At the moment the cistern is flushed by pulling on a cord threaded
through the wall. The cistern is outside on the back wall because
there is no room for it inside. The cord will get somewhat unhygienic
so I'd like to change it to have a foot pedal. Has anyone used a food
pedal to flush a toilet? It will need to work with mud and crap on it,
probably literally! It's used by some messy people and I get there
only once a month to clean it.

I'm thinking of just running the cord around four pulleys, with a
heavy weight to pull the cord back. It needs to be reliable and cheap,
so I don't like using lots of mechanical levers, or hydraulics or
electronics etc

Depends what sort of budget you have. Grohe wall frame cisterns are
pneumatically operated, simple flexi pipe to the pushbutton.

On Jul 23, 8:18 pm, RubberBiker wrote:
Depends what sort of budget you have. Grohe wall frame cisterns are
pneumatically operated, simple flexi pipe to the pushbutton.

Pneumatic is worth considering. I'd just need a rubber bulb at each
end of the pipe.

On 23 July, 07:29, Matty F wrote:

The cord will get somewhat unhygienic

Victorian solution to that was a chain.

On Wed, 22 Jul 2009 23:29:54 -0700 (PDT), Matty F
wrote:

At the moment the cistern is flushed by pulling on a cord threaded
through the wall. The cistern is outside on the back wall because
there is no room for it inside. The cord will get somewhat unhygienic
so I'd like to change it to have a foot pedal. Has anyone used a food
pedal to flush a toilet? It will need to work with mud and crap on it,
probably literally! It's used by some messy people and I get there
only once a month to clean it.

I'm thinking of just running the cord around four pulleys, with a
heavy weight to pull the cord back. It needs to be reliable and cheap,
so I don't like using lots of mechanical levers, or hydraulics or
electronics etc

Sounds a bit Heath Robinsonish...is there really no way of getting it
fitted inside .even high level perhaps ....what happens in the winter
with frosts ( re water inlet)?





--
Any posting using my name and/or e-mail address
but other than by newsindividual.net is not being posted by me and should be disregarded .
Remove NOSPAM to reply by e-mail

On Jul 23, 10:35 pm, Stuart B wrote:
On Wed, 22 Jul 2009 23:29:54 -0700 (PDT), Matty F

wrote:
At the moment the cistern is flushed by pulling on a cord threaded
through the wall. The cistern is outside on the back wall because
there is no room for it inside. The cord will get somewhat unhygienic
so I'd like to change it to have a foot pedal. Has anyone used a food
pedal to flush a toilet? It will need to work with mud and crap on it,
probably literally! It's used by some messy people and I get there
only once a month to clean it.

I'm thinking of just running the cord around four pulleys, with a
heavy weight to pull the cord back. It needs to be reliable and cheap,
so I don't like using lots of mechanical levers, or hydraulics or
electronics etc

Sounds a bit Heath Robinsonish...is there really no way of getting it
fitted inside .even high level perhaps ....what happens in the winter
with frosts ( re water inlet)?

The water never freezes. It's in northern NZ.
Heath Robinson is fine - it's basically a glorified pit toilet with a
flush device to wash the flap between the user and the pit!

On 23 July, 07:29, Matty F wrote:
At the moment the cistern is flushed by pulling on a cord threaded
through the wall. The cistern is outside on the back wall because
there is no room for it inside. The cord will get somewhat unhygienic
so I'd like to change it to have a foot pedal. Has anyone used a food
pedal to flush a toilet? It will need to work with mud and crap on it,
probably literally! It's used by some messy people and I get there
only once a month to clean it.

I'm thinking of just running the cord around four pulleys, with a
heavy weight to pull the cord back. It needs to be reliable and cheap,
so I don't like using lots of mechanical levers, or hydraulics or
electronics etc

i dont like the sound of your job.

On Jul 23, 11:00*am, Andy Dingley wrote:
On 23 July, 07:29, Matty F wrote:

The cord will get somewhat unhygienic

Victorian solution to that was a chain.

Brass chain - self-sterilising. I fact, isn't using chrome allover
the place silly? If we had brass for all handrails, doorknobs etc in
public buildings, wouldn't it prevent a lot of the hand-to-hand
infection? Lord Rogers wouldn't be keen, but...

On Thu, 23 Jul 2009 03:45:45 -0700 (PDT), Matty F
wrote:

On Jul 23, 10:35 pm, Stuart B wrote:
On Wed, 22 Jul 2009 23:29:54 -0700 (PDT), Matty F

wrote:
At the moment the cistern is flushed by pulling on a cord threaded
through the wall. The cistern is outside on the back wall because
there is no room for it inside. The cord will get somewhat unhygienic
so I'd like to change it to have a foot pedal. Has anyone used a food
pedal to flush a toilet? It will need to work with mud and crap on it,
probably literally! It's used by some messy people and I get there
only once a month to clean it.

I'm thinking of just running the cord around four pulleys, with a
heavy weight to pull the cord back. It needs to be reliable and cheap,
so I don't like using lots of mechanical levers, or hydraulics or
electronics etc

Sounds a bit Heath Robinsonish...is there really no way of getting it
fitted inside .even high level perhaps ....what happens in the winter
with frosts ( re water inlet)?

The water never freezes. It's in northern NZ.
Heath Robinson is fine - it's basically a glorified pit toilet with a
flush device to wash the flap between the user and the pit!

Sounds delightful!!!





--
Any posting using my name and/or e-mail address
but other than by newsindividual.net is not being posted by me and should be disregarded .
Remove NOSPAM to reply by e-mail

On 23 July, 11:45, Matty F wrote:
On Jul 23, 10:35 pm, Stuart B wrote:





On Wed, 22 Jul 2009 23:29:54 -0700 (PDT), Matty F

wrote:
At the moment the cistern is flushed by pulling on a cord threaded
through the wall. The cistern is outside on the back wall because
there is no room for it inside. The cord will get somewhat unhygienic
so I'd like to change it to have a foot pedal. Has anyone used a food
pedal to flush a toilet? It will need to work with mud and crap on it,
probably literally! It's used by some messy people and I get there
only once a month to clean it.

I'm thinking of just running the cord around four pulleys, with a
heavy weight to pull the cord back. It needs to be reliable and cheap,
so I don't like using lots of mechanical levers, or hydraulics or
electronics etc

Sounds a bit Heath Robinsonish...is there really no way of getting it
fitted inside .even high level perhaps ....what happens in the winter
with frosts ( re water inlet)?

The water never freezes. It's in northern NZ.
Heath Robinson is fine - it's basically a glorified pit toilet with a
flush device to wash the flap between the user and the pit!- Hide quoted text -

How about connecting the cord to the flap for an automatic handsfree
operation.

On Jul 23, 11:00 pm, Tommy wrote:
On 23 July, 11:45, Matty F wrote:

Heath Robinson is fine - it's basically a glorified pit toilet with a
flush device to wash the flap between the user and the pit!- Hide quoted text -

How about connecting the cord to the flap for an automatic handsfree
operation.

Actually the flush is needed for the toilet paper that sits on the
flap.
Everything else falls through the flap just fine

On Jul 23, 10:57 pm, Stuart B wrote:

Heath Robinson is fine - it's basically a glorified pit toilet with a
flush device to wash the flap between the user and the pit!

Sounds delightful!!!

I think it looks OK:
http://i43.tinypic.com/288mfwm.jpg

But the type of toilet is irrelevant - for hygiene reasons I'd like a
foot pedal to flush the cistern.
The next projects are a handbasin and a solar powered electric light.

"Matty F" wrote in message
...
On Jul 23, 10:57 pm, Stuart B wrote:

Heath Robinson is fine - it's basically a glorified pit toilet with a
flush device to wash the flap between the user and the pit!

Sounds delightful!!!

I think it looks OK:
http://i43.tinypic.com/288mfwm.jpg

But the type of toilet is irrelevant - for hygiene reasons I'd like a
foot pedal to flush the cistern.
The next projects are a handbasin and a solar powered electric light.


How about removing the flap and using your solar power to operate an
extractor fan to keep the smells going down the pan.
Then you can put some sawdust down occasionally and make a composting
toilet.

On Jul 23, 11:36 pm, "dennis@home"
wrote:
"Matty F" wrote in message

...

On Jul 23, 10:57 pm, Stuart B wrote:

Heath Robinson is fine - it's basically a glorified pit toilet with a
flush device to wash the flap between the user and the pit!

Sounds delightful!!!

I think it looks OK:
http://i43.tinypic.com/288mfwm.jpg

But the type of toilet is irrelevant - for hygiene reasons I'd like a
foot pedal to flush the cistern.
The next projects are a handbasin and a solar powered electric light.

How about removing the flap and using your solar power to operate an
extractor fan to keep the smells going down the pan.
Then you can put some sawdust down occasionally and make a composting
toilet.

The extractor fan would have to be very large to stop the cave wetas
from coming out. I discussed all this a while ago.
These are about actual size on a 17 inch monitor:

http://i43.tinypic.com/6sxvv4.jpg

On Thu, 23 Jul 2009 04:22:35 -0700 (PDT), Matty F
wrote:


But the type of toilet is irrelevant - for hygiene reasons I'd like a
foot pedal to flush the cistern.

Hinged plate on the floor with a Bowden cable to the flush mechanism.
You will need to clamp the cable but a car scrap yard will probably
have an old accelerator or clutch foot pedal which you could use at
one end and fabricate a simple bracket at the other.

On Thu, 23 Jul 2009 04:51:37 -0700, Matty F wrote:
The extractor fan would have to be very large to stop the cave wetas
from coming out. I discussed all this a while ago.
These are about actual size on a 17 inch monitor:

http://i43.tinypic.com/6sxvv4.jpg

I can believe that - a few years back I was doing restoration work at a
subterranean site in NZ, and the Wetas we used to see down there were
pretty enormous. Not something you'd really want to encounter in a
toilet :-)

Oh, if you want to keep it really simple, run a bit of chain from the
tank to a pulley at floor level outside, then through a hole in the back
wall to the stall. Anchor the chain somewhere within the stall; stepping
on it should operate the flush. The pedal's far too luxurious!

cheers

Jules

"Matty F" wrote in message
...
On Jul 23, 11:36 pm, "dennis@home"
wrote:
"Matty F" wrote in message

...

On Jul 23, 10:57 pm, Stuart B wrote:

Heath Robinson is fine - it's basically a glorified pit toilet with a
flush device to wash the flap between the user and the pit!

Sounds delightful!!!

I think it looks OK:
http://i43.tinypic.com/288mfwm.jpg

But the type of toilet is irrelevant - for hygiene reasons I'd like a
foot pedal to flush the cistern.
The next projects are a handbasin and a solar powered electric light.

How about removing the flap and using your solar power to operate an
extractor fan to keep the smells going down the pan.
Then you can put some sawdust down occasionally and make a composting
toilet.

The extractor fan would have to be very large to stop the cave wetas
from coming out. I discussed all this a while ago.
These are about actual size on a 17 inch monitor:

http://i43.tinypic.com/6sxvv4.jpg

That would make me constipated.

On Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:28:23 +0100, "John"
wrote:


That would make me constipated.

I would have thought the sight of a few of those heading for the
dangly bits would actually have quite the opposite effect.

"Tommy" wrote in message
...
On 23 July, 07:29, Matty F wrote:
At the moment the cistern is flushed by pulling on a cord threaded
through the wall. The cistern is outside on the back wall because
there is no room for it inside. The cord will get somewhat unhygienic
so I'd like to change it to have a foot pedal. Has anyone used a food
pedal to flush a toilet? It will need to work with mud and crap on it,
probably literally! It's used by some messy people and I get there
only once a month to clean it.

I'm thinking of just running the cord around four pulleys, with a
heavy weight to pull the cord back. It needs to be reliable and cheap,
so I don't like using lots of mechanical levers, or hydraulics or
electronics etc

tie the cord to the seat, then make sure a woman goes in every so often to
put the seat back down after a blokes been in, and it'll flush

On 23 July, 23:01, Owain wrote:
On 23 July, 22:47, "gazz" *wrote:

tie the cord to the seat, then make sure a woman goes in every so often to
put the seat back down after a blokes been in, and it'll flush

Do NZ women put the seat down?

Do NZ women **** in the woods??...... ****ING RIGHT!!

After serious thinking Peter Parry wrote :
Hinged plate on the floor with a Bowden cable to the flush mechanism.
You will need to clamp the cable but a car scrap yard will probably
have an old accelerator or clutch foot pedal which you could use at
one end and fabricate a simple bracket at the other.

Or the same clutch pedal mechanism, but hydraulic.

--
Regards,
Harry (M1BYT) (L)
http://www.ukradioamateur.co.uk

Matty F wrote:

At the moment the cistern is flushed by pulling on a cord threaded
through the wall. The cistern is outside on the back wall

And to think that the Strines call the Kiwis uncivilised hicks[1].





[1] If they are feeling polite that is.

The message

from Owain contains these words:

On 23 July, 22:47, "gazz" wrote:
tie the cord to the seat, then make sure a woman goes in every so often to
put the seat back down after a blokes been in, and it'll flush

Do NZ women put the seat down?

The country ones are the equal of a guy any day and can go from a
standing position without any problem.

On 24 July, 15:41, Appin wrote:
The message

from Owain contains these words:

On 23 July, 22:47, "gazz" *wrote:
tie the cord to the seat, then make sure a woman goes in every so often to
put the seat back down after a blokes been in, and it'll flush
Do NZ women put the seat down?

The country ones are the equal of a guy any day and can go from a
standing position without any problem.

They sound kinda like big ass lil and yukon peteI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZL_ai_uukqw

On Jul 24, 10:07 am, Harry Bloomfield
wrote:
After serious thinking Peter Parry wrote :

Hinged plate on the floor with a Bowden cable to the flush mechanism.
You will need to clamp the cable but a car scrap yard will probably
have an old accelerator or clutch foot pedal which you could use at
one end and fabricate a simple bracket at the other.

Or the same clutch pedal mechanism, but hydraulic.

Those ideas would be better engineering, but it needs to be something
really simple to fix without any tools by an average person, e.g. like
a cord through pulleys. In the past, going without a flush for a month
leaves the toilet rather messy!

Here's a picture of the toilet building, which is not typical of
toilets in NZ but I've seen similar in mountainous areas, which this
is.
http://i29.tinypic.com/30s7jb7.jpg