Large Quantities of Water Used by High-Tech Toilets

The volume of flush tanks of domestic toilets is, typically, 12 liters. That means, for every flush, 12 liters of water are used. Water used in toilets, in Pakistan, is the potable drinking water. Since, the volume of 12 liters is on the higher side, and the manufacturers continue to make flush tanks of 12 liters volume, I advise people here to put bricks in the flush tanks, so that, nearly half of the volume of the flush tank is occupied by bricks. That means, only 6 liters of water will be flushed, for every single use.

The high-tech toilets in hotels and, in the office buildings used by multi-national corporations (MNCs), consume large volumes of water. A recent article (www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business...93fad06c1f-250663313) on water used by high-tech toilets, makes an interesting reading.

According to the attached publication (Sensor-Operated Plumbing Fixtures- Do They Save Water?),

“While the results achieved in this relatively small-scale project may not necessarily be indicative of results that might be achieved in other projects, they clearly indicate a significant increase in water demands when manually-operated plumbing fixtures on the seventh floor were converted to sensor-operated models. The total average daily demand of the mens’ and ladies’ washrooms almost doubled from 654 to 1,243 gallons per day when all faucets, urinals, and toilets were converted to sensor-operated units.”

In the hotel room, I stayed in Marseille, France, during 6th World Water Forum, the flush of the toilet was automatically turned on, when the door of toilet was opened, after its use.

Since, the flushed toilets are widely used, especially in Muslim countries, it is essential that flush tanks of reduced volume are used to save use of water.

F H Mughal