Need a New Toilet? What Type Should You Choose?
With today’s growing concerns regarding saving water and cutting down on utility costs, more people are directing their attention to their toilet. The toilet accounts for as much as 30% of total household water usage and as such, should be a primary concern to cut down on your water wastage. However, the toilet isn’t exactly most people area of expertise when it comes to choosing the right design for your needs. Here is a breakdown of the most common types of toilets, and their functions.
1. Gravity – The vast majority, as much as 99% of household toilets are of the gravity type. Since the inception of 6-litre toilets, gravity type flushing action has been vastly improved. A gravity bowl works on siphoning action, pulling water from the bowl and with today’s design technology, 6-litre gravity toilets actually outperform old large volume toilets.
2. Vacuum-assist – Unlike gravity toilets, vacuum-assist toilets have a mechanism that creates a small vacuum in the trap to aid in the flushing water from the bowl. The fill valve and early closing flappers are identical to gravity type toilets.
3. Pressure-assist – This toilet design doesn’t use a traditional flapper mechanism, instead there is a vessel inside the toilet tank that traps air. The tank fills with water and uses the pressure from the water line to compress the trapped air. This compressed air is released and instead of a siphoning action sucking water from the bowl, you have a pressurized “push”, clearing waste from the bowl. These toilets are much louder than gravity type and vacuum-assist toilets, they are also more expensive and can usually be found in commercial buildings and institutions. Read the rest of this entry »
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Eco Toilets For the Home
I am is one of the most used rooms in the entire house, and a major source of water waste and inefficiency. Showers and toilets are two of the biggest consumers of water.
According to a 2009 report released by the Environmental Protection Agency, the United States flushes over 4.8 million gallons of water per year and the average American flushes 9000 gallons of water per year. The report also stated that replacing flush toilets that use 3.5 gallons per flush with eco toilets that use 1.6 gallons per flush will result in a 34% savings in household water consumption.
There are a variety of different toilets that homeowners can install to reduce water consumption, save money, and save the environment. Many homeowners are choosing to install eco toilets such as the dual flush toilet to reduce water consumption.
The dual flush toilet works by providing the user with a half flush option and a full flush option on the same toilet. Typically a user would choose a half flush for urine and a full flush for feces. The half flush option only uses 0.79 gallons of water per flush, compared to the 1.6 gallons of water required for a full flush.
Many satisfied users report that the half flush is adequate for almost all flushing needs, and that the full flush is rarely needed. Experts suggest that a household can reduce household flush volumes by 68% using a dual flush toilet. Read the rest of this entry »
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A Parents Guide to Toilet Training (Potty Training)
Toilet or potty training can be a frustrating time for parents and toddlers. My wife and I are getting to the end of toilet training with our son, but I wish we had prepared a bit earlier to make the process easier for all of us.
Most children learn to begin their bladder and later their bowels, between two to three years of age. Girls often before boys. Most parents, (well at least my wife and I!) only really start to think about toilet training when their child reaches around two.
But there’s a lot of preparation that can be done before this age to make a child feel comfortable and acclimatized to the idea of going to the toilet before the experience begins.
Discuss with your child when they need to go to the toilet. “Are you doing a wee? Are you doing a poo?” Teach them through encouragement to tell you when they are emptying their bladders or moving their bowels.
Nappy time is ideal for these discussions. “You’ve done a poo. Soon you will go to the toilet to wee and poo like a big boy/girl.” Talk about it weeks or months before putting them on the toilet. Read the rest of this entry »
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