Toilet using too much water

Toilet using too much water

An average single-flush toilet uses 11 litres per flush. An average three-occupant household flushes 15 times a day. That’s 165 litres per day or over 60,000 litres per year. If you pay for your water, that’s money down the toilet.

Some local authorities require you to install a dual flush system when replacing a toilet, but you may decide it makes sense to do that even if it’s not required. Modern systems use only three litres or six litres of water per flush. This is 30% less than older dual-flush cisterns and up to eight litres less than single flush cisterns. You will need a plumber to replace the toilet cistern.

On older toilets, you can also install a flush control device, such as a ‘gizmo’. Some councils give them out for free. It could save significant amounts of water in your toilet system.

Alternatively, place a brick or zip-lock plastic bag filled with water in the cistern. This will reduce the amount of water used for each flush.