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Toilet Flushing (at home) |
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Toilets use about 30% of the total water used in a household. An old style single flush toilet can use up to 13 litres of water
in one flush. New, more water-efficient dual-flush toilets use only six litres for a full flush and four litres with a reduced
flush.
There are around 45 million toilets in UK homes, using an estimated two billion litres of fresh water every day. Over
seven million of those toilets use 13 litres of water, and approximately five million are the latest low-flush models.
| How do I know what type of toilet I have? |
If your toilet is pre 2001, consider installing a cistern displacement device (CDD) such as a ‘Save a flush’ bag or a Hippo. These are available for free from most water companies. These devices are easy to install and are placed in the toilet cistern to displace approximately one litre of water every time you flush.
Considering the average household flushes 5000 times per year, savings of up to 5000 litres per year could be achieved just by simply installing a cistern displacement device.
Please note that Hippos are only suitable for 9 litre toilets and above. Performance can vary between toilet types, if it does not work, give us a call - we're happy to provide you with some help.
The table below will help you identify what type of toilet you have and what type of cistern displacement device (if any) you should be using.
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Photo
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Year
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Type
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Flush
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Water consumption
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CDD
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Post 1 Jan 2001
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Modern continental style push button cistern
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Dual |
Full - 6 litres
Half -4 litres
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Not required
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Pre 1 Jan 2001
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Close coupled WC
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Single
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7.5 litres
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Save-A-Flush bag
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1980 - 1970
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Close coupled double trap syphonic pan
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Single
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9 litres
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Hippo or
Save-A-Flush bag or Freddie Frog
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1970 - 1950
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Close coupled
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Single
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9 litres
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Hippo or
Save-A-Flush bag or Freddie Frog
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1950 - 1940
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Single
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10 litres
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Hippo or
Save-A-Flush bag or Freddie Frog
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Pre 1940
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Single
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12 litres
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Hippo or
Save-A-Flush bag or Freddie Frog
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Pre 1940
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Single
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12 litres
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Hippo or
Save-A-Flush bag or Freddie Frog
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Above pictures provided courteousy of Twyford Bathrooms
| Purchasing a water efficient toilet |
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Many toilets today feature a dual flush option to help you save water. These types of toilets have a split flush button giving the user the choice of pressing a small button or a large button depending on how much water is required to clear the toilet bowl. Look for dual flush toilets if you are considering purchasing a new toilet for your home.
Watch this space - we are currently ranking all toilets available on the UK market by water efficiency.
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| Detecting leaks and repairing your toilet |
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An easy way to check if your toilet has a slow leak, is to add a few drops of food colouring to your toilet cistern. Don't flush the toilet for at least one hour. If the food colouring shows up in the toilet bowl after an hour, then you've got a leak.
We recommend that you get a licensed plumber to fix any leaks. Plumbers know which seals and washers are right for different toilets.
However if you are a handyman, take the parts of the toilet that need replacing to your local hardware store or plumbing retail outlet. The staff there will help you choose the correct replacement parts. Remember to repeat the food colouring test to make sure you have fixed the leak.
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