Using a Russet potato as a replacement for you-know-what, Wilcut flushes the spud down a Caroma toilet with the full flush (1.6 gallon) AND half flush (0.8 gallon) for liquid waste to show how a dual flush system can efficiently dispose of waste. Since toilets make for almost 30% of residential indoor water use in the United States, it seems like a no-brainer in water tight times for new homes to all come with high efficiency toilets, alongside home owners being given an incentive to convert to dual flush models to replace aging and leaking units.
According to the Pottygirl site, the average person flushes the toilet nearly 140,000 times in their lifetime, and by switching over to a water efficient, a person can save up to 4000 gallons of water per year. You can figure out your savings yourself using an online calculation sheet. What you want look for is a WaterSense Labeled High-Efficiency Toilet. More details and resources about this important subject over at Pottygirl.
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Comments (21)
When we first moved into our current apartment, we both wondered what the heck was wrong with our 2 toilets. We didn't get why they flushed 3-4 times. To me it seems like MORE water is being wasted than a single flush toilet. Maybe it's just an illusion.
Anyway, we have SO many problems with our toilets. They are always needing to be unclogged, and we use super cheap or recycled TP (ie- nothing to it...) so it's not like it's the Charmin Extra Puff or whatever the heck it's called.
Does anybody else with these toilets seem to have issues? I know it's all for the environment, and I think that's great, but when the toilet doesn't flush right 15-20% of the time, it's hard to see the value.
But then again, I bet we just have really cheap toilets here.
Bromelia, that's the only reason you can think of? You don't want to save the environment, water, or money?
The major complaint/fear about high efficiency toilets has been that they get stuck and don't flush as well. This demonstration takes care of that.
we have lots of water saving flushing systems in Europe, and believe me, they work well and are reliable. and it is a good idea to not use up loads of water for that.
I have had three of these Caroma potato flushers in my house for the past four years. They rock. I have not once used a plunger on any of them, and I have never had to flush twice! This is one of the things that really works.
... unlike my 'silent' garage door and my hands-free soap dispenser ;)
I am sure it uses a pressure assist system like the Sloan Flushmate (http://www.flushmate.com/). These toilets put out A LOT of flushing power with little water. The typical 1.6 GPF low flow toilets we see in the US have no assist and they are terrible. They stop up all the time and take two or three flushes to work properly, so I cannot wait until these dual flush, pressure assisted toilets become the norm.
Actually, here is a Kohler model that is LEED certified, pressure assisted and does only 1 GPF (not dual flush, though).
http://www.us.kohler.com/onlinecatalog/detail.jsp?from=thumb&frm=&module=Toilets&item=12860002&prod_num=3597§ion=2&category=13
It IS a $1K, but Kohler is always a little high.
All the toilets in Australia are dual flush. I can't remember ever having a toilet that wasn't dual flush.
Not sure about the button thing.
We have a low-flow potty upstairs and have learned that you only flush one wipe-worth of toilet paper at a time. And you still have to hold the handle down (to get a longer, stronger flush) when you do that. If you have a double-wipe, you retain the second wad in your hand as you stand and flush, then as you see the first wad move down the pipe you drop the second in and release the lever.
And yes, this can be complicated at 3am. Especially if your timing is off and you have to get the plunger out.
Without the handle we'd probably be hitting those buttons in some morse code sequence several times for one use.
THAT was funny. I hope you guys are enjoying my hometown!
I wanted a dual flush, but the options weren't attractive and didn't fit into my budget when I was remodeling. I've since found this kit that can be used to make a regular toilet into a dual flush, but have wondered how well it works. Has anyone ever used it?
http://www.dualflushtoilet.net/
Please forgive the crudeness, but what happens when you have a whopper of a poo? I would think it'd get stuck on that dry "shelf" area right above the well of water. Also, if you have a million sheet wiper - which in my family, is more common than you'd think - Could these toilets handle 2, 3, 4... wipes? Maybe I'll just stick with a brick in my tank for now.
We recently installed a Kohler dual flush - works great and never cloggs.
in australia, it's mandated by law that all new home constructions have dual flush toilets - I think this has been a law since the 80's. I want to install dual flush toilets in my home here in the US but i'm having trouble finding them in Lowes/Home Depot.
my in-laws have those sort of toilets in their home. we all live in san antonio and i think some time last year the city was giving them away and thats where they got theirs. im not completely sold on the "half flush" since most of the time it seems as though i can still see a hint of yellow in the water.. and it does sort of seem like a bottomless pit for number twos. i feel like im gonna get major splash back and since theres very little water to begin with most of that splast back would consist of your own pee and the slight amount left behind from the previous users half flush. ew. with all that being said, ive got a 1.6g at home and just replaced the plug in the tank with on that lets you adjust how much water each flush uses. ive got it set to use about a third less than normal.
I live in a country that has 1/4 of the world fresh water supply and 1/200 of the world population
Wow. What country is that?
And it figures that Australia would be way ahead of the curve in water use. Even before the current drought, the continent overall seems pretty dry.
Honestly, the half flush is completely sufficient. I used a dual flush when I studied abroad and we even have them in the local Pet Smart (I'm not a huge fan of chain pet stores, but they get a nod for that move).
I live in a country that has 1/4 of the world fresh water supply and 1/200 of the world population
Wow. What country is that?
I am betting Brazil...
bromelia, we ALL should be concerned about the health of the planet, and try to do what we can. You always seem very concerned, I have noticed, about painting wood...
We have Totos in our house. I like the dual flush feature, but I must confess, as a woman, I have discovered that the "liquids" flush also means no toilet paper, so I use the "solids" flush all the time. But even THAT setting uses less water than standard toilets, so it's an improvement either way. On rare occasions I do need to flush twice, but not often. Plus the style of these toilets is modern and more sculptural than a lot of them...
I think the Totos cost around $200 each, more than the low end Home Depot options, but not that much overall.
TheUpstart,
I have 3 dual flush conversion kits installed at my home and they work great. I think I have save tons of money on my water bill. I looked to get the link for you and I saw that they have a $5.00 off coupon if you type save water in the coupon section of their web site. Good luck
You mean USA doesn't have dual toilets in every home??? Everyone in Australia has one, and we flush our toilets just fine.
bromelia, if you're talking about Canada, I live in the same country and I'd rather see that water in our lakes and rivers than being used to flush your toilet.
Just because you think you can doesn't mean you should.