The Pampered City Dweller’s Guide to Pit Toilets

It is almost inevitable that a visitor to Kygyzstan encounter a pit toilet, especially when venturing out of the major cities. As such, it is essential that a Pampered City Dweller (PCD) be properly informed about the intricacies of answering nature’s call in such a place.

The Pit Toilet
The pit toilet can be found anywhere. Not only can it be found in remote pastures by nomadic yurts, one can also often find it in homes in rural communities, usually at a corner of the family vegetable patch.

The typical pit toilet is constructed over a pit about 2m deep. A rectangular structure is then constructed above this pit and has a twofold purpose: to give the user of the pit toilet some privacy and to prevent wild animals from gaining access to the pit.

This structure is usually made out of wood, but you might sometimes find stainless steel being used, particularly in places tourists  frequent. Inside this structure, you’ll find a floorboard with a hole cut into it. This hole can come in various shapes and sizes. Rectangular and diamond shapes are most common. The toilet door opens outwards and can be latched from both sides. The user should always remember to re-latch the door shut from the outside when done with his business.

Considerations When Using a Pit Toilet
The first thing that will hit a PCD is the smell. The level of smell is related to several factors: how old the pit toilet is, how deep the pit is, the availability of ventilation, and the temperature of the environment. You might now be thinking… Ventilation? No… pit toilets do not have the electrical ventilation fans found is most western bathrooms. Ventilation here will refer to the natural movement of air through the toilet. If the pit toilet is located in the open, say at a jailoo, ventilation would typically be good and smell would be at a minimum. However, if the pit is located in a family compound with buildings around, be ready for your senses to be stimulated.

A PCD will usually think of holding his breath the first time he visits a pit toilet. However, he will quickly come to realize that this is a futile exercise, especially when conducting a No. 2. A much better way is to try to breathe through the mouth. After a few seconds, the a thick mucus layer will form in the nostrils, aiding in blocking out the smell.
An unexpected side effect of the smell is that it tends to stick to clothing for up to an hour afterwards. This is usually an unpleasant side-effect and is especially distressing for the pit toilet user who decides to go right before sitting down for a meal. Clothes made of synthetics typically retain less smell than clothes made of cotton, so you might want to keep that in mind. Also, less clothing would mean less porous material for smell to cling on to, so try to wear shorts or similar apparel (note the special conditions listed below). Convertible pants are particularly useful in this case as the long pants can be zipped off prior to entering the toilet to reduce the surface area for smell absorption.

Flies
The next thing PCDs will find distressing is the presence of flies. These flies were probably from maggots feasting on other people’s prior contributions to the pit toilet and probably landed on said contributions numerous times before landing on you. As such, a PCD would want to keep flies from landing on exposed skin. The natural tendency would then be to wear clothing with more coverage, but that would conflict with the the solution to avoid smell (see above section on smell). As such, the best solution would be to consistently wave a hand in front of you in hopes of preventing flies from landing on the face. For men, this would require using one hand to aim, while using the other to wave. For women or men doing a No. 2, there probably isn’t any easy way to prevent flies from landing on the additional exposed regions.

Floor
Some pit toilets have excellent flooring.They are stable, strong and clean. Sometimes they also have elevated platforms for you to squat on when doing a No. 2. However, many home-made pit toilets have unstable flooring, and overly big holes. This would prove tricky for the not-so-athletically inclined PCD as certain maneuvers would become tricky, particularly the one which requires turning around in the toilet while trying to avoid touching the sides of the toilet or falling into the huge hole in the center of the floor. This maneuver would become especially tricky at night. Unstable flooring also has potentially life-threatening implications. A strong gust of wind, or a weak floorboard might mean a visit into the pit below. As such, take similar precautions in a pit toilet as when riding an elevator: do not jump up and down or stomp too hard on the floor.

Toilets Without Roofs
Some pit toilets, particularly in the more remote areas do not have a roof. This can be both a blessing or a curse. The lack of a roof would dramatically improve air circulation and reduce the number of flies. Depending on the height of the surrounding walls, the lack of a roof might also mean that a tall PCD might be able to stand up and take breaths of air from the outside, reducing the need of taking counter-measures to fight smell as mentioned above.
However, the lack of a roof has its obvious issues. Firstly, the PCD is exposed to the elements: rain, wind and sun, all of which can be experienced in a single visit to the pit toilet. However, to look at it positively, how often does one get a tan while doing business?

Special Considerations for Going at Night
Special considerations would have to be made when going to a pit toilet at night. Pit toilets are usually unlit and the same goes for the the path from your yurt to the toilet. As such, the most essential piece of equipment would be a strap on headlamp. This will allow both hands to be available. However, take note that LED headlamps tend to suck the color out of objects at night. As such, it becomes more difficult to avoid the fresh horse/cow/sheep dung that is almost always between you and relief. Don’t even bother to try avoiding the stale dung.

As you can see, a PCD has a lot to consider before going to a pit toilet. The ability to multitask and to shut off certain senses is required for a pleasant trip. Hopefully this guide will come in useful should you need visit such a toilet someday.