PortaPros Blog

August 4, 2021

Understanding Portable Toilet Requirements for Special Events

The Treasure Valley is a popular place to hold events – we have a great community, amazing weather, and beautiful venues. One very common question we get asked at PortaPros is – How many portable toilets do I need at my event and how often should they be serviced?

The short answer is that PortaPros recommends following standards for special events set by the Portable Sanitation Association International (PSAI). But, that’s not all you need to consider…

Variables to Consider When Planning Your Special Event

When we help customers plan for special events, we ask a series of questions to help us get a sense of the right number of portable toilets to provide a clean + reliable experience for your guests – that’s part of the PortaPros Difference. Those questions include:

• How many guests will you have?
• What is the length of the event (both hours and number of days)?

Other factors to consider are:

• the temperature during events (80 degrees F or higher)
• whether food and alcohol will be served at the event

These factors can increase portable toilet numbers for your event by 20 – 30%.

Getting clarity on these questions and scenarios will help the PortaPros Customer Care Team accurately estimate the number of portable toilets units needed for your event.

Small, Single-Day Events

For single day events such as weddings, parties, and small events, with less than 250 guests, you will need anywhere from 1 – 3 toilets depending on the length of the event (in hours). An event with 50 guests lasting 4 hours would likely only need one portable restroom. An event with 250 guests lasting 5+ hours would probably need 3 portable restrooms. For a one-day event, the restroom(s) normally would not need to be serviced until pick up after the event.

If you have questions, the PortaPros Customer Care Team can help you determine the optimal number of portable toilets to keep your guests happy.

Larger Single and Multi-Day Events

For large events, anywhere from 500 – 20,000 guests, the number of portable toilets needed grows based on number of guests and duration of the event. Don’t forget to include any volunteers, security guards, and vendors when totaling up your guest count. One of our key assumptions is that one portable toilet can provide approximately 200 uses and that each guest will use the restroom once every 4 hours. It is always better to over-plan for your guests when making estimations. A full day event (10 hours) with 5,000 guests would require 63 portable toilets. A full day event (10 hours) with 10,000 guests would require 125 portable toilets.

For a large one-day event, the restrooms normally would not need to be serviced until pick up after the event. For multi-day events we recommend daily servicing -- either before or after your event each day. A service includes cleaning and deodorizing all of the portable toilets and adding fragrance.

Hand Wash Stations

Regardless of how big your event is or how many portable restroom(s) you need, they will be delivered clean, deodorized and fragranced. All of our portable restrooms include hand sanitizer as a courtesy to you and your guests, but we always recommend a portable hand wash station as an additional service. Check out our blog post about the difference between hand washing and hand sanitizing. One portable hand wash station is recommended for every 10 portable restrooms.

Portable Toilet Calculator

For an estimate of what you will need for your next special event, please check out our Portable Toilet Calculator. Our calculator recommends the number of toilets based on standards set from the PSAI. For a better guest experience, we always suggest considering more. Shorter lines mean your guests will be able to enjoy your event instead of waiting to use the restroom.

Why PortaPros for Special Events?

We are locally owned and operated with offices in Nampa and Ontario. We are the go-to source for special event restrooms and can service Idaho's entire greater Treasure Valley region, which includes Boise, Meridian, Nampa, Eagle, Caldwell and Ontario, Oregon.

The PortaPros Team is ready to service your special event. Give us a call at 208-467-0089 with any questions or needs!