Earth Girls Are Easy: If It’s Brown…
February 12, 2009 by nina
Filed under Earth Girls Are Easy
If It’s Brown, Flush It Down
If it’s yellow, let it mellow
If it’s brown, flush it down
If we have guests, give it a rest
Sophie Says:
The last part is mine. I had to explain to Zoe that while we don’t mind peeing on her pee, other people might. Gross? Maybe. Worth it? To me, yes.
If it's brown, flush is down.
This week’s R is Reduce, as in reducing or conserving how much water we use.
Toilets from the ’80s averaged 3.5 gallons per flush and toilets made today only use 1.6 gallons per flush! That’s great, but think about how many trips you take to the bathroom a day – let’s just say five. IF you have a low flow toilet, that’s 8 gallons a day, per person. With my family of four (and yes, I count the baby’s potty dumps) that is 32 gallons a day! Although our toilet uses 1.6 gallons per flush, I still wanted to do my part to use less water. I’m not going to state how little we flush (don’t want to gross anyone out) so let’s just say we save A LOT of water!
40 gallons down the drain!
Originally we looked for a dual flush toilet, but it wasn’t in the budget. The idea is great. You push button Number One for numbers ones and button Number Two for…um, number twos. Number ones use .8 gallons and number twos use the full 1.6 gallons.
Dual Flush Toilet
Nina Says:
Finally! A conservation technique I’m on top of! We already do this in my house except we call it, “I don’t care if it’s brown, yellow, green, or blue you won’t flush that toilet if you know what’s good for you. I don’t care if we have guests or not, you flush and wake my baby, your ass will be hot.”
Sophie Says:
Check your toilet to see how much water it uses per flush. It should be printed between the tank and the seat. If you don’t have a low flow toilet, but don’t want to subscribe to the Mellow Yellow Method, there are a few other ways you can reduce your toilet flow.
Placing a plastic bottle filled with sand or pebbles in your tank will displace the water during each flush and save a half gallon to a gallon at a time. Don’t worry — your toilet can flush perfectly fine with less water. I have also heard that you can use a brick the same way, but don’t recommend it because they can disintegrate and lead to plumbing problems.
Nina Says:
OK, I just checked my toilet and it’s kinda faded. It’s either 16 gallons or 1.6. I’ma go with 1.6.
When we first discussed this blog a few weeks ago, it was Donny that mentioned the plastic bottle trick. I’m willing to give it a shot. Other water conservation tips we practice at home include letting our leftover ice melt in our beverage classes and then using it to water the houseplants, turning off the water when we brush, the aforementioned “mellow yellow (and then some)” method, and of course, the occasional co-bathing.
FYI: A basic dual-flush toilet can be had from Home Depot for a little less than $300, and for as much as $1,000 from Kohler directly.
Nina and Sophie Say:
So the next time you go to a friend’s house and you see a whole lot more in the toilet than you needed to see, don’t be judgy. They might be saving the earth OR have a sleeping baby in the house.
Homework: If you want to try some of these tips, some of your own that you share below, or some that others might share, report your experience on our next EGAE blog. For those of you with a monthly water bill, if you try some water conservation tips, share your any difference you on your next bill.
Nina is a 34-year-old mother, wife and writer who spends her days blogging, studying, changing diapers and watching ridiculous amounts of TV. She currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband, two children and three TiVos.
