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Symptom Cause Remedial Action Prevention
1 .To get rid of flies, you can use any pesticide
that is used on your garden. Pesticides used
for garden use are not anti-bacterial so are
safe to use on your compost. If you prefer not
to use a pesticide in your compost, the unit
should be cleaned out completely and washed
with soapy water to kill any remaining eggs.
Once the unit is washed, it should be rinse
well to remove all traces of soap before
restarting the compost.
If using a pesticide to kill the insects, it maybe
purchased from a local garden center or
hardware store.
2. Natural larvacide that can be used in the com-
post is bacillus thuringiensis israelensis or BT i.
This is a natural aerobic bacteria that is found in
soil. The fly larvae ingest this bacteria.Once BT i
has been ingested by the larvae, it releases a
crystal in the larvae that essentially cuts the lar-
vae up. This does take about 2 weeks to work
since it kills the larvae, not the adult flies. This
can by purchased at stores that sell pond sup-
plies. The product name is Aqua-Bac or there is
another called Mosquito Dunks that is available
to consumers. Either of these products should
be dissolved in water and used as a soak for the
compost. This should be repeated every 2 days
for a week to make sure that all larvae are cov-
ered.
3. The other alternative to using pesticides is to
completely clean the toilet out, wash the inside
with soap and water
IMPORTANT:
Application of a pesticide in a Sun-Mar composter
is not a health concern because all Sun-Mar units
are vented. If using pesticides, avoid spilling on
the outer shell of the composter.
1. Keep compost moist. In order to
determine a good level of mois
ture, shine a flashlight into the
drum. The compost should have a
slight gloss or shine. If it does
not, add warm water to it until it
reaches this consistency. Fungus
gnats tend to be attracted to a
dry compost, due to the fungus
which begins to form on the sur
face when it dries out. A good,
moist compost will not be attrac
tive to flies.
2. Do not add topsoil from the
ground, composted matter, or
kitchen scraps to the toilet. Flies
may be present in, or attracted
to these items.
3. If toilet is installed over an old
septic line,make sure that the
lines are well sealed. Insects find
unused lines attractive.
4.See “Compost Remediation” if the
compost smells- anaerobic com
post will attract flies and drastical
ly reduce the performance of your
composting unit.
5. Use “Compost Sure Blue” or a
mixture of peat moss and
non-cedar wood shavings.
-compost too dry
-compost anaerobic
-kitchen/garden
waste added
-foreign material
added
The following are possible options to take care of the liquid:
- Use a container which is emptied periodically (water jug or small
barrel). This ensures a closed loop system.
- Feed into a lined pit filled with gravel and sand. Such a recycling
bed also ensures a closed loop system.
- Feed into a small cesspit or “french drain”.
-Plumb into an existing septic or holding tank line.
Installation should be in accordance with applicable local regulations.
If running the vent pipe through a wall, it should be done with an upward sloping angle(as shown in the
picture below). There should be NO horizontal or downward sloping sections. Installing the vent pipe
with horizontal or downward sloping sections will result in a urine odor around the composting unit.
Below are some examples of a desireable installation. If the unit will be used in colder weather, all
exposed 2” vent pipes should be insulated to reduce freezing and condensation.
The vent on the right is a 4” (100mm)
non-electric vent.
All others show possible 2” (50mm)
Centrex 2000 (electric) vent configura-
tions.
If you believe that there may be a downdraft outside of the building,
it may be a good idea to remove your fan assembly prior to installa-
tion and set the fan gate to ‘0’ to prevent urine odor in the bath-
room. The fan gate is factory set to ‘3’, which recirculates air within
the unit. If there is a downdraft you may get blow back into the
room where the unit is installed. When setting the fan gate to ‘0’,
you may lose some evaporation.
Piping and fittings are of standard 2” PVC thin wall tubing(central vacuum) and/or 4” (100ml) ABS thin
wall pipe. Additional pipe or fittings can be purchased from a building supply dealer. If you cannot find
them near your location, you can substitute schedule 40 pipe and use a rubber coupling to join this pipe
to the unit.
i) Minimize the number of sharp angles in the 2” (50ml) vent as each reduces vent efficiency. The
4”(100ml) vent should be installed as near to vertical as possible. It is recommended if it is
necessary to have angles in the 4” (100ml) vent pipe that 45 degree angles are used whenever
possible. On the 4” (100ml) DC stack, bends should be limited to 2 - 45 degree angles. will
necessitate the installation of a 12 volt fan.
ii) Do not lead the 2” (50ml) vent pipe downward or horizontally at any point. This may lead to the
Flies
Present
Handling
Effluent
Vent Piping
Location
Adjusting
the fan
gate(Electric
and AC/DC)
Vent
Piping
Installation
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