pisysteem

Pisysteem is the part of a building's sanitation infrastructure that handles the disposal of human urine. In Dutch usage, pisysteem can refer to the entire toilet system or specifically to the network of fixtures and piping by which urine is discharged and carried away to a sewer or septic system. A pisysteem typically includes toilets and urinals, waste- and soil pipes, traps that prevent sewer gases from entering the building, ventilation to remove odors, and connections to the municipal sewer, a septic tank, or an on-site treatment system. Most modern systems use some form of flush mechanism to move waste through the pipes, but there are alternative designs such as waterless urinals and urine-diverting toilets that separate urine from feces for treatment or reuse.

In ecological sanitation and water conservation approaches, urine-diverting toilets and urine collection systems are used to recover nutrients from urine for fertilizer or biogas, while reducing water use. Types of pisysteem designs vary from traditional gravity-based drainage to pressure-assisted, vacuum, or hybrid systems, and from standard flushing toilets to composting toilets that manage excreta on-site. Maintenance concerns include blockages, mineral buildup, odors, and backflow, all of which are addressed through proper venting, trap seals, regular cleaning, and adherence to local building codes. The term and its variants are governed by regional plumbing standards and regulations.