Did you know that if your toilets are just a few decades old, they might consume twice as much water (or sometimes even more) than the toilets that are available today? Low flow toilets are now available that use much less water than older models. Today we’re going to talk about what low flow toilets are and ease the concerns you might have about how effectively they can flush!
The history of low flow toilets
Up until the 1980’s, residential toilets used as much as 7 gallons of water per flush. As manufacturers recognized the huge amount of water that was wasted on flushing these inefficient toilets, new models were created that improved water consumption to about 3.5 gallons per flush.
This all changed in the 1990’s, when water conservation became a high priority in America. The Energy Policy Act went into effect in January of 1994, which required new toilets to use a minimum of 1.6 gallons per flush.
This change was great in theory, however toilet manufacturers made little to no changes in the actual design of their toilets, even though the new models used nearly half the amount of water as previous models. This resulted in toilets that were great for saving water, however they performed very poorly andclogged up quickly. That’s when the public became weary about replacing their older toilets with new models that wouldn’t work as effectively.
Today’s low flow toilets
Over the past few decades, significant changes have been made to the design of low flow toilets. Adjustments have been made to the flapper valves, trapways and other parts that allow for much more effective flushing. As a result, today’s low flow toilets perform just as well as their older counterparts, andBay Area homeowners should have no reservations about installing low flow models in their homes.
Install low flow toilets to comply with California’s laws
In January of this year, a new law went to effect in California that requires all replacement toilets to be low-flow models that use no more than 1.6 gallons of water per flush. In addition, all existing toilets that use more than 1.6 gallons of water per flush are required to be replaced by January 1, 2017.
If your home currently has old and inefficient toilets, Cabrillo would be happy to replace them with new low flow toilets that meet California’s new requirements. Not only will this make your home compliant with the new laws, but it will also save you a significant amount of money on your monthly water bills!
If you have any questions about low flow toilets, or if you’d like a plumbing system serviced or installed in your home, contact Cabrillo, your Bay Area plumbing, heating and air conditioning contractor.