Customer Reviews

Sanitation Equipment Visa 268 Deluxe Portable Toilet

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I bought this porta-pot for a camping trip out in the desert in an area where there are no facilities. I was skeptical, but I really didn't relish the idea of squatting out in the open where there are literally hundreds of off-roaders zooming by throughout the day. I kept this unit in my tent and never have I camped with such luxury. No more freezing late-night runs to potty outside or piddling in a bucket to be dumped later. It was great!! No odor leakage problems between uses and it was very easy to dump out. I was worried it would get too heavy to lift since I was travelling sans hubbie, but it wasn't a problem. When I got home, I cleaned it up with a bit of water-bleach solution and a good rinse - clean up was very easy.

It comes with a 4oz sample of Liquid Gold concentrated toilet deodorizer that you add to the holding tank (enough for one load); if you plan to dump it more than once on your trip, I recommend you stock up on more of this handy item. Also, dealing with solids took a bit of ingenuity...I found that a very thin layer of TP at the bottom of the bowl took care of any sticky issues. I'm just saying. Another tip - collecting your "yellow" paper in a small plastic trash bag and/or adding it to the campfire pit saves space inside the holding tank.

I had an older model of this type of portable toilet, but the years had taken their toll and it was time to replace it. The Visa 268 has been a good choice. The flushing mechanism is much improved over my old model and it seems much less likely to break. I also decided to spend a little more for the 268 since its holding tank is larger and that means more time between emptying. Of course, the seat could always be bigger for someone like me with a bigger sitter, but at least it holds up under my more than 250 pounds of weight. The construction keeps odors contained and I have never had a problem with leaking.

In a house with only one bathroom, and more than one person, this portable toilet is kept within easy reach in the basement. In case of emergencies, particularly if two people become ill at the same time, it comes in awfully handy. When camping, there is little better than not having to run to the public restroom, or out into the woods, in the middle of the night. Keeping this toilet right in the tent makes camping a whole lot more tolerable.

We are big Nascar fans and attend at least 3 race weekends per year and we have thought about getting one of these for a long time (sick of using public port-o-pots). This unit is the answer to our prayers. If you have used a toilet in a camper, this is very similar. Before I actually used the unit, I filled it with CLEAN WATER to test the seals and they held with NO Leaking. It is also easy to use and dispose of the waste. Good Product, Very Happy.

I bought this for a cabin that has no septic system. Comfortable, works perfectly - order extra Liquid Gold deodorizer, a 4 oz. sample comes with it. All-in-all a luxury camp potty! My only problems are:

The 5 1/2 gallon holding tank is way too heavy for me to deal with by myself. Bummer. OK, so I should have found out how much that would weigh, but it didn't occur to me. I don't recall that any of the brands talking about this, but they should. (Hey, not every porta-potty empty-er is a man! Some women have to do things for themselves, to paraphrase Annie Lennox!)

And, I read somewhere (maybe here) when researching this brand/model that two people can use it for a week before emptying. No, no, no...ONE person can use it for a week... So much for my every-two-week plan!

I did a bunch of research and actually tried a couple of my friends' toilets before I bought this one, and bought and returned another one (unused). This one has the largest seat, which was brought to my attention when a (larger) friend tried to sit on the unit I ultimately returned...it was a tight fit. I'm only 5'9" and 160 lbs., but the larger seat really makes a difference in comfort and ease of use. It seems about the same as the others as far as quality...they're all plastic, and the finish on this is as good as any of them. This product has about the same footprint and height as the others in the $100-150 range, give or take a couple of inches, and the mechanisms are about the same. The square design and sturdy flat cover are nice because it maximizes the use of it's footprint and you can stack things securely on top of it. None of the units I tried really has a great flushing system, the nature of the beast with these small units, but this one was somewhat better than average. I think the key points for me are the larger seat, efficient design, nice finish and the fact that my friend (the aforementioned larger guy) has had one for a few years and he's happy with it. I'm real picky about everything I buy (which may or may not be a good thing), and I think this is a nice product at a fair price.

We purchased the Visa 268 for when we camp in areas with inadequate facilities. It was easy to set up and worked as expected. There was a bit of fresh water leakage around the pump. The key is to put enough fresh water into the bowl before using it. Where it got tricky was dumping it. It comes with a pour spout but it became plugged while I was poring it out. The best way is to not use the spout and dump it direct, then when it is almost empty open the flush valve and use a hose to rinse it out. Overall it is a good product.

Having a mountain cabin with just one restroom creates a problem when we have very many guests at one time. The Visa 268 has given us a great backup for "emergencies". The larger capacity of this portable toilet allowed us to go through the Christmas holidays and we only had to dump and clean at the end of the trip. We won't use it often, but when needed it will be invaluable.

We purchased this potty to take camping with us. We have three small children and often camp in locations far from the facilities. This proved a good choice for us. We like the fact that the large holding tank, althought we filled the first one up quickly, the kids had a good time flushing. One thing that did help with the flushing is keeping the toilet level. We put ours in the shower house, which we locate on a slope so the water can drain. To level the toilet our I just took an old towel and rolled it up and placed it underneath. If you are looking for a potty, I would spend a little more and definitely get the larger tank. We camped for five days and emptied only three times. One more thing if the flushing or rinsing levers start to stick a little, use a little vasoline, and they'll work just like new. We had a lot of mud and dirt to deal with on this trip.

We have a tent trailer that we love to take to large festivals and remote desert camping locations. Between stinky, unsanitary public Port-A-Potties, and near misses with venomous scorpions, the simple act of going potty was becoming, well...a pain in the you-know-what. I never thought I would spend just over $100 on a camping toilet, but it is without question, the best camping purchase I've ever made (next to the JetBoil, of course.) The Visa Deluxe model is worth the cost for it's larger tank and taller seat height. Make sure you buy biodegradable toilet tissue and extra sanitizing liquid; it will save you extra cleaning time later.

After one of our Sears bought Thetford 565's flusher failed, we needed to replace it. This one had good reviews and figured it would work well. I got it and wasn't sure but didn't have time to do anything as it was needed the next week. From initial setup at our cottage, it was a disappointment. Here is my list of grievances.

1) leaks from the cover of the clean water tank. The valve in there isn't one-way, so you need to be careful with it. In other words, put it down flat on the ground only if you don't want it to leak.

2) flusher was real poor and perhaps some Vaseline to seal around the plunger would work (didn't have any), but this had a lot of problems moving water and was NOISY. This was by the sleeping quarters and was very obtrusive in the dead of night.

3) The pour out spout, that allows you to direct the waste when dumping, is not integrated, but has to be attached and unattached when used. The 565's was integrated and easy to use. This one increased the likelihood that you would have to touch the black-water product.

4) The "cover" for the black-water tank, that you pull in and out, is noisy as well. Additionally, it had edges withing the black-water container, which would allow for stuff to catch on it and be held onto instead of dumped.

5) the gauge to judge when full without opening is lack luster, but we only used this one sparingly. The other 565 we had was used for general usage (guests and #2).

6) The air-pressure valve, used when dumping to allow air into the chamber, was a poor design. A sleeve over a mount point is used to be pulled up to allow air into the chamber.

Generally, after using the 565's (now called a 365) for a few years, this just didn't match up. I don't believe I can realistically return this after usage so I'm out the money. It is still at camp, and we'll try again next year. but, I wish I had tested it with clean water and verified this is what I wanted. Otherwise, I would have looked around again.