be a replacement for that.  Aside from the the difficulties I see in disposal,  the refills seem to cost a bit more than $20/each Laveo refills.
Morro Bay charged $10 to use their dump station in March; tank wasn't full after a week but we were leaving.

At 20 a bag and each bag, according to Laveo's website, holds 15 flushes calcs out to be $1.33 per flush.
Laveo™ Dry Flush Electric Toilet | The Waterless Toilet

Larry
Larry
2003 23.5' Front Lounge, since new.  Previously 1983 22' Front Lounge.
Tow vehicles  2020 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon, 2001 Jeep Cherokee
Photo Collection: Lazy Daze

Re: Replacing toilet & dump system with waterless Laveo toilet. How thick bath floor
Reply #6
Quote
how thick the bathroom floor is under the original toilet

My 09's is 3/4" plywood. Just empty space under there. The reason we have the platform is the wheel well. The Reflectix you see in the photo is laid over the wheel well and the photo is looking toward the front of the rig.
jor
09 27' MB
10  Suby Forester

Re: Replacing toilet & dump system with waterless Laveo toilet. How thick bath floor
Reply #7

It's hard to see any reason to use this product in a Lazy Daze.

The Laveo is similar to a Porta Potti, only instead of a removable cassette that can be carried to a dump station and emptied with no mess, you wind up with a bag of semiliquid urine and feces, plus a large, rigid plastic ring. Laveo doesn't say how many flushes you can expect to get from one of their single-use cartridges, but from what I can see in their product videos, it looks like maybe three or four gallons. That won't last even a single person for very long. A Twin/King has an 18-gallon black tank; that's four or five times the capacity of the Laveo cartridge.

Moreover, the disposable Laveo cartridge is seriously bulky (see the installation video to get an idea), and costs $25 per cartridge. I can't imagine storing more than a couple of spares in an RV the size of a Twin/King, and the cost of replacements is going to add up fast.

Then there's the disposal issue. While Laveo points out that it's not illegal to dispose of human waste (e.g., diapers), all the landfills I've been to specify "no liquids"--and that bag of urine and feces is going to be very liquid indeed. What happens when the landfill compacts trash, as some do? Even if they don't, what happens when someone throws a sharp-cornered object into the dumpster on top of that bag? It's going to be a very unpleasant mess.

So what situation would be suitable for a toilet like the Laveo? As others have said, a cabin, tent, van, or tiny trailer with no holding tanks. But in that case,  I'd recommend a Porta Potti instead of the Laveo product. The Porta Potti cassette holds three to six gallons (depending upon the model) and is easy to empty at any RV dump station, or even into a public toilet. No single-use supplies need to be stockpiled. I used a Porta Potti model 335 in my 13-foot Trillium trailer, and it was fine. And a Porta Potti costs less than $150, while the Laveo toilet costs a thousand bucks.

But in a Lazy Daze with a built-in toilet and an 18-gallon black tank, I wouldn't use either a Porta Potti or Laveo toilet. Even if the rig came with a broken toilet, that's only $200 to $300 to replace. And the advantages of much longer use between dumps and zero cost for disposable supplies are compelling.

After all, as Larry pointed out, it's not as if a "waterless" toilet is going to mean you never have to visit a dump station. You'll still have to do that to empty your 25-gallon gray tank.

So the question remains: why?

As an Amazon Associate Lazy Daze Owners' Group earns from qualifying purchases.
Andy Baird
2021 Ford Ranger towing 2019 Airstream 19CB
Previously: 1985 LD Twin/King "Gertie"; 2003 LD Midbath "Skylark"

Re: Replacing toilet & dump system with waterless Laveo toilet. How thick bath floor
Reply #8
I need to know how thick the bathroom floor is under the original toilet of my 2008 24 foot twin king lazy days. Laveo has a conversion kit with a bracket that mounts to the floor behind where the back part of the toilet is. Need to drill some holes for screws and don't want to drill too deep and get into trouble. Any suggestions?

I see from your profile that you registered for this Forum almost 3 years ago and this was your first post.  The feedback in the above comments are from RVers with more than 100 years of combined experience.   It’s my experience in this Forum that their guidance has always been direct, thoughtful and supportive.

Having said that, the toilet you’re considering maybe a good solution for your situation.  I sincerely hope you haven’t felt otherwise or anything less than 100% respected.

Best of luck with your project.

Re: Replacing toilet & dump system with waterless Laveo toilet. How thick bath floor
Reply #9
Hi SueM;  I hope you don't feel that we all 'piled on' you at once. As Jor pointed out there are other ways to take care of human waste issues.  The floor under your toilet has the holding tank, not 'empty' as in Jor's different floorplan.  So you could just plug up the hole, or repurpose the tank for grey water. You could put in a storage compartment (to hold those waste bags perhaps). (Just had a 6.0 earthquake!) The floor isn't flat under the toilet, there is a mounted ABS flange ring that sticks up.  You could build up the floor to cover it with another layer of plywood. That would raise the toilet somewhat.     RonB
RonB (Bostick) living in San Diego
Original owner of "Bluebelle" a '99 TKB

 
Re: Replacing toilet & dump system with waterless Laveo toilet. How thick bath floor
Reply #10
Standard RV shops will not know how to service the Laveo, and it will likely damage the resale value of your motorhome by a lot.

^^ This cannot be emphasized enough - not having a standard waste system in the LD, and potentially making it costly to restore could make it unsellable.  It certainly will cause the vast majority of potential buyers to pass over the rig and not even consider it.

Then there's the disposal issue. While Laveo points out that it's not illegal to dispose of human waste (e.g., diapers), all the landfills I've been to specify "no liquids"--and that bag of urine and feces is going to be very liquid indeed. What happens when the landfill compacts trash, as some do? Even if they don't, what happens when someone throws a sharp-cornered object into the dumpster on top of that bag? It's going to be a very unpleasant mess.

I can't imagine a campground or RV park would allow it if they knew about it, either.