500-person festival with beer garden: How many porta potties do we need?

For a 500-person festival with a beer garden running 10 hours, you need at least 10 portable toilets for the guests, plus a separate unit for workers. The ADA cluster rule requires at least one ADA-compliant portable toilet in each cluster of units on the site. The planning guideline starts near one unit per 50 to 75 people for a four-hour event. With alcohol, a long day and food service, you need more units. I would use 10 standard units, a deluxe unit near the food trucks and one ADA unit.

Place the ADA unit and a standard unit together as a cluster to meet the ADA 5 percent cluster rule. The deluxe unit with a sink adds a handwashing option. A restroom trailer is an alternative for high traffic, but it needs level ground and power. For your crew, follow OSHA 29 CFR 1926.51. A crew under 20 workers needs one toilet.

Schedule a service visit during the event for a one-day festival. The service frequency is weekly normally, but 500 people drinking beer for 10 hours will fill tanks faster. The cost increases with more units, deluxe features and an extra service call.