Relieving in flight

On Thursday, December 21, 2017 at 11:50:16 AM UTC-6, wrote:
I use a quart sized zip lock baggie with a toddler size diaper folded inside of it (inside out, with the absorbent part exposed). This takes care of the danger of the bag getting punctured, since the diaper soaks up the liquid (in a couple of minutes). Yes it's a bit of a distraction when using it, but I can choose when to use it, during a quiet part of the flight (cruise rather than thermal).

And I never throw it overboard - bad PR!

I do about the same: Make "piddle packs" out of doubled ziplocs containing the pad from an adult diaper. That will completely absorb at least two good urinations. Also absorbs barf (yeah, after more than 30 years at this, I still occasionally get airsick).

Outlanded at a lonely little county airport once and got thoroughly interrogated and searched by a very young, completely freaked out sheriff's deputy (female version of Barney Fife). She was asking if I had weapons or drugs onboard when she spotted the "used" ziploc baggy pee bomb protruding from under the seat rim. She snatched it up and it was about two beats before she realized what she was holding. That significantly dampened her enthusiasm for further searching.

Outlanded at a lonely little county airport once and got thoroughly interrogated and searched by a very young, completely freaked out sheriff's deputy (female version of Barney Fife). She was asking if I had weapons or drugs onboard when she spotted the "used" ziploc baggy pee bomb protruding from under the seat rim. She snatched it up and it was about two beats before she realized what she was holding. That significantly dampened her enthusiasm for further searching.

I use a male adhesive catheter and "leg bag" for myself, but make up a few "guest" baggies for use in our duo. Those are just quart ziplocks with a heaping teaspoon of Sodium Polyacrylate (the magic absorbent in diapers). You can get it on Amazon, a pound will last many lifetimes.

Unused this would definitely get the attention of the sheriff. White powder in a plastic bag, huh...

RR

Problems with pee tubes include freezing up, and pee causing tail components to rust. I've had both happen. A catheter and bladder both exploding at 17,500 over the whites is not that fun! That's what led me to an onboard system.

All this joking aside, having some pee system and the ability to use it in the cockpit should be mandatory before going off cross country. If you can't pee, you won't drink, and if you don't drink, you can't think.

John Cochrane

On Thursday, December 21, 2017 at 11:34:57 AM UTC-8, John Cochrane wrote:
Problems with pee tubes include freezing up, and pee causing tail components to rust. I've had both happen. A catheter and bladder both exploding at 17,500 over the whites is not that fun! That's what led me to an onboard system.

All this joking aside, having some pee system and the ability to use it in the cockpit should be mandatory before going off cross country. If you can't pee, you won't drink, and if you don't drink, you can't think.

John Cochrane

I use these:

https://www.athomemedical.com/Hollis...d-p/ho975-.htm
https://www.allegromedical.com/cathe...z-p192445.html

Get as long a catheter as you can make use of and get the ones with a long glue line. I'd much rather carefully peel the thing off at the end of the day than have one come off in flight.

On days when you get to high altitudes and colder OAT your extremities may get cold, leading to hypothermic diuresis. On those sorts of days I have filled two (32 oz) bags, so I always carry two. Cold also leads to "shrinkage" and potential loss of adequate surface for a good glue seal. If a catheter comes off it's just a mess and can be challenging to fix. Trying to don a new catheter (I carry three on every flight) with urine on everything while sitting strapped into a glider with a chute on - all while trying to fly is an exercise to be avoided at any reasonable cost. Oftentimes the replacement catheter won't stick properly because of the wet (plus it's cold, so, well, you know). Put the catheter on carefully on the ground before you get in the cockpit is my primary advice.

I also have an overboard tube that is attached to the inside of the main gear door so I have to put the gear down to dump. I only use this to dump a filled bag as I don't really want the gear down for the time it would take to pee directly overboard. With the bag always attached, you just pee at your leisure without a big production. I generally agree, dumping overboard is to be avoided. If you do, make sure to rinse off all the fittings in the tail/rudder upon landing.

Watch out for sunburn, too!Â* I carry a couple of rags for that and they
double for cleanup, if necessary.

On 12/21/2017 1:07 PM, Andy Blackburn wrote:
On Thursday, December 21, 2017 at 11:34:57 AM UTC-8, John Cochrane wrote:
Problems with pee tubes include freezing up, and pee causing tail components to rust. I've had both happen. A catheter and bladder both exploding at 17,500 over the whites is not that fun! That's what led me to an onboard system.

All this joking aside, having some pee system and the ability to use it in the cockpit should be mandatory before going off cross country. If you can't pee, you won't drink, and if you don't drink, you can't think.

John Cochrane
I use these:

https://www.athomemedical.com/Hollis...d-p/ho975-.htm
https://www.allegromedical.com/cathe...z-p192445.html

Get as long a catheter as you can make use of and get the ones with a long glue line. I'd much rather carefully peel the thing off at the end of the day than have one come off in flight.

On days when you get to high altitudes and colder OAT your extremities may get cold, leading to hypothermic diuresis. On those sorts of days I have filled two (32 oz) bags, so I always carry two. Cold also leads to "shrinkage" and potential loss of adequate surface for a good glue seal. If a catheter comes off it's just a mess and can be challenging to fix. Trying to don a new catheter (I carry three on every flight) with urine on everything while sitting strapped into a glider with a chute on - all while trying to fly is an exercise to be avoided at any reasonable cost. Oftentimes the replacement catheter won't stick properly because of the wet (plus it's cold, so, well, you know). Put the catheter on carefully on the ground before you get in the cockpit is my primary advice.

I also have an overboard tube that is attached to the inside of the main gear door so I have to put the gear down to dump. I only use this to dump a filled bag as I don't really want the gear down for the time it would take to pee directly overboard. With the bag always attached, you just pee at your leisure without a big production. I generally agree, dumping overboard is to be avoided. If you do, make sure to rinse off all the fittings in the tail/rudder upon landing.

--
Dan, 5J

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This site has a lot of info, including a posting I wrote for RAS many, many years ago: http://aviation.derosaweb.net/relief/

Some interesting updates in the recent postings, including reusable catheters. It's annoying to discover the day before leaving for a big contest that I'm running low on the adhesive type.

The ones I've bought the last few years aren't latex. They're clear plastic of some kind (silicone?) and seem to stay on much better (e.g., see 9B's comments about cold). Still, I carry at least two for every flight. I, too, apply them before launch. Loose clothing works makes it easier.

If I were to do it over again now, I'd probably go the UH route. That said, when we removed the rudder on my 25-year-old ASW 24 last winter, where I've had the dump port mounted on the lower aft corner of the gear door for that long, there was no corrosion. But having to lower and then raise the gear each time is a hassle, including listening to complaints from pilots below you in a thermal.

The older I get, the more I drink to stay hydrated and the more often I pee..

I didn't realize anyone was still littering the countryside with plastic bags.

Chip Bearden

Buy one of the two Rumpf Super Hp18's with Udo's built in removable
pee bottle at the base of the instrument panel! Best system I've ever
seen in a sailplane.
Alternatively use gel pee bags.

In addition to the sunburn preventer, I think also modify the bailout procedure to canopy, cath, belts, butt.


Having an easy way to keep fluids flowing is necessary to keep the brain working to stay up.

To make this easy, I modified the transponder fin to have a 3/8 poly tube down the front edge. This is behind the gear doors and a bit to the side, so it doesn't seem to streak the glider. It stays hooked up all the time so there is no hassle factor. There is a tee in the line with a blow tube usually clamped with hemostats. This permits blowing out the tube to the back if there is a worry about freezing preventing a second use. After flight, the blow tube is used to flush out the system.


Overall, having a good, simple pee system is a definite improvement in flying.

I find it amazing how many diverse areas of expertise flying gliders requires. That's part of what makes it fun.