No Water? Concern #2

So...there's a lot of great puns that could go with this post, but I will try to contain myself.  

Since we've been talking about water and what to do when we need it and don't have it, this seemed like an appropriate time to bring up concern #2.  (Sorry, I couldn't help myself.)  We talk about giant disasters like earthquakes or a pandemic, but what happens if it's something as simple as your plumbing in your own house going out?  I shudder to think about it...but sadly, it's a possibility.

Several years ago many of us bought the portable toilets, but many of you may not have them yet.  My family laughed at me when I bought it but all I really had to say to them is "One day you will thank me."  For those that didn't get the chance to buy them at that time, Chris is working on a system for her ward and I'm hoping to ride her coattails and be able to offer them to our ward as well, so I'll keep you posted.  But in the meantime, she let me know about these little beauties.  These are the bags she is planning to get to go with the portable toilet system and she doubts she will be able to get them for the price she found on Amazon today, so that is the main reason for this post.

If you already have the toilet, you may have just the black plastic bags that came with that kit.  These used to be the recommended item for use with the portable toilets, but times and opinions have changed.  After talking with Tami at Prepare My Life, she has let me know all the hazards of using those bags in the portable toilet (and she, personally, takes it as a curse word when she hears someone is going to use them).  Here are the basic problems as she points them out:

1. The bags are very weak.  Once they are filled and then covered in cat litter, which will harden instantly when the liquid is absorbed, the bag is likely to break.  I'm sure I don't need to paint a very graphic picture of what happens when you try to remove the bag from the toilet.  Let your imagination go wild on this one.
2. Each bag is meant to be used only once.  Think about how many times a day your family uses the bathroom and then calculate how many little nasty broken black plastic bags that adds up to and imagine for a moment how you are going to dispose of them.  The recommendation is that you be prepared for at least two weeks, so that's an awful lot of bags.
3. These bags are meant to be used with the portable toilets.  That means if you are taking the toilet and leaving your home, these would work.  However, if you're holed up at home, you may want to be able to use the toilets in your house even with the plumbing not working.  You can't do it with the black trash bags because there is really no way to hook them to the toilet.

Enter the  Reliance Products Double Doodie Plus Large Toilet Waste Bags (6-Pack).  Chris posted this link to Amazon this morning to let people know the price was great.  I, being new to the preparedness game, decided to do a little research myself so I could let you know what I learned. Please know that I have not used these bags myself, so what I am passing on is only what I have read. However, based on what I have read, I intend to order some for myself.  That being said, here is what I learned:

1. This six pack is meant to last two people two weeks.  They are not meant to be changed out every time someone uses the toilet but are instead good for approximately half a dozen #2s (less, of course, if you have a "large producer" in your midst).
2. The bags are biodegradable, so all you do is zip them closed and it is safe and legal to throw them in the trash.
3. They can fit into your regular toilet bowl at home, so even if you don't have the bucket system yet, these would be handy to have.
4. These work well in RV toilets.
5. It may be helpful to purchase an extra packet of bio-gel that you can sprinkle in a teaspoon at a time when used to help with odor (but the bags already have bio-gel in them to help with this, so it's not completely necessary).

I'm not going to do any kind of a ward purchase for these bags (right now--possibly later with a toilet system if we can get them for a good price, but Chris is fairly certain this price of $13.95 is about as good as we will see) so if you're interested in getting them, you might want to consider doing so now. Here is the Amazon link again: (They are $13.95 at the time I posted this.)

Reliance Products Double Doodie Plus Large Toilet Waste Bags (6-Pack)