Easy Peasy Tip: Reduce your toilet’s water consumption
By Jenn (TinyChoices.com) | August 25, 2007
There’s an easy way to turn your regular water-guzzling tank-style toilet into a water-conserving machine: remove the lid from the tank, and check out how much space you’ve got in between the floaty bit, pipes, and tubes. Find a plastic beverage bottle which will fit nicely, fill it with water and cap it. Insert the bottle into the tank, replace the lid, et voila, you’ve just reduced your water consumption. Care to see this complicated procedure in video form?
Reason to make this tiny choice: Older toilets were not designed with water conservation in mind, and as such can require from 3 to 7 gallons per flush. (Can you even imagine dumping 7 gallons of Poland Spring water down a toilet, multiple times per day? yeegads.) New low-flow toilets only require around 1.5 gallons per flush. So until you get around to installing new toilets in your home, this is a great solution.
Photo courtesy of BRAYDAWG, via Creative Commons
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Topics: Easy Peasy Tips, Home | 23 Comments »
We rent so we can’t get lo-flo toilets, but I have added several water bottles to each tank (enough that you don’t have to flush twice because there isn’t enough water!)
that’s great, brdgt! the problem with so many efficiency tips is that they are really hard for renters to adapt. This is such a simple solution!
Yes, that’s why I love this easy peasy tip– we can all do it!
adam and i added one of his larger nalgene bottles to our tank this past weekend!
thanks for the tip; that was easy-peasy!
rock on, kayte and adam!
Innovative use for a Nalgene! Ya’ll rock.
[...] I’m always on the lookout for good blogs to add to the blogroll (on your right) and for tips on how to live a more sustainable lifestyle. The latest blog added to the list is “Tiny Choices” which is all about small, easy steps you can take to have an impact. For example, if you can’t get a low-flow toilet for whatever reason: Find a plastic beverage bottle which will fit nicely, fill it with water and cap it. Insert the bott… [...]
[...] Be proactive: Make the Tiny Choice to reduce the water your toilet needs! [...]
Easy-Peasy – your tip is rocking our country. Israel has many toilets that have a 2 flush option. Our country is in such a severe water crisis, that we have to watch every single liter that we can. Even with our “smart” toilets, we still waste 2 liters a flush. Fortunately, we have a 2 liter milk jug. Using your tip, I started a cause on facebook, pasted your link into it, and now there are thousands of people using this tip COMBINED with the 2 flush system. I have even seen a government advertisement that had this as one of the tips!
Thank you all so very much for such a genius, simple, and cheap solution.
wow, Ben! thanks for the feedback. Do you have a link to any of this awesome publicity?
[...] talked about ways to reduce your toilet water consumption, from the simple (water displacement in the tank) to the more hard-core (skip a flush!). You can look into greywater reclamation options that are [...]
Thank you for this wonderful tip! I am doing it tomorrow… YEA!
[...] dual flushing or low water consumption ones, put a liter bottle full of water in the tank. See more information about ths practice on Tiny Choices (the site of my friend, [...]
[...] have a big flush/little flush handle on our toilets at home. And we have talked about how to conserve water in the toilet department before, but at the risk of stepping over a line of propriety, may we suggest: If it’s yellow, [...]
[...] compresses to peeing outdoors, We’ve discussed different types of toilets and ways to tweak them – or our usage methodology. We’ve got not one, but two posts on toilet paper! We have even [...]
[...] Easy Peasy Tip: Reduce your toilet’s water consumption | Tiny Choices – There’s an easy way to turn your regular water-guzzling tank-style toilet into a water-conserving machine: remove the lid from the tank, and check out how much. [...]
Just recently, The “Water Protection and Reinvestment Act,” H.R.3202, introduced by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore), will be financed by small fees on items disposed in sewer, such as toilet papers, toothpastes, and lotions. This “Save Earth” scare has now reached a level of insanity to the point where Obama and his blood-sucking colleagues are planning to tax us to defecate and urinate.
What do you think about taxing toilet papers?
Aside from the water that we use when using the toilet, there are other things that we can conserve such as paper and some plastic materials. Big malls are considering resuing toilet water as long as it can still be cleaned and used for those who only urinate. Our natural resources are getting wasted and it is up to us to do something about this.In our own little ways like that of properly disposing of paper documents and other plastic items, we can show others that we do care for our environment.
[...] Easy Peasy Tip: Reduce your toilet's water consumption | Tiny Choices Aug 25, 2007. Antique bottle seltzer on Making Seltzer More Sustainable. Find a plastic beverage bottle which will fit nicely, fill it with water and Easy Peasy Tip: Reduce your toilet's water consumption | Tiny Choices [...]
Many cities have low flush toilet rebates. In Denver I could have gotten one of the cheapest with $0 out of pocket after rebate, but did opt for a tall elongated bowl toilet, which still only cost me around $75 out of pocket on a $200 toilet. Check with your water company. If you rent, your landlord should be able to do it.
[...] Install a low flush toilet (or upgrade your existing toilet for free). [...]
Have two rentals and one residence am interested in getting low-flush toilets for each.
[...] Easy Peasy Tip: Reduce your toilet’s water consumption | Tiny Choices – There’s an easy way to turn your regular water-guzzling tank-style toilet into a water-conserving machine: remove the lid from the tank, and check out how much space you’ve got in between the floaty bit, pipes, and tubes. … [...]