Trying to be conscientious environmental consumers, my husband and I recently updated our circa 1940's toilets to low-flow toilets. We took advantage of the rebate that Santa Clara County offered and got a toilet that flushed at a rate of 1.6 gallons per flush.
Just this last weekend, only two months after installing the toilet, we had to call a plumber in to help us determine the cause of water not draining appropriately from our home.
The conclusion was a "soft-plug" which caused a clogging between the home and the street. We had used Drano without result. The City of Mountain View had helped us attempt a "snaking" on their end. We had rented a snake from Home Depot for $94.00 to "snake" from the home to the curb, and after a few different attempts, our home smelling like an outhouse for 3 days, my husband having to get dirtier than is really fair, and another call to a plumber, the problem got fixed.
The plumber who finally fixed the issue said many new low-flow toilets do not have enough pressure to actually flush as they need to. As a result, debris stays in the lines and eventually causes a blockage or "soft-plug". His suggestion: "You might want to flush twice to make sure the toilet actually flushes." This seems a little counter-productive to our whole purpose, not to mention, that the annual $100 estimated savings on our water bill for changing toilets was exceeded in only one visit from a plumber.
Ironically, two other neighbors, both approximately one block from us, had plumbers out that same week. I confirmed with one of the plumbers, that the neighbor had the same issue.
I did a little research on Google to find we are not alone. I found an article by the Mesa, AZ Utilities Department, called "The Toilet Papers - Vol. 1", which mentions that there is a label by the EPA called "WaterSense", which indicates a product that is supposed to be designed to save water with no trade-off in flushing power. A plumber named Terry Love, out of Washington State, writes a pretty good article suggesting which types of toilets actually do the job of the low-flow intended purpose.
eHow.com has an article which states that the "The National Energy Policy Act of 1992 contained a provision that defined low-flow toilets as the federal standard. The federal standard went into effect in January 1994. The provision applies to new construction and replacement installations. Manufactures and retailers are required to comply by producing and selling toilets with a maximum volume of 1.6 gallons per flush." Evidently, the energy act did not consider the, "and be able to push the poop down the drain as necessary" clause.
So if you're anything like my husband and myself, and would wish to conserve water, even when not mandated by law, but would like to do so without learning a lesson the hard way, know that not all toilets that flush less, actually do the job. Hopefully this article will start your endeavor in a good direction and "soft-plug" will not become a phrase to add to your vocabulary.
All underlined phrases or words link out to the articles in reference.
All underlined phrases or words link out to the articles in reference.
