After three plumbers still could not identify a toilet problem in an older home, a homeowner asked fellow preppers a practical question: if the water goes off, do you keep bathroom waste bags on hand?
Replies largely focused on improvised toilet kits using a five-gallon bucket, bag liners, and cat litter.
Here's what to know
The discussion unfolded in a thread on Reddit's r/TwoXPreppers, where the original poster wrote, "My plumbing is out. Had 3 plumbers out. They can't figure it out," then said there was "no toilet" in the house and asked whether others prep "poop bags" for emergencies.
One commenter shared their full bucket setup: "We have a sturdy five gallon pail, a spare toilet seat, a garbage bag as a liner, and smaller compostable shopping bags to stretch over the top of the bucket. Tie up the compostable bag after any significant business, then leave it in the bucket until the liner bag is full."
For moisture and odor control, another commenter recommended an extra step: "A little cat litter in the bottom of all of your bags helps with liquid control, we pour a drop of 'OdoBan' on top of the cat litter for odor control."
"I have a camp toilet, extra bags, and a bag of cat litter," another user said. In their case, the emergency toilet backup helped when their sewer line broke and the repair "took two days."
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More background
The original poster described the house as "really old," said the plumbing was "simple," and said the problem may be "a venting issue."
One commenter shifted the conversation toward diagnosis, urging the poster to explain "where the water should be going" and to examine each part of the system by asking, "is this part doing the thing it should be doing?"
Even hesitant commenters still kept supplies ready. One person said they kept a bucket-based kit with bags, toilet paper, water, a spray bottle, and kitty litter, but added, "Things would have to be pretty damn bad before I used that set up, though."
Cost was also part of the discussion. The same hesitant commenter said their 1970s-era house had to be "replumbed" for "$30K." The original poster replied, "Ouch. I'm a low income senior I'd have to be YouTubing it and doing it myself."
What can be done?
The comments outlined an emergency toilet you can assemble from common household items. The fuller versions used a five-gallon bucket, a spare toilet seat or camp toilet seat, a large liner bag, smaller bags for individual uses, and cat litter to absorb liquid and cover waste.
Because the workaround relies mostly on basic supplies, commenters described using it during actual disruptions, from a broken sewer line to a home with no functioning toilet.
The thread also pointed to the broader sanitation chain that needs planning before an emergency: containment, odor control, cleanup supplies, and where the waste will go afterward. After seeing one bucket setup, the original poster said, "Wow, you have a system. I'd not even thought about this before my plumbing mess."
Where can I learn more?
These stories address similar questions about sanitation backups, plumbing failures, and water access when basic systems stop working. They cover hurricane waste plans, broken-toilet repair kits, limited-flush habits, well-water outages, and sewer problems that caught homeowners off guard.
• In the Southeast, one family's hurricane waste plan had to account for six people.
• Homeowners stocking for storms said toilet kits and SharkBites matter when repairs can't wait.
• In the U.K., a blue toilet pellet helped households delay some flushes.
• One single homeowner learned a transfer switch comes first when well water stops.
• A homeowner's clean sewer inspection meant little after an upstairs shower flooded below.
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