What do I look for in a high efficiency toilet??

[Al Kondo]

I have recently been working on my toilet because of some simple flapper leakage problems. While working on it, I decided to settle my curiosity about how much water it took per flush. Much to my surprise I found that it took 4 gallons of water to fill it to the usual flush line! I wondered why my family was having such high water usage.... now I know why. Anyway, I have decided to change the toilet out for a more efficient 1.5 gal model. What I would like to know is what do you look for when buying one of these things. Also.... are they as efficient in flushing as the one I presently have?? I noticed that the price of toilets at Home Depot also ranged from about $75 to $300. That is quite a range. What is the difference??

Thanks, Al Kondo

[Gene]

Frankly, I look for power...Ever have guests? I have and one time I don't know who left a turd in the toilet, but a stallion would have been proud to have a c*ck THAT big :)

[m Ransley]

Consumer Reports tested about 100 of them, I have a pressure version it works good but is super noisy, the neighbors can hear it to.

[Minnie Bannister]

We replaced two of our toilets by American Standard "Champion" models (approx. $250 at Lowe's or HD). They flush well, except that I guess they don't swirl the water as well as a larger-volume toilet. The result is that traces -- but only traces -- of really sticky "stuff" sometimes remain on the sides of the bowl; they usually dissolve in the standing water after a short time.

AFAIK, the difference between the cheaper ones and the more expensive ones is that the more expensive have larger waterways, both from the tank to the bowl and from the bowl to the drain. BTW, I've seen some at Lowe's that are way more than $300, but I think you're paying for fancy styling then.

MB

On 08/26/04 08:27 am Al Kondo put fingers to keyboard and launched the following message into cyberspace:

[Brikp]

Also look for a glazed trap - Its smoother internally and less likely to clog. Kohler Wentworth is what I replace three toilets with. It works great and didn't break the bank (About $100 if I remember correctly)

[Mortimer Schnerd, RN]

I fail to see any economy when you have to flush it three times to get all the crap to go down. I've had better luck tricking mine to hold more water in the tank. It's amazing how much better it flushes with even just another half a gallon of water.

Frankly, I'd hold onto the old one if I could repair it economically. In this case, newer isn't necessarily better.

[Doug Kanter]

Go to

and pay the 7 or 8 bucks for a month of membership. That allows you to read and print their product tests. For toilets, they made artificial turds out of sponges and whatever else, and actually flushed these things. Interesting and worthwhile report.

[dbird]

i had to replace an older toilet as the kids broke the tank.... the new

1.6 gallon toilet does not save water as you have to flush it about 3 to 4 times to do the same job as the older toilets.. keep the old toilet as long as it is still working and can be used....

[xymergy]

Others have replied, and all I want to tell you is that I have been delighted with the American Standard Cadet round bowl Ravenna toilet I bought at HD for $99: it removes *ALL* of our waste the *first* time we deposit it and then flush, no smears. Now, I don't know how our waste compares with others, but we've been happy with this toilet. Interestingly, using the other toilet on the same floor (3.5 gallon

1965 Eljer) has been a reminder of how efficient this new one is at removing the deposits with less than half the water. You can't go wrong with this American Standard model unless you are the type of person to only crap once a week, in which case, buy a Toto or a Gerber. Good luck.

[William W. Plummer]

I don't get it. First, water is cheap, $3 per 1000 gallons. Second, there is no shortage of water in the world. Hydrocarbon combustion constantly adds more. Most of the water is in polar ice and the oceans.

The Commonwealth of MA licenses each publically owned well for X many gallons of water per day. THAT'S what causes the shortage!

[Doug Kanter]

Everywhere? No shortage ANYWHERE? Why do you suppose many municipalities put restrictions on water usage at certain times? Because there's enough?

[George Wenzel]

True, but considering the energy required to constantly treat and purify potable water, why waste it?

Lucky for you to live in an area with a good water treatment system and a plentiful supply of drinkable water.

And, as such, isn't drinkable. You're quite right when you say that there's plenty of water on the planet. Problem is, over 99% of it isn't drinkable. What is drinkable (i.e. fresh water not salt water) requires massive amounts of treatment to remove bacteria and other nasties before it gets piped into homes. No sense wasting it, especially when low-flush toilets are available that do a fine job of removing waste.

Regards,

George Wenzel

[Minnie Bannister]

No. For us it was the old high-volume toilets we often had to flush more than once (with a suitable interval between) because the crap clogged the trap the first time round. (But I suppose it's possible that there were good and not-so-good high-volume ones.)

Have never had to flush our AS Champions more than once.

MB

On 08/26/04 03:06 pm [e-mail] put fingers to keyboard and launched the following message into cyberspace:

[Mike Fritz]

I agree. But many of the newer toilets actually work like they should. My last apartment had a toilet that has a styrofoam float attached to the flapper. Somehow, this made it so that when you flushed, the flapper would shut when only have the tank had drained.

If you wanted more of a flush, you would hold down the handle for the whole flush (not refill) cycle. This kept the flapper from shutting so early. I think this is a great setup, depending on which number you do, you can decide on the water saving feature, or a full flush.

The biggest problem I find with clogs is toilet paper. Some brands clog more than others.

--Mike

[Richard J Kinch]

You look for a Kohler Wellworth. End of story.

[Red Neckerson]

I'd looked for one that would wipe your *ss when you are done.

Now THAT'S efficiency!!!

[Michael Daly]

Where you live is the whole world? _You_ may think that water is cheap, but if you had to walk 5km each way to the nearest well every day, you'd think that water was pretty expensive. That's reality in some parts of the _real_ world.

What is the marginal cost of the next unit of clean water? If waste increases, you have to come up with _new_ sources and new infrastructure to process it. That is $$$

In parts of the US, there has been a permanent drawdown in the water table. Hence the push to control overuse.

What you need to do is wake up and realize what's really happening with water in this world. Canada and Russia have lots of water; most of that is not where people live. Most other countries do not have lots water. Get over it.

Mike

[Red Neckerson]

"Michael Daly" wrote

There is PLENTY of fresh water! God makes it all the time. If there are people living in areas where there is no water, then you need to TELL THEM TO MOVE!!!

I have all my faucets (including my outdoor ones!) running 24/7! I love to hear the gurgling noise it makes as it goes down the drain!

Instead of worrying about a water shortage, why don't you just go hug a tree! But don't do it too hard!! You might squeeze some moisture out of it, and that would be wasting it, wouldn't it???

Sheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesh!

[William Brown]

[Tom]

Mike, you're right, and if people won't realize that the water situation is dire, then their children will. Tom Work at your leisure!