Pet potty training can be a super messy process. Whether it’s pads or scraps of newspaper, these solutions often look pretty ugly, & your dog may not even use them!
That’s why these DIY porch potty ideas are fantastic ideas, especially if you live in an apartment and don’t have a ton of outdoor space.
To make these, you only need a few basic tools & simple materials. Plus, you can design it to fit your porch perfectly!
These DIY projects will make your pup’s potty time a breeze & reduce the number of accidents you have to clean up.
Dog Porch Potty Ideas
Dog Porch Potty
If you have some extra plywood lying around the house, consider making this super easy porch potty. The base frame is made of leftover wood lined with linoleum. Then, top it with a square grate & some artificial grass. What’s unique about this potty porch is the drainage hole on the side that ensures the urine won’t be stagnant for long periods of time. Simply clean it out with diluted bleach once every week.
Indoor Dog Potty
This indoor potty porch is the perfect option for tight spaces. The main component of this DIY porch potty is the washer tray serving to collect urine. Simply layer a ceiling grate over this tray & add fake grass on the very top. Bonus points if you poke holes into the grass first to add some extra drainage. The total cost is around 40 dollars, which is super cheap compared to a ready-made balcony potty.
Wooden Potty
If you have some time on your hands & some carpentry experience under your belt, then you should definitely try building this gorgeous wooden potty. Yes, it’s a bit more difficult than the other options, but the end result is totally worth it. Construct the tilted frame with lumber; the tilt helps to pool urine & liquid to one side, so it’s easier to drain. It becomes the perfect space for your pup to relieve themselves.
AstroTurf Outdoor Dog Potty Area
This slightly elevated balcony potty area gives your dog ample space to circle & then relieve himself. This one is the perfect option if you’ve got a larger dog or a pup that doesn’t have total bladder control. All you need is to make a plywood frame & line it with a pond liner to prevent water damage. Line that with a steel mesh topped with high-quality AstroTurf. Add a drainage hole on the side & you’re all done!
DIY Balcony Potty
We especially love this design due to the unique stained wood design. Simply stain the lumber base to your liking, but remember, a darker base will be easier to clean. Another tip is that the base can be constructed with deck screws for some extra stability & security. A remarkable feature of this toilet area is that it has wooden struts that allow for a lot more drainage space inside the wood frame.
Minimalist Wood Frame Toilet
Thanks to the simple finished frame design, this model looks extremely clean & polished. Since only the top part is wood, it adds an interesting mix of materials & keeps the toilet looking super refined. Then, just add some steel mesh with a steel crossbar in the center (to prevent sagging), AstroTurf, and a water-heater drip pan. This design doesn’t require loads of tools & is very easy to put together.
Boot Tray Dog Toilet
This is a great way to upcycle any old materials you have lying around the house. The main components of this design are an old boot tray, some tiles, fake grass, and some decorative fencing. This is a super low-effort DIY that still looks great; line the tile & grass over the boot tray and use the fence as decoration. You can even dress it up with a fake plant or some decorations. Although this design is a little harder to clean up & may smell, you can still put it together for zero cost with things you could find in your recycling bin.
Outdoor Doggy Potty Area
I love this idea for a sideyard or any sort of space that’s longer than it is wide. You can craft a wooden frame for the urine to drain into & then build an artificial grass top. This is a fantastic way to use that tiny sliver of space that’s too thin for anything else. I would recommend cleaning this potty pad pretty frequently, as there isn’t a ton of drainage. Otherwise, the urine will just stagnate in the frame.
Real Grass Porch Potty
If you have a picky puppy, then you’ll love this porch toilet topped with real grass. This is a fantastic option if you’re renovating your backyard & don’t know what to do with all the old grass. Make a wood frame & some drain holes for PVC piping. Then, line it with a tarp & some silicone sealant. Then, line it with a grid & add some sod! Just make sure that you change out the grass or sprinkle some seeds on top every few months, as it will probably die out over time.
Balcony Dog Potty
If you only have a tight space available on your balcony, you should try out this slim balcony dog toilet. The plywood frame is covered in vinyl & topped with a drainage grill. Plus, there is a large hole on the side for draining out any liquid waste. What’s unique about this design is that they have added Weedblock in the PVC pipes so that nothing will grow in the drainage system; this is a fantastic way to prevent bacteria formation or wood rot.
The Porch Potty
Although this design isn’t technically a DIY project, you can still recreate it at home with a few modifications. The original design has a metal frame lined with wicker and a plastic tray with a drain hose. You can easily make the frame out of wood & use some leftover wicker from second-hand furniture to cover it up. You can use the lid of a large bin for the plastic tray & make the drainage system with some flexible plastic piping.
Grass Planter
Are you an apartment dweller that still longs for a little green in your life? This super cute grass planter will satiate your green thumb & is also a great place for your pup to relieve himself. Custom build a wooden planter based on the size of your balcony, add some mulch, and top it with sod. Your grass should be thriving in no time! If you’re worried about watering it, you can also add an automatic sprinkler system.
Real Grass Toilet
When you have a young, unvaccinated pup at home, you know how frustrating it is to try to keep using puppy pads. Making this super economic grass toilet will help your dog transition from pads to lawn super quickly! For tiny dogs, a bread crate is a perfect size for the frame of the toilet. Just fill it up with mulch & sod, and that’s all you need!
DIY Potty Spot
This design is a bit harder to recreate, but it’s an excellent option for apartment pups. You need a wooden frame, a tilted plastic drainage layer, a metal mesh, and some AstroTurf. What makes this design really easy to use is the sliding drainage tray that you can pull out & dump whenever it gets full. This way, you won’t have to disassemble any bulky items each time your pup goes potty.
Gravel Porch Toilet
This large porch potty uses gravel as the drainage system, which isn’t as common as other options. There is a layer of pea gravel, topped with a pegboard, followed by some landscape fabric, some topsoil, and a final layer of grass. You could also spice it up by putting grass on only half the frame and filling the rest up with pebbles for an innovative look. The pebbles will also increase the durability & life span of this DIY toilet.
Side Yard Potty
If you want to use the awkward space in your side yard for your puppy, I recommend this side yard potty. You just need a long & narrow planter filled with some mud & turf. However, I recommend adding a layer of pebbles underneath for extra drainage in case you overwater it.
Short Wooden Potty Area
It may be hard for dogs with mobility issues to climb up onto taller porch toilets. So, this design is very low to the ground, which makes it accessible for all dogs! There is a gorgeous stained wood frame with support slats, a drainage grid, and artificial grass! Plus, the frame has handles which makes it very easy to carry around!
Heavy Duty Potty
If you’re worried about your pooch destroying the potty that you’ve made for him, I recommend this heavy-duty potty that is made with steel support crossbars & a broad wooden base. There’s no chance that your pooch can chew this up!
Conclusion
We hope you enjoyed this list of a few excellent porch potty ideas. Leave a comment down below if you have any more ideas or tips on how to make this project easier.
If you found this article informative, share it with some pet parents who have apartment-dwelling pups.
Thanks for reading!
