Outdoor

Thetford Porta Potti 565: Portable toilet for the camper

Review: Thetford Porta Potti 565 was exactly the right choice for us, as we now have a large wet room and space for the toilet.

Anyone looking for a portable toilet that does not have to be connected to the water supply or a drain is well served with the Thetford brand, and more precisely with the Porta Potti 565 model. We’ll give you all the information about the camping toilet and bring you closer to its advantages and disadvantages. Our camping gadgets are happy about a new product in their list.

Admittedly, the Thetford Porta Potti 565 is a little too big to be accommodated in a VW Bulli . Here we would recommend the Porta Potti 335, which even fits perfectly into the right kitchen cupboard if you remove the compartments under the drawer. However, if the vehicle needs to be changed and you long for something bigger, then the large model we are introducing to you today is probably the better choice . We would like to explain the reasons for this to you. With the Thetford Topline 922 we already had a modern gas stove for campers with approval in the test.

Thetford Porta Potti 565 – with manual and electric flush

A little ahead of time; the Porta Potti 565 is available in two different versions . The 565P offers a manual piston pump that can be dosed very easily and runs very smoothly , while the 565E model has an electric pump. This runs on the battery, but should last a very long time. In our test, we deal with the cheaper model beforehand. However, the following product details are identical for both models:

  • Dimensions (H x W x D): 448 x 388 x 450 mm
  • Rinse water tank capacity: 15 L.
  • Level indicator for holding tank
  • Level indicator for flush water tank
  • Holding tank capacity: 21 L.
  • Net weight: 4.9 Kg

More details on the portable luxury toilet

Of course, the 21 liter holding tank is particularly practical, as it allows the user to use his toilet for up to a week in a two-person camping household . Unlike the smaller models, which sometimes have to be emptied every three to four days; that can be limiting. The rinsing water tank is just as large, even if you don’t even need to fill in that much fresh water. Because you should consider that if both containers are almost full, they add up to more than 30 kilograms – a weight that not everyone can move out of what is often a very narrow bathroom.

We only ever filled in around 5 liters , which held us until the waste water container was full. This was the best solution for our procedure for emptying the toilet, as we first took out the entire toilet and only then took off the upper part. Everyone does this in their own way, as experience and conversations with others have shown us.

Form & functions – we like the design

The design is very modern as we find it. While otherwise only square toilets are portable and simply more practical, as one might initially think, the Thetford Porta Potti 565 is oval and seems to have arrived in 2021. All levers and displays are just as simply housed and there is even a separate compartment for a toilet roll in the side wall of the toilet. By the way: The camping toilet is relatively self-explanatory. You can get along well here even without an instruction manual.

The level indicator for the waste water tank can be found at the bottom of the front; so you can always see how much space you still have. The same goes for the fresh water tank – its display is on the top of the toilet. Either covered with a small plastic flap or you simply open the toilet lid to read it. The lever to open the waste water tank is on the right side when sitting on the toilet, easy to use. A practical filling aid is included for filling the fresh water tank .

Emptying the toilet & conclusion on the Porta Potti 565

When emptying, the relatively heavy toilet can be held by two sturdy handles . If the cap is turned off and the toilet with the rotatable waste water pipe is inclined towards the drain, you can ventilate the tank by pressing a white button. This means that 20 liters of wastewater can be emptied in under 5 seconds – practical.

Our conclusion is positive. The Porta Potti 565 was exactly the right choice for us, as we now have a large wet room and space for the toilet. In addition, in full-time van life we didn’t want to empty the toilet every three days, but also want to get along with it for a week when we were free . The seat height is another positive point, because here you can sit like at home, which often looks very provisional with smaller models. All in all a great model from Thetford that has been with us for two months now and this text can also be seen as a long-term test due to daily use. The 565P can be bought for around 120 euros . The variant with electric flush costs around 20 euros more.