Toilets
Shopping and Usage Tips
Before You Shop
Check the date on your current model; manufacturing dates are often stamped on the underside of the tank's lid. Since 1992, the federal government has required toilets to use 1.6 gallons per flush (gpf) or less. 1.6 gpf toilets can use up to 46 percent less water than older models, and since these toilets are now installed in most new homes in the U.S., you may not need to replace yours.
Decide which type you want, either a conventional 1.6 gpf model, a high-efficiency toilet that uses less than 1.3 gallons per flush or a composting toilet, good for small households or when the conservation of local water supplies is urgent (see "The Backstory"). Composting toilets contain and control the composting of human and household waste using little or no water at all, saving you the nearly 30 percent of household water generally used to flush toilets. The trade-off with composting toilets is that some require energy, while traditional toilets use none at all. The Envirolet Self-Contained Composting Toilet in our Product Comparisons chart uses no energy, but a Texas state government analysis found that other models use an estimated 2 to 3 kwh per day.
If you can't replace your toilet right away, save water with a small milk jug. Just weight the jug with some pebbles, and place it in your tank to displace water.
Usage Tips
-Don't use the toilet to dispose of anything but human waste.
-Dispose of pharmaceuticals in the land trash rather than flushing them (see The Backstory).
-Fix leaky toilets. Toilet leaks can cost you up to 200 gallons of water each day, the same amount it would take to wash 10 loads of clothes in an Energy Star-rated washing machine. To test for a leak, put five to 10 drops of food coloring into the tank. Wait about 10 minutes, and check the toilet bowl. If you see any food coloring, there's a leak that's wasting water.
-If you purchase a composting toilet, the end product, humus, can be buried around tree roots and non-edible plants for use as a valuable soil additive. If you choose not to recycle the end product, contact your local hazardous waste disposal facility for local regulations on the disposal of humus.
