what to do with trash on trip

PA

panzerkw

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Joined
Aug 28, 2009
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13
Location
NYC
I'm a newbie, just purchased a used 07 grandby,
My question is how do you manage your garbage while on a trip. I know what you pack in you pack out and don't leave your "markings" behind. but how do you manage it, bags, containers. how do you manage your wet waste from the sink, etc, etc,.
My concern also is if your in bear country, how do you manage the waste, do you carry amonia to kill the smell...

It's a basic nuts and bolts question that I've always had since I'm planning my first trip and eventually i would like to get it on one of the may caravans that i see planned on the site. I would think that it is something most would not ask until they get out for the first time. How do you guys do it?.........
Thanks a mill'
 
I simply use a kitchen trash bag, one per 24hrs roughly. If I'm anywhere near a proper garbage can (in a campground, or on the road at a gas station), then I throw out all trash as often as I can. When not in bear country, I put the trash bag in my "wood bin" when hiking or overnight. The "wood bin" is a Rubbermaid container I hold firewood in to keep the camper clean (put the lid on and something heavy on top to keep critters out). When in bear country, I put that bin in the locked truck. I don't worry about it too much unless I were in serious bear country where they like to break into cars.

We tend not to generate a lot of trash. You get better at this over time, realizing that extra packaging is better tossed at home. I try to burn any paper in the campfire. We tend to end up with about a half plastic grocery bag per day.

For waste water, it depends where I am. I have a 5-6' garden hose that screws onto the sink outlet. I put a 2.5gal water jug on the end. Close the cap at night to keep flies and critters from the smell of any soap, food, toothpaste etc. When full, I dump it far from camp- in a toilet, drain or someplace appropriate for water. Since we don't use anything not biodegradable, it isn't hurting the environment. Letting it drain on the ground is ok in sand, but elsewhere it is unsightly and can be muddy or attract flies/mice. You can see this setup in this pic.

I'm interested in how others do it too.
 
The turnbuckle access ports make a good place to stash empty cans and your sealed up trash bags until a proper disposal location comes along.
 
I try to reduce the amount of trash i have by bringing cans instead of bottles for beer. If I have a fire I'll burn anything flammable and any food scraps. I usually double bag the trash before packing up and driving somewhere as it's pretty easy to pierce a single layer trash bag while driving around in rough terrain.
 
I use grocery market plastic bags or standard kitchen trash bags. These bags hold a days trash and are small, which makes them easy to slip into any trash can anywhere. When camping with a group or in a crowded campground I'll slip my trash into someone else's camper when they're not looking. :rolleyes: Since I usually change locations after one or two days finding a trash can hasn't been a problem.

As for the sink runoff I usually drain into a expandable water bucket. If there was a camp fire I use the gray water to flood the fire pit. When in sandy soil away from a water source I drain right to the sand. In an environmentally sensitive area I'll take my gray water with me to a proper location. Since I use only backpacker non-toxic bio-degradable soap I lower my impact on the environment. Hope this helps.

mike
 
Since we always have to hit the grocery store on our way out of town, I save all of the plastic shopping bags to reuse as trash bags on the trip. I'll dump any excessive paper boxes (cereal, crackers, diet cokes, etc.) at the grocery store while packing our food in the parking lot.

In camp, I hang a plastic bag off my trailer hitch and when in transit, like Brett, I store it in with my firewood, double bagging if necessary. Then I dump it at the first gas station I come to... I use a similar system as Brett's for dealing with grey water - drain it into a collapsible 5 gallon container. More often than not, I use the grey water to completely douse the campfire before going to bed, killing two birds with one stone so to speak...
.
 
Thank you guys so much for the input, sometimes the nuts and bolts are simple but you want to know what the real deal is. Lots of common sense input. Again thank a Mill'
 
Ditto on the kitchen bag and firewood box, I generally don't generate that much trash either. On a short 2-3 day weekend jaunt I barely dent the bag and I bring it all home with me. Longer trips I hang on to it until a suitable location can be found to discard it. I rarely use my sink and generate no greywater in it. Dishes are done in tupperware tubs with very little water and dispersed

I think I like SimiMike's plan best though. Gotta watch myself around that guy next time!
 
My question is how do you manage your garbage while on a trip.



I recycle by feeding it all to the bears :)
554308322_CpV3Z-S.jpg
 
I try to reduce the amount of trash i have by bringing cans instead of bottles for beer. If I have a fire I'll burn anything flammable and any food scraps. I usually double bag the trash before packing up and driving somewhere as it's pretty easy to pierce a single layer trash bag while driving around in rough terrain.


Really??
Last 2 trips i remember that all your trash ended up in my storage compartment... ;)
 
as Simimike's casually alluded to.....rallies that involve XPMarc(Gandalph the Grey)are the best to attend because you not only have a professional chef at your disposal but you don't even have to worry about the trash you generate. The XP has so much storage that Marc probably still hasn't discovered all the trash that he has been luggin around since the Warner's :)

Cort
 
If you are camping where you have bear problems, like Yosemite, please use the bear proof bear storage units provided. All good ideas everyone, just remember, a fed bear, is a dead bear. Once they get a taste of human garbage, they become habituated to people food, and they can become unafraid. Keeping everything clean and picked up is the proper way to camp. You never want to leave your trash unattended, that is an invitation for problems. Keep'em wild and welcome.
 
If you are camping where you have bear problems, like Yosemite, please use the bear proof bear storage units provided. All good ideas everyone, just remember, a fed bear, is a dead bear. Once they get a taste of human garbage, they become habituated to people food, and they can become unafraid. Keeping everything clean and picked up is the proper way to camp. You never want to leave your trash unattended, that is an invitation for problems. Keep'em wild and welcome.


Well said Skeeter.......an idiot was just responsible for a bear here getting the death sentence. Cooler left outside, then he wanted to fight the bear for it to get it back. It took 26 stitches to button up the guy's face. The idiot should have been cited. He wasn't. People thought he had paid enough of a price. I don't think so. Oh, he fired his 45 in a crowded campground before the bear swatted it away. Didn't hit the bear. Yes, I think he should have been cited for firing a weapon inside a campground too..
 
Perhaps the "Trasharoo" has an application here? I don't know that I'd want it hanging against the back of the camper, but if there is other structure that it could be hung on then it might be viable.
 
Perhaps the "Trasharoo" has an application here? I don't know that I'd want it hanging against the back of the camper, but if there is other structure that it could be hung on then it might be viable.

The "trasharoo" seems like a solution in search of a problem to me...
 
The "trasharoo" seems like a solution in search of a problem to me...

Enough of those with swing-away spare tire carriers (Jeeps, etc.) have bought them for the design to be on it's second generation. I just didn't know if it were adaptable here or not.
 
I have a trasharoo on my Jeep. Love it. Since I cook outside I clean outside too.

Cans are better than bottles for traveling, but until they start canning my favorite brews, I'll just deal with the trash. For a week, weekender I never find trash to be a problem.

Been camping my whole life and really, bears have never been a problem. If you're in a campground with bear boxes you absolutely have to use them. Keep a clean camp, yes, but you don't have to go overboard. Ammonia is definitely overboard. Realize if a bear wants in your food it will, just consider it a donation to the wildlife. Plastic containers not only keep odors down, make organization a lot nicer, but they'll keep your real food thieves away--the chipmunks, squirrels, birds, bees, ants etc. Thats what you really need to watch out for. They don't care if you're sitting six feet away, if you aren't watching they'r enjoying the buffet.
 
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