High-Efficiency Toilets Flush with Success
Snapshot | Savings and environmental benefits | How to choose | Rebates | Take action!
Snapshot
Toilet flushing is one of the biggest water users in your house. If you don't have a low-flush toilet, you're flushing away an opportunity to save water and money.
Many cities around our country are facing water shortages in the coming years, and low-flow toilets are key to reducing our water "footprints." In the Bay Area, our regional water conservation council aims to promote installation of 30,000 low-flow toilets a year. Water, and especially drinking water, will soon be too precious to use to flush toilets. Use technology improvements to flush smart.
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Check out area toilet rebates; they take the bite out of your toilet upgrade.
If your toilet dates from 1992 or earlier, you probably have an inefficient model that flushes with at least 3.5 gallons per use. Check for the manufacturing date of your toilet on the underside of the tank lid. New and improved high-efficiency toilets (HETs) flush with less than 1.3 gallons—less than half their older, less efficient counterparts.
A fast way to check the age of your toilet: Look at the date stamp on the underside of your toilet tank lid. Nearly every toilet has one.
Savings and environmental benefits
Water is very cheap in the Bay Area, often costing a fraction of a cent per gallon. (A typical rate is about .2 cent per gallon.) So, for a family of 4 using standard toilets, the cost of flushing is only $25 per year. In fact, the average residential water bill in the Bay Area is about $50 per month. Because the price of water is so low, savings water won't put much cash back into your pocket.
However, that same family of 4 could save about 35 gallons a day—nearly 13,000 gallons of water per year—by switching from an old 3.5-gallon flusher to a high-efficiency low-flow toilet (HET). That's a big number!
Reducing demand on Bay area water supplies helps preserve habitat for birds, plants, and other aquatic life, and makes sure we have enough water cycling in the environment to keep our region cool.
How to choose
There are at least 3 general categories of low-flush toilets from which to choose:
Gravity-flush toilets are the most common and least cost, with the simplest design. The name says it all—gravity is used to remove the waste. While gravity-flush toilets are less effective at removing solid waste than pressure-assisted toilets, they're generally less expensive and easier to maintain as most use standard, widely available parts.
Pressure-assisted toilets are suited for commercial buildings or in homes where pipes aren't angled enough to allow waste to flow easily to the septic system or sewer line. When the toilet is flushed, water pressure is used to force waste down the drain. Pressure-assisted toilets are louder: There is a whoosh of a pressure-assist, and it is not like the gurgle of a gravity-flush toilet. Pressure-assisted toilets are more effective at moving solid waste, but are also a bit more expensive than gravity-tank toilets.
Dual-flush toilets are perhaps the greatest recent advance in water-saving toilets. They feature two flush buttons: Press one button to flush solids with 1.6 gallons (and less) of water or press another to flush only urine with less than one gallon.
Look for the WaterSense label from EPA. These toilets are certified for their efficiency, using little water to remove a lot of waste. Toilets are rated by the amount of waste they can move in one flush—look for models that move over 500 grams.
 Look for the WaterSense logo. It's on products that meets EPA standards for water efficiency. |
Here are some consumer reviews of specific models at a site recommended by the California Urban Water Conservation Council (CUWCC), which also has a consumer-friendly site with water-saving toilet tips.
Rebates
Checkout our guide to Water Conservation Rebates in the Bay Area.
In the Bay Area get up to $150 for installing a HET. Here is the application form and a list of participating water providers.
Take action!
Install high-efficiency toilets
