S/O have you ever lived with no indoor plumbing?

[Scarlett]

This topic has bugged the heck out of me all day. All of you who are horrified by the thought that ‘college graduates’ would have to deal with no indoor plumbing……have you any idea of what that actually means?

Generally, in the best of circumstances it means you have an  outhouse a good distance from the home. That is not that big of a deal.  You would be surprised how easy it is to get used to that.  The worst part is middle of the night…..in my old age (57) where I have to go at least once in the night…yes it would be unpleasant. But hardly the end of the world.   
 

Hauling water from a well for cooking,,cleaning,  and bathing is much more difficult. But you get a system and you deal with it.  
 

My mom was 30 or 31 when the rent house we lived in started having the sewer back up into the house and the landlord refused to fix it.  Trust me that was much grosser than going to an outhouse.  That landlord later sold that property to a bank so I feel sure that whole thing was a set up and I wish like heck he could be held accountable for how he treated a young single mom…..but I digress.  Her only option was a little house in the middle of big cow pasture with a chain link fence around the house.  It was 4 rooms. Kitchen, living, 2 bedrooms. I remember she bought paint and we painted all the rooms.it was very clean. There was a well where we drew water for all our needs.  There was an outhouse. It was very nice compared to the crap hole we had left with ‘indoor plumbing’.  We lived there from June to December. Mom had taken a course of some kind that landed her an office job in the next town over and we moved to better accommodations. 
 

I have never forgotten that place.  We refer to it as the ‘little house on the prairie’.

If a place is set up for no indoor plumbing it is not horrible.  A home in a city or town where there is no well or outhouse….yes that is a big problem.

But seriously…..any of you ever live in a home with no plumbing?

Edited October 16, 2022 by Scarlett

[Scarlett]

This was 1976……..

[Eos]

Yes, when my oldest was a toddler, so 1991.  In a small cabin with a sleeping loft, a well and an outhouse.  We were there for a summer.  We showered at friends' or the Y.  It was on some land owned by my friends who lived by themselves and then with their twins for 10 years with no indoor plumbing.  I know a number of families who've lived without plumbing for long periods, all rural.

Many years later (with four) our house needed a huge mold remediation and remodel so we moved to a friend's for the winter then back to our house, which meant a large tent in the yard for several months. We technically had plumbing but just in the bathroom.  I remember washing dishes in the bathtub.  We also had no kitchen so cooked on the outdoor gas grill.

[Hilltopmom]

I have not, but several of my neighbors in my previous location do not have indoor plumbing. On purpose, in 2022. Off grid homes in an intentional community. They have out houses or composting toilets. Professionals- teachers, a nurse.

They built their non traditional homes in the 70s and are now retired. Most were mortgage free. In the US, rural area. Near Canadian border so pretty cold and snowy in the winter!

They certainly could have chosen to add it over the years but did not. One added it but kept the out house too as the husband preferred it. Several now travel most of the year in campers.

Our home was started as a basement dwelling without plumbing but had it and an upstairs by the time we bought it.

 

 

Edited October 16, 2022 by Hilltopmom

[Scarlett]

Just now, Eos said:

Yes, when my oldest was a toddler, so 1991.  In a small cabin with a sleeping loft, a well and an outhouse.  We were there for a summer.  We showered at friends' or the Y.  It was on some land owned by my friends who lived by themselves and then with their twins for 10 years with no indoor plumbing.  I know a number of families who've lived without plumbing for long periods, all rural.

Many years later (with four) our house needed a huge mold remediation and remodel so we moved to a friend's for the winter then back to our house, which meant a large tent in the yard for several months. We technically had plumbing but just in the bathroom.  I remember washing dishes in the bathtub.  We also had no kitchen so cooked on the outdoor gas grill.

And was this in the states?

[Scarlett]

To be clear, I NEVER turn on hot water without appreciating it fully.  I NEVER walk 12 steps to my toilet in the middle of the night without appreciating that luxury.  ( and yes I just literally counted it off) But people……there are so much worse things than no indoor plumbing.

Edited October 16, 2022 by Scarlett

[Annie G]

I didn’t live without plumbing but my husband’s grandmother did( full disclosure-she had a pump in the kitchen to get cold water, so there’s that) I visited for a week at a time, and never got used to it. The worst was being on my period and using an outhouse. Disposing of pads/tampons was not fun, not to mention no way to wash hands with warm water. Had to come inside to pump cold water in the kitchen.  Bathing was quite difficult, and I think I only bathed once a trip. Washing dishes was a pain. I really hated it when Dd was a newborn. Running water, hot water, toilets, showers…all seem to be basic necessities in the US. 
My experience was late 70’s, early 80’s. 
 

[Pawz4me]

17 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

But seriously…..any of you ever live in a home with no plumbing?

No.

When I was growing up my parents had friends, an elderly couple, who still used an outhouse. We visited them at least once a week, often more, and I certainly never got used to that outhouse. It wasn't horrible, but I certainly preferred a normal bathroom toilet.

My paternal grandparents were born in the 1800's. Their house had a working well with a bucket and hand crank on the screened porch. But it had full indoor plumbing before my father was born in the 1920's. He never lived in a home w/o indoor plumbing.

[Selkie]

Not me, but the neighbors who lived across the road from us when I was a kid used an outhouse and got their water from a pump. I believe they lived there until the mid- to late 1990's without ever installing indoor plumbing. I also know a few people in my age range (50's) who had an outhouse for at least part of their childhood years.

[Scarlett]

I had a great aunt who finally got running cold water inside before she died in 1977. She fought that.  

[JennyD]

I lived in an employer-provided house in Japan that had an indoor pit toilet.  It smelled terrible and when I asked to have it cleaned out a second time in one year because I was having visitors come to stay, I was told no, that that was too expensive and that it didn't need to be cleaned out more than once a year.

I left that job earlier than planned for non-toilet-related reasons, but I heard that after I left they finally put in a flush toilet.  

 

[Jean in Newcastle]

I had brothers who were hippies during the Back to Nature movement. I lived with them for a time. None of us have fond memories of the dirt, smells or difficulties associated with no water or indoor plumbing. We were clean but had to spend a lot more time and effort in order to keep it that way. There was an infant and toddler in the equation as well and it wasn’t the best for their health (parasites etc). 

[Scarlett]

1 minute ago, Jean in Newcastle said:

I had brothers who were hippies during the Back to Nature movement. I lived with them for a time. None of us have fond memories of the dirt, smells or difficulties associated with no water or indoor plumbing. We were clean but had to spend a lot more time and effort in order to keep it that way. There was an infant and toddler in the equation as well and it wasn’t the best for their health (parasites etc). 

Interesting. My brother and I were roughly 6 and 11. 

[bookbard]

Yes, but I was living as a worker in a developing country, so it was kind of normal and expected. It was clothes washing that was the most work, toilet was fine, and it was hot all the time so didn't need hot showers, just washed oneself with a jug. I then moved to another developing country with running water indoors, but we still had to sterilise it to drink, plus still didn't have a washing machine. So I appreciate being able to drink water from the tap (not possible I know for many people in the USA and Australia still) and most of all having a washing machine.

[lewelma]

I have lived without indoor plumbing with a baby in rural New Zealand. We lived in an ecovillage in 2001 where we had a shared main house, and each of us had a one room cabin about 1/4 to 1/2 mile away with no electricity or water. The cabin was like a studio with a bedroom and kitchen in one room. We used portable gas for heating and cooking. Candles/oil lamps for light. Water we brought up from a nearby hose for cleaning purposes, and we carried our drinking water about 1/4th mile. We had a composting toilet. The main house had a flush toilet, a shower, and a laundry, and also had electricity where we could charge computers etc. It was a very positive experience. 

Edited October 16, 2022 by lewelma

[elegantlion]

No, but my mother grew up with no indoor plumbing and hated it. Of course, they had black snakes that lived in their outhouse and no electricity either, so you had to take a kerosene lamp out if you needed to go after dark. This was rural midwest in the 1940s. 

We did have a pop up tent camper as a kid and would camp for two weeks every summer. It had only a sink, no toilet or shower. We always camped in campgrounds with shower and toilet facilities. 

[lewelma]

Personally, I see a *massive* difference between no access to running water, and access at a distance. Access at a distance is really no big deal. We could do laundry and shower, but just had to walk to get there. 

Also, composting toilets *are* toilets. So running water can be viewed separately from flush toilets. 

 

 

Edited October 16, 2022 by lewelma

[Elizabeth86]

Nope, but I know someone still using an outhouse in the early 90’s. I used it too. They did have water in the kitchen and a bathtub though.

[heartlikealion]

I think we all have our thresholds. Call me a spoiled brat, I don't think I could do it! I mean obviously if I had to. But I would never choose to rent/buy a home without indoor plumbing. Tons of people around the world are in situations like this. I am grateful that I am not in that situation. 

There are many things people say, "you get used to it" or "it's not big deal" and I do that thing for years and say, "yeah um no still a big PITA to me." LOL. Like living years without a microwave, dishwasher, and only one bathroom. I've done those things, but I hated it. 

[Jean in Newcastle]

3 minutes ago, lewelma said:

Personally, I see a *massive* difference between no access to running water, and access at a distance. Access at a distance is really no big deal. We could do laundry and shower, but just had to walk to get there. 

Also, composting toilets *are* toilets. So running water can be viewed separately from flush toilets. 

 

 

Our water was a giardia laden creek. Our toilet was a pit dug in the ground. We had access to a shower once a week when we drove into town. Your amenities were luxuries that we didn’t have. 

[lewelma]

I have also gone tramping for 2 weeks with a baby in cloth nappies. This I would not recommend. It is incredibly bad practice to wash nappies in the stream, so we would dig our hole, scrape out the poo, then carry buckets of water 100meters away from the water, wash the nappies, bring more water, rinse the nappies, then dry them over a fire.  Boy did the SMELL!  I think that all we did was wash nappies for 2 weeks like 6 hours a day. That is truly living without "indoor plumbing" LOL.

[heartlikealion]

I will walk somewhere else before using a port-a-potty. Hate them so much. Unless I have zero choice like stuck at an all day festival... but I haven't gone to one of those in years. 

[lewelma]

Just now, Jean in Newcastle said:

Our water was a giardia laden creek. Our toilet was a pit dug in the ground. We had access to a shower once a week when we drove into town. Your amenities were luxuries that we didn’t have. 

Completely agree. Which is why I was making the distinction.  Living with proper plumbing at a distance is really no big deal. Having no proper water at all is a very big deal.  In this thread we are seeing examples of both which is why I highlighted the difference. 

[Clemsondana]

My dad remembers when they moved to the city and got indoor plumbing...in the 1950s sometime.  He spent his summers working on his grandparent's farm and remembers when they finally convinced them to convert one of the bedrooms into a bathroom so they wouldn't need an outhouse...sometime in the 1960s.  They had a well, so presumably could pump water in the kitchen.  We also have friends who choose to live in their camper at a lake for the summer, and rather than having to deal with frequent cleanouts they mostly use the shared shower and bathroom facilities. 

Convenient plumbing wouldn't be my first choice of things to give up to save money, but I did live in bare bones student housing in grad school.  I had to scrape mold off the ceiling every few weeks and I felt cruddy once it got too cool to keep the windows open all the time.  The heat and air were either on or off, and very expensive to run more than 15 minutes at a time.  I was fine with no AC, but I hated waking up every morning in the winter in a freezing room.  But, it was cheap, so even with my little stipend I was able to save a bit towards our first house.  

[Corbster98]

Here in Alaska ( especially in the area I live).... dry cabins are somewhat common. Meaning there is no indoor plumbing. That does not mean there are not 'homemade systems' that are put into place to have water accessible inside for common uses such as washing dishes, cooking, brushing teeth, etc. 

[lewelma]

Just now, Corbster98 said:

Here in Alaska ( especially in the area I live).... dry cabins are somewhat common. Meaning there is no indoor plumbing. That does not mean there are not 'homemade systems' that are put into place to have water accessible inside for common uses such as washing dishes, cooking, brushing teeth, etc. 

I had a friend in 1992 who lived in Alaska for a year. She had no laundry facilities in her cabin. So had to cross country ski her laundry into town because she also did not have a usable road in winter. 

[Loowit]

Only when camping as a kid, and I hated it.  I have a phobia of outhouses, and I don't use that word lightly.  I will do pretty much anything to avoid them.  I would rather hide in the bushes.  I would have a very hard time living in a home without plumbing.  I am sure I would find a way to deal with it if I had to, but it would be hard, especially since I have to use the bathroom several times at night most nights.

[EKS]

I haven't but my friend did for years in Alaska.  The worst part was apparently the stalagmite that grew up in the outhouse toilet each winter 🤣

[heartlikealion]

Just now, Loowit said:

Only when camping as a kid, and I hated it.  I have a phobia of outhouses, and I don't use that word lightly.  I will do pretty much anything to avoid them.  I would rather hide in the bushes.  I would have a very hard time living in a home without plumbing.  I am sure I would find a way to deal with it if I had to, but it would be hard, especially since I have to use the bathroom several times at night most nights.

I don’t have a phobia but I think it’s part of my lingering OCD. They seem so gross to me, then you gotta trek back to another place to wash your hands. I often go to the restroom once before I am up for the day. I’d probably worry about running into wildlife too lol 

[fairfarmhand]

No. I've never lived without plumbing. 

We lived in some rat holes growing up as a pastor's kid. One time we lived in a converted warehouse/apartment that had zero windows. But we always had indoor plumbing.

[Katy]

My dad had a "hunting cabin" that we camped at that didn't have running water.  I put hunting cabin in quotes because he rarely hunted as I got older. I don't think he actually liked the taste of game. But he loved to go hang out in the woods and teach us things and have camp fires.

My mom's parents got indoor plumbing in the early 1950's.  My dad's parents in the late 1960's.

[maize]

No, though I've dealt with it for a month or so at a time while on archeology digs. 

My dad spent his first few years in a house with no indoor plumbing. It was two rooms.

[maize]

59 minutes ago, lewelma said:

I had a friend in 1992 who lived in Alaska for a year. She had no laundry facilities in her cabin. So had to cross country ski her laundry into town because she also did not have a usable road in winter. 

I love the grit and creativity humans demonstrate at need.

[rebcoola]

No.  DH's nuclear family was poor and his extended family is still quite poor in rural Iowa and they all have water and indoor bathrooms even if they just live in trailer.

My dad had running water but no indoor plumbing the first 2 years of his life. His was finishing college and they rented a converted chicken coop. This 1948 in Boulder Colorado.

Edited October 16, 2022 by rebcoola

[Harriet Vane]

I've never had to live entirely without it in a house, but I have done long backpacking trips in the BWCA. The thing is, even tooling around there you are just holding on until you get back to civilization. We "freshened up" icky clothes with our biodegradable camp soap and we swam daily as an attempt at a wash up, but really you just live with the grime until you get back to civilization. It's not like actually, really living without indoor plumbing.

Based on camping, I think I'd get used to an outhouse if need be. I think I'd also get used to hauling water for kitchen needs. I do not think I could cope with laundry, though.

And the bottom line is that I think we have the technology and the means for people to have running water and electricity, so I think everyone should have them. I know that that's not the reality for much of the world, and I hold responsible those who hoard wealth and who stifle development for those who have fewer resources.

[athena1277]

1 hour ago, Corbster98 said:

Here in Alaska ( especially in the area I live).... dry cabins are somewhat common. Meaning there is no indoor plumbing. That does not mean there are not 'homemade systems' that are put into place to have water accessible inside for common uses such as washing dishes, cooking, brushing teeth, etc. 

I have seen several of these on TV.  Having always lived in the SE US, it blows my mind.  I get that an outhouse is doable in the summer, but with the extremely cold winters, how do you manage?  When it’s well below zero and you have to bare your bottom for a few minutes, how do you not freeze?  Is there something I’m missing about how people manage it?

[Lady Florida.]

No but when I think of no indoor plumbing I think rural. I grew up poor but in a city. My mother grew up poor in a city. My grandparents grew up poor in a city. My great grandparents came here from Italy and stayed in NYC where they got off the boat. It's very likely they didn't have indoor plumbing before they came here in 1887. None of their descendants, aka my family, have ever lived in a rural area. 

Edited October 16, 2022 by Lady Florida.

[Jean in Newcastle]

6 minutes ago, athena1277 said:

I have seen several of these on TV.  Having always lived in the SE US, it blows my mind.  I get that an outhouse is doable in the summer, but with the extremely cold winters, how do you manage?  When it’s well below zero and you have to bare your bottom for a few minutes, how do you not freeze?  Is there something I’m missing about how people manage it?

You hover (so your bare butt doesn’t freeze to anything) and go as quickly as humanly possible. 
 

(During the winter it would get so cold despite a wood stove that the canned vegetables in their mason jars would freeze next to my head. ). 

[KidsHappen]

Yes, more than once in my life I have lived without indoor plumbing, no running water, even no electricity (in TX in the summer). It didn't seem horrible at the time because that was what I was used to/how I was raised but I certainly would want to do it now. I have been very poor and somewhat comfortable and at my age and with my current health I prefer somewhat comfortable.

[Lecka]

I have lived for a year with having to put on shoes and go outside to go to a toilet.  And use a water bottle to wash hands and brush teeth.  It got old but it was okay.  It was actually on the nice side in many ways.  (Edit — this was not in the United States)  (Edit — technically there was not indoor plumbing, but it was not what I think of as a typical situation.  I had a clean and sanitary toilet to use.)  

We lost water for 3 days while I had baby twins and a 3-year-old.  It was horrible.  It was so bad.  I cried.  I could go 2 streets over to a neighbor but I didn’t really know her that well.  

Edited October 16, 2022 by Lecka

[Ausmumof3]

4 hours ago, lewelma said:

Completely agree. Which is why I was making the distinction.  Living with proper plumbing at a distance is really no big deal. Having no proper water at all is a very big deal.  In this thread we are seeing examples of both which is why I highlighted the difference. 

This is so true! Also surviving temporarily without access to water and plumbing when you’re not set up for that is much harder in some ways than managing in an environment where you’ve made a deliberate choice and have set things to run that way. 

[Corraleno]

I lived for 6 months in a very small, very old camper that had been gutted, so no water, electricity, or toilet. It was owned by a friend and was on a piece of land that backed up to a state park, so I had to hike about a mile up a hill to use the public restrooms there. I had just moved from out of state after leaving an abusive relationship with little more than my clothes, my books, a few hundred dollars, and an old Volvo. The new job paid really well, and I planned to stay with a friend for a couple of months while I saved up first & last months' rent and a security deposit, but two weeks after I arrived I got rear ended and my car, though drivable, was really smashed up. So then I needed to save enough for a used car as well as first/last/security, and I didn't want to impose on my friend for that long. So another friend offered to let me stay in the camper.

It was not a character-building fun adventure for me, it was an exhausting and inconvenient PITA. I found it nearly impossible to get a decent night's sleep in a poorly insulated camper that creaked and groaned with the slightest wind and when it rained it was like being in a metal can that someone was beating with a stick. Not to mention the sounds of mice running around all night. Getting up to pee with a flashlight at 3 AM meant no chance of getting back to sleep. Getting your period or a stomach bug when you need to hike to the nearest toilet absolutely sucks. It was a 45 minute commute to work each way, and having to go "home" to that every night after working long hours at a stressful job was beyond depressing. 

[Ausmumof3]

It strikes me when reading this thread what a hugely diverse and adventurous range of people hang out here!

[bookbard]

21 minutes ago, Corraleno said:

Getting your period or a stomach bug when you need to hike to the nearest toilet absolutely sucks.

Yeah, being sick without good toilets is awful, so true. Your experience sounds really awful especially after coming out of an abusive relationship.

 

21 minutes ago, Ausmumof3 said:

It strikes me when reading this thread what a hugely diverse and adventurous range of people hang out here!

I was thinking the very same thing.

[Melissa in Australia]

Yes  first year of marriage. But it doesn't mean we didn't have water. We carried in drinking water in a water jerry can . We collected rain water in barrels for showering. We had bucket showers every day, and had a dunny toilet (outhouse).

We lived in a pop up caravan on our property.  we had a gas single element and grill stove. A super tiny sink  and used a gas  lantern or candles for light  (like this https://www.outbackequipment.com.au/companion-200w-manual-ignition-lanterncq_src=google_ads&cq_cmp=17741658452&cq_term=&cq_plac=&cq_net=x&cq_plt=gp&gclid=Cj0KCQjw166aBhDEARIsAMEyZh5CQ2PRxsd3o6QsaIfPw_DpNPa9DFPUMj2-kItlgZ9W0tWt2c0VTfkaAsM2EALw_wcB. )

it is actually amazing how much heat a candle makes

I never did any handwashing, but took my clothes into town once a week and did the laundry there.

[Eos]

8 hours ago, Scarlett said:

And was this in the states?

Yes.

[Carrie12345]

I have not, but my friends’ family home didn’t have a bathroom until the 60s or 70s. Their water still gets pumped in from the spring that was connected I don’t know when. Images of their house are in county history books.

I have lived without HOT water. For, like, a long time. I don’t remember exactly how long. Single mom couldn’t afford a new hot water heater. Pots on the stove and baths, not showers!

[historically accurate]

While I've had some interesting housing situations growing up, we've always had access to plumbing.

My father grew up without indoor plumbing - he was the youngest of 7. His house was a mishmash of rooms, when another baby was born, my grandfather went to the old railroad and took some ties and built another room. It burned down when I was really little, so it's pretty vague in my mind. 

I have not lived without indoor plumbing except for a summer when we lived in a tent in a friend's backyard. We used their indoor plumbing though. We lived in a camper for a few months, but it had plumbing as long as the water didn't freeze. 

[AurieD]

When my parents first bought land (mid 80’s) we lived in a caravan then  a 2 room (large rooms with wardrobe dividers to make it into 5 rooms) cottage for about 8-9 years. Initially we had no running water but we did get cold water to the kitchen and I think the washing machine at some point fairly early on. The toilet was long drop out the back and a commode for night time, hot water was from a wood copper and shower was a canvas bush shower hung up indoors over a bath. We had electricity and clean drinking water. It was fine, I’d say I had a good childhood there, but I didn’t know any different. I could do it now if I had to, but I wouldn’t want to.

[Scarlett]

7 hours ago, Ausmumof3 said:

This is so true! Also surviving temporarily without access to water and plumbing when you’re not set up for that is much harder in some ways than managing in an environment where you’ve made a deliberate choice and have set things to run that way. 

Yes absolutely. For instance in my childhood experience the back up sewage drove us out of a house with indoor plumbing into a cottage with none.