122 Building Toilets
To make a mold for a seat, use 2 buckets of different sizes, one inside
the other. There must be several inches between the sides of the inner
bucket and the outer bucket. Weight the inner bucket with rocks so it
stays on the bottom. Pour concrete into the space between buckets.
Howbtconbmxnackbe a concrete ring beam
A ring beam is a square or round piece of cast concrete with an open
center that supports the toilet platform and shelter, and keeps the
pit walls from collapsing. The ring beam described here can be used
along with the platform on page 121 for all pit toilets. The size of
the ring beam you make depends on the width of the pit.
➊ Lay down a plastic sheet or cement bags on level ground.
➋ Make a mold of bricks, wooden boards, or both. For a platform
that is 120 cm by 90 cm, the ring beam will be 130 cm by 1 m
on the outside, and 1 m by 70 cm on the inside.
A mold for the ring beam
➌ Make a concrete mix of 1 part cement, 2 parts
gravel, 3 parts sand, and enough water so that it
is wet but holds together well. Pour the concrete
into the mold until it is halfway to the top.
➍ Place 2 pieces of reinforcing wire 3 mm thick
on top of the wet concrete on each side of the
ring beam. If you want, you can make handles
of wire 8 to 10 mm thick, and set them in the
concrete near the corners.
➎ Pour the rest of the concrete, and smooth
it with a block of wood.
➏ Cover the concrete with wet cement sacks,
wet cloth, or a plastic sheet, and leave it overnight.
Wet it several times a day to keep it damp for 7 days.
Pouring the concrete
➐ When the ring beam is solid, carry it to the
site of the toilet. Level the ground, place
the ring beam, and dig a pit inside of it.
Pack soil around the outside of the ring
beam to set it in place.
➑ Place the toilet platform on top,
then build a shelter.
Reinforcing wire
A Community Guide to Environmental Health 2012