If you're like most people, you’re probably concerned about your rising utility costs. Homeowners everywhere are looking for ways to make their homes more ecologically friendly and save money at the same time. You may have already made the switch to more energy efficient appliances and changed your incandescent light bulbs for compact fluorescent or LED bulbs that use far less electricity.
There’s one excellent source of savings that's too often overlooked. If the toilets in your home are getting on in years, there's a good chance that they consume far more water than is necessary. Before 1994, when it became mandatory for all new toilets in the US to use no more than 3.5 gallons per flush, it was the norm for toilets to flush 7 gallons or more at a time.
Low-flow toilets use half the amount of water that their predecessors did. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, homeowners can save up to $100 a year on their water bill just by changing their outdated toilet to a low-flow model.
Low-flow toilets and other water efficient models help to conserve a natural resource that's in limited supply: clean potable water. And since these types of toilets also prevent millions of gallons of water from unnecessarily being sent to water treatment plants, many local water management companies are offering incentives and cash rebates to homeowners that make the switch.
These rebates aren't available everywhere, so check with your local utility provider to see if there are any available where you live.
Low-flow toilets deliver excellent water economy at an affordable price. For just a bit more money, however, you can opt for the very best type of toilet for water conservation. Dual-flush models use even less water than low-flow toilets thanks to their separate flush modes for liquid and solid waste. When you press the larger button on top of the tank to eliminate solids, the toilet uses 1.6 gallons of water. For liquid waste, the smaller button is used and flushes just 0.8 gallons.
It's estimated that someone with a dual flush toilet flushes just 4.8 gallons per day compared to the 8 gallons per day that someone with a low-flow toilet consumes. That means significant savings on your annual water consumption that will more than justify the greater investment in time.
If your toilet dates back to the early 90s or before, there's no doubt that replacing it with a more water efficient model will pay for itself with years of use. If you're interested in having a dual flush or low-flow toilet installed in your home, or if you'd like to find out about other ways to reduce your water usage, call Plumb Level, the Brenham area plumbing experts at (979) 200-6674.