Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Free Shipping
We offer free standard shipping on all Carloo orders (currently within the 48 contiguous U.S. states only)!  Orders are shipped within 1-3 business days via UPS or United States Postal Service (USPS).   We are located in Oakland, California, so standard shipping times vary depending on your location.  It can be as little as 2 business days in California or up to 7 business days to the East Coast.

Expedited Shipping
If you need a Carloo by a specific date, contact us at info@thecarloo.com and we'll see if faster shipping can be arranged for an additional fee to meet your timeline and budget. We ship out orders within 1-3 business days after the order is placed.  

We've found that UPS is the most affordable option for expedited shipping. Here are some examples for reference (exact prices vary based on date and location):
- UPS 3 Day Select®: $5 expedited delivery fee per Carloo
- UPS 2nd Day Air®:  $16 expedited delivery fee per Carloo
- UPS Next Day Air Saver®: $40 expedited delivery fee per Carloo
UPS “days” usually means “business days” (not weekends or holidays) and for 3 Day Select, the count down starts the day AFTER UPS drop off.

If you want to do some research on shipping costs to your location, we ship from 5627 Telegraph Ave, Ste 156, Oakland CA 94609 and a single Carloo shipping box is approximately 14" x 14" x 5" and weighs 4 lbs. 

Local pick up
If you're located near Oakland, California and interested in picking up a Carloo, contact us at info@thecarloo.com and we'll see if it can be arranged.

Notes:
- Orders are shipped out within 1-3 business days.
- Shipping & delivery times are approximate and may be delayed due to national holidays, severe weather conditions, other natural disasters or emergencies.
- Right now we are not shipping beyond the 48 contiguous U.S. states. If you are interested in purchasing a Carloo and shipping it anywhere else (like Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. territories or international destinations), contact us at info@thecarloo.com.

The Carloo can be used by anyone who is agile and strong enough to get on and off of it inside a car.  

People have asked if the Carloo is good for people with disabilities or who are elderly.  Our answer is that it depends on the person  The Carloo is not attached to the car seat, so it requires some physical strength and agility to get on top of it and get off of it while keeping it upright (not spilling).  

Other options that may be more appropriate are the Road Trip Potty or this product on Amazon.

You can use the Carloo ANYWHERE your car is parked.  

You can be parked on a busy city street (we've used it in Oakland, San Francisco, Santa Monica and Hollywood - always with a towel covering our lap for privacy).  You can be parked in a suburban neighborhood or a parking lot or on the side of a long stretch of highway or at the start of a hike - really anywhere! 

Probably not, but it depends on the situation.  

In our experience, people generally don't look inside a car when it's parked, especially in the backseat. 

We've used it while parked on busy city streets and parking lots, as well as less populated areas, without anyone paying attention.

If you are concerned, we recommend doing some experiments: sit in your car where you plan to use your Carloo and notice who looks inside and what they can see.

For added privacy, we recommend placing a towel or blanket on top of your lap to cover up while using your Carloo.

The Carloo is a portable toilet (or chamber pot) designed for use in the privacy of a parked car. For details, see the "How to Use" page.

Note: if you're worried about using it for the first time in your car, try practicing somewhere where you feel comfortable, like on a chair in your bathroom.

Probably not, as long as you're careful.  

Although the Carloo is not spill or leak-proof, if you keep it upright and steady at all times and don't overfill it, it should not spill or leak.  

If you're concerned about spills or leaks, place something - like a towel or a pet training pad - under the Carloo.

If your car seats are slanted or you are parked on a hill, you may want to use a towel or pad underneath to make the seat more flat and level so there is less chance of spilling.

We recommend supporting the Carloo from the bottom after use (not just the handles), as well as emptying it regularly.

The Carloo was designed to provide a way for people (specifically the women in our family) to pee in the privacy of a parked car without making a mess.

But you can use your Carloo for whatever you want!   

A few things to note: 

- The Carloo is relatively short - by design - so that you don’t hit your head inside the car when sitting on top of it and don’t have to get on top of something that’s too tall (which can be physically challenging). 

- The internal container is 9” wide x 2⅝” tall and holds more than 64oz liquid. 

- An individual's experience with solid waste will depend on the consistency of the waste and the height it goes when being output (not sure how else to say that!).

- In terms of cleaning it, most of the parts do fine if you wash it relatively soon after use, but the internal silicone lid is the part that is most likely to need deodorizing and we've found that heating can remove odors from silicone.

- You can line the Carloo’s internal container with a small bag (again, the internal container is 9” wide x 2⅝” tall).   

- In order for the Carloo’s internal silicone lid to seal in the waste and odors, it needs to have direct contact with the internal container lip, so if you use a bag, you need to close / gather it before you put on the silicone lid after use.  

Clean your Carloo with soap and water.

If you want to use a specific cleaning product or process, make sure it is appropriate for the material: 
- external container, lid and seat are plastic
- internal container is stainless steel 
- internal lid is silicone (pro tip: heating can remove odors from silicone)

Dispose of waste properly, according to your local laws. 

Let dry before reassembling (pro tip: put it in your trunk unassembled and let fully dry).

Note, the Carloo was designed to be like a child's training potty, where you dispose of waste in the toilet and clean it - rather than a chemical toilet where you treat the waste for other methods of disposal or like a disposable emergency toilet where you line the container with a plastic bag.  But you can do whatever you want with your Carloo.  For reference, the internal stainless steel container (where the waste goes) is  9” wide x 2⅝” tall and holds more than 64oz.

The Carloo was designed to be reusable - like a child's training potty - so you dispose of waste in the toilet or trash (according to local regulations) and then clean it.

Pro tip: you can store trash that you want to separate out (like toilet paper) in the space between the inner container and outer container, so you can easily dump the contents of the internal container and put the other waste into the trash.

People have asked about using plastic bags to line the internal container (you definitely can - the internal container is 9” wide x 2⅝” tall) as well as using gel or granules that turn liquid into solid (again, you definitely can and these substances are available on major e-commerce websites).

We recommend keeping your Carloo in your car, so it's ready whenever you need it.  We keep ours in the trunk with a roll of toilet paper plus a towel for privacy.

The Carloo is small enough (4.125" tall x 12.75" wide) to fit under some car seats (but not all - be sure to measure yours if this is important to you) or in the trunk or back area of most cars (even Smart Cars).  

Because the Carloo is not recognizable as a portable toilet, it is discreet enough to be stored in view, like on top of a seat.

We’ve tested the Carloo for up to 200 lbs and it did just fine. When you use it, you’re sitting on top of your car seat (or wherever), on top of the molded plastic seat, on top of a stainless steel container inside of a plastic container, so we think it could handle more weight.

In terms of size, it's definitely an individual preference.  

The Carloo seat is smaller than standard toilet seat.  It has 11" external diameter and a 6.3" internal diameter (aka the hole / opening in the seat ring).   This feels "too small" for some people and "fine" for others.  

In terms of height, the Carloo is approximately 4" tall when you're using it, so not too tall so that you hit your head on most car roofs.  It does require some physical strength and agility to get on top of it and get off of it while keeping it upright (not spilling).

Our hope is that in the future we can keep improving the Carloo design and expand the weight and size range!

The Carloo (with all the parts together) is 4.125" tall x 12.75" wide and weighs 3.2 lbs.

- With the lid off, the external container is 3.125 tall. Compared to other portable toilets, the Carloo is relatively short - by design - so that you don’t hit your head inside the car when sitting on top of it and don’t have to get on top of something that’s too tall (which can be physically challenging).  

- The internal stainless steel container (where the waste goes) is 9” wide x 2⅝” tall.

- The seat has an 11" external diameter and a 6.3" internal diameter (aka the hole / opening in the seat ring). 

- The seat sits inside of the external container which has an internal diameter of approximately 11.2"

- For reference, standard American toilets are either round or elongated. Standard round toilet seats are approximately 14" external diameter and a 8.5" diameter internal diameter (aka the hole / opening in the seat ring), so the Carloo seat is just a bit smaller than a regular toilet seat, but the opening is big enough for most folks to use successfully.

Our hope is that in the future we can keep improving the Carloo design and expand the size and weight range!

If you order a single Carloo, it comes in a box that is designed to be both the product box and the shipping box (and is recyclable); it is approximately 14" x 14" x 5"  and weighs 4 lbs.

If you order multiple Carloos, we put each in its own box, and then pack them together in a plain shipping box:
- 2 Carloos: approximately 15" x 15" x 11" and 8 lbs
- 3 Carloos: approximately 15" x 15" x 17" and 11 lbs
- 4 Carloos: approximately 15" x 15" x 21" and 15 lbs

You are welcome to use your Carloo any way you want, with any accessory you want!  

We're keeping a running list of ones customers have mentioned:
- plastic bags to line the internal container (the internal container is 9” wide x 2⅝” tall)
- gel or granules that turn liquid into solid
- mat to protect the car seat
- blanket or lap cover up for privacy during use
- window shades for privacy during use

These are all readily available on major e-commerce sites and all should work fine with the Carloo!

Right now we are only selling the Carloo.   In the future, we may add more sizes or versions of the Carloo, as well as accessories, but first things first (we need to make sure enough people want a Carloo)!

We haven't found other products that are exactly like the Carloo, but here are a few that you can use INSIDE a regular car:
- Road Trip Potty (https://roadtrippotty.com/)
- Travel Jane (https://shop.traveljohn.com/traveljane-disposable-urinal-tj1r-6-pack/)
- This one on Amazon has a few different sellers (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B081SCT86H?ref_=cm_sw_r_cp_ud_dp_SHQ08V8G63Z03YFYFSC5)
- There are a ton of DIY versions, here's a cool one on YouTube with a 2 gallon bucket (so it's taller than the Carloo but smaller than the 5 gallon Luggable Loo that does not fit in a car) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpmheFaTFjM

We can do direct sales.  Send an email to info@thecarloo.com and let us know how you'd like to pay and your shipping address.  For payment we do online (via PayPal or Venmo or something you prefer) or by check (mail to Carloo LLC, 5627 Telegraph Ave, Suite 156, Oakland CA 94609).  We are not able to process payments on the phone.

Local pick up
If you're located near Oakland, California and interested in picking up a Carloo, contact us at info@thecarloo.com and we'll see if it can be arranged.

The Carloo is a totally new product and is only available on this website. Right now we're not planning on offering any discounts, coupons or sales. And since there's no sale or coupon to wait for - and we've already included free shipping and a 30 day money back guarantee - we hope you give the Carloo a try and see if having a choice removes some stress from your daily life (we all could use that!).

We believe the Carloo offers a really high value for the price. We set the price as low as possible - covering the costs of the business, lower priced than anything we've seen that even closely resembles the product and, if all goes as well, enough for us to keep making the Carloo and giving more people a choice to turn a reoccurring stressful situation into a non-issue. 

Returns / Warranty:  We offer a 30-day money back guarantee with product return.  Read more on Shipping & Returns page.

Privacy: Read our Privacy Policy for details.

Terms, Conditions and more: Read our Legal page for details.

We're a small family owned business, based in Oakland, California.  You can read more in About Us.

The best way to contact us is by sending an email to info@thecarloo.com.

You can also reach us at:
Carloo LLC
5627 Telegraph Ave, Ste 156
Oakland, CA 94609
‪(510) 343-9104