Getting Ready for Earth Day: Save Water When You Flush
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA 
on 03.28.07
Ed. note: For the next several weeks, we'll be running a series of posts featuring easy, high-impact ideas and tips to help you get ready for Earth Day. Stay tuned!
Saving water is simultaneously one of the easiest and most effective ways to be a better TreeHugger; we'll start by looking at one of the biggest water-users in the house: the toilet. With standard models using multiple gallons each time you push the handle, they literally flush fresh, clean water down the drain. If the "if it's yellow, let it mellow..." mantra doesn't work for you, here are a handful of ideas and products that'll help reduce the amount of water you flush on each visit to your toilet.
1) This quick review of alternative toilets includes one with a waste incinerator and a couple of waterless, composting models.
2) The Bio-Lux composting toilet uses sawdust as an "artificial soil matrix" to decompose human waste into odorless water and carbon dioxide through aerobic fermentation. You empty it twice a year and toss the compost in your flower garden.
3) TwoFlush offers a quick 'n easy retrofit that turns any toilet into a water-saving dual-flush model.
4) This Argentinean model takes the water used in the basin, for hand-washing and such, and reuses it when you flush.
5) Gadgets like the dual flush toilet and controllable flush handle can save about 67% by flushing less water for light loads.
6) Sinkpositive is a handy device that cycles clean water through the faucet, for hand-washing and such, and reuses it the next time the toilet gets flushed.
7) The Propelair potty literally 'blows the crap and water down the drain' with just a little water and a quick burst of air.
For more tips and info about using less water as you get ready for Earth Day, check out How to Green Your Water
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Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:
- How Thailand Taught Me to Give Up Toilet Paper for Good
- 7 Green Methods to Unclog a Toilet...Plumber's Crack Optional
- Wa$ted! Episode: Elle's Challenge (Video)
- Save Water in Your Garden: 5 Tips for Maximum Conservation
- Is Your Toilet Wasting Water? Take These Quick Tests to Find Out
- A Green Bath Soothes Your Aching Bones and Saves Water Too
Good conservation topic. Will implement some on our own to help our great planet earth.
great ideas...I might actually try and put some too work for the sake of Earth Day
Suggestion: consider installing a water-saving adjustable-flush toilet flapper, e.g. Korky Plus Premium Adjustable Flapper or Ecomaster Watersaver Pro. At ~$5-6, it's quite the low-risk water-conservation investment.
With Spring now here and warmer temperatures in the South - it is a good idea to recycle dishwater for watering the spring garden or cleaning patio furniture...
...and even washing cars before an expected rainstorm, and allow mother nature to rinse them squeaky clean
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Author's comment:
Good points, all; we'll be addressing other ways to save water (like the greywater reuse mentioned here) in upcoming Earth Day posts. Stay tuned!
David Grinberg what are you thinking??
I went to both sites you suggest and they both say they save water but its really BS. Both sites sell just the toilet flapper- the amount of water going down the bowl remains the same unless your going to go in under the lid and adjust
every time you want to adjust how much water you want in the tank. You can do the same thing with many, many products that have been out for years and you may even have one now.
Another trick: Fill a 2L pop bottled with water and insert it in the toilet tank. I think a couple of bricks works well, too.
Last weekend I installed and SinkPostive. It was really easy to install. My husband and I really like it, and it really does encourage more hand washing because the water is there running and you feel like you must use it. The only drawback is the water is freezing and it kind of stings your hands until you are used to it.
Regarding dual-flush toilets, Japan also has used them for decades, mainly made by the Toto company. I think they ought to be mandatory in the US, esp'y in the southwest and west.
We recently installed a wonderful dual-flush toilet, the Toto Aquia, in our bathroom. It's stylish, gives you a choice of a 0.8 gal. or 1.6 gal. flush, and best of all, it gets the job done.
For more information and actual user reviews on Toto's Aquia, visit the discussion boards hosted at www.terrylove.com.
Janice