A barrel of human poo in the back garden of sister's rented house.

[AvengingAngel]

My sister has been in a rented house for nearly two years and the last tenants left a barrel of human poo in the back garden. This is not a joke. Despite numerous attempts to get the Estate Agents to move it, it has not happened, even though promises have been made. I know she dearly wants to stay in the house, but come on! Any advice? Please??

I know headfairy but "specialising in poo" just made me smile a bit

Gillian McKeith maybe?

Pmsl angel

I have hidden this thread, too gross.

sprinkle sawdust on it as it will take the smell away
Then read humanure
Human waste takes 1-2 years to beak down.
If its still there in all its fullness then I suspect it is not in fact human shite, or not entirely anyway

LordOfThe5Rings Cow pats oh the joys of a misspent youth get quite crusty on top and change colour but are still squidgy or even liquid underneath, depending on when you get a big stick and flick them at your younger cousin/sister examine them. Human poo is probably similar.

Thank you so much for everyone's help and suggestions. I will let you know the outcome when the "poo specialist" gets in touch.

What an odd thing to have just typed.

I would call a site chemical toilet emptying company and pay them to suck the poop out then burn the barrel. Bill the estate agents. We have a chemical toilet it costs £30 to empty it.

I think you'll find it's the Poolice.

Me too salmo, I wonder if the cess pit guys and gals tell people they meet on nights out what they do for a living?

Maybe they say they are Waste Management Operatives!

But poolice is funnier! at shrinkingnora

I bet she could grow some cracking potatoes in that barrel...

Sarah!

amici she does have a responsibility to maintain the property in the state she took it over. She does not have a responsibility to remove effluent from the property. The fact she has chased EH over this and has been rebuffed by them and the agents (I sure hope she's got some documentary evidence of this) shows she tried to make steps to get it rectified. She was under no obligation to do either of those things, but she has notified the agent. She has no more responsibility.

Black and white crust? Is that poo and ammonia fermenting?

So, I've just googled "How to use a barrel of poo" and found this site:

here

That's a DIY poo composter you have there OP. Scroll down to the end and it tells you:

It is best to leave human manure for a year or two before using it on land. I'm told that the really nasty diseases carried in poo (Salmonella etc.) will die within a year of being composted. Threadworms can live for up to 18 months, but they are hardly life threatening. It is usually fairly obvious from the smell and appearance of the compost, whether it is properly composted or not. If in doubt, either leave the composted poo a while longer, or use it to feed fruit trees or some other crop that will not be in direct contact with the soil (i.e. not root vegetables).

I doubt very much if this is properly composted though... a barrel of poo (and presumably rainwater) won't compost properly on it's own will it?

Or will it?

This is my favourite part:

What is a compost toilet?

A compost toilet is a toilet that allows your "effluent" "poo" "shit" or more politely "humanure" (I will be mainly using the technical terms "poo" and "wee", but you can substitute for these the words "faeces" and "urine" if you prefer) to rot down into a form that can be used safely to feed the soil of your farm or garden.

or some other crop that will not be in direct contact with the soil (i.e. not root vegetables).

Maybe not potatoes then...

Tomatoes do very well at sewage farms, so I've heard.

Doesn't the bottom (ho ho) of the barrel have to be exposed to the earth, so all the worms and stuff can eat it and turn to compost? By the way, my sister tells me it still stinks, but at least it has a crust now.

With hold rent until it is removed. Sorted.

In my old (rented) house there was a big black bin full of dog poo at the end of the garden and the bin it's self had arrows sticking out of it, from a crossbow or something similar.

The bin was full to the top and stank.

We moved.

valium I'm not sure if she would be opening the door to being counter sued for breaching the terms of her tenancy agreement. But then I'm famously non combative ie a wimp

This thread has made me laugh so much I just had to add my 2pence worth. I am a "poo specialist" (or an Environmental Scientist who specialises in waste water and discharges to the environment as I prefer to refer to it). It could be compost in the barrel as this can absolutely stink if it's got wet and gone septic. Some one from EH or your local water company should be able to test it for the presence of sewage. Poo doesn't really smell like poo when it becomes sewage and I wouldn't expect sewage to still stink after 2 years. You do have to be careful though even if it isn't poo because pathogens can be inhaled as well as ingested. Yuk!

Don't pay rent until it is taken away