Editorial: It’s all in the flush

Friday, Nov. 30, 2007 | 7:17 a.m.

A little research on toilets will acquaint you with abbreviations that, we dare say, you are not likely to have heard before - as in, "If you replace your 5 gpf toilet with an HET, you will save a lot of money."

The references to gpf and HET can be found on the Web site of the Environmental Protection Agency. The abbreviation "gpf" stands for gallons per flush and "HET" for high-efficiency toilet.

With drought having overtaken Southern Nevada and much of the rest of the country over the past several years, it is important to be aware of every water conservation opportunity out there.

That's why the Southern Nevada Water Authority has a link on its Web site to the EPA's information on toilets. It has a lot of useful information, including how many times you are likely to flush in your lifetime - 140,000.

That's a lot of water use, which is why it is important to know about HETs and their gpf ratings. Pre-1980 toilets consumed about 5 gallons per flush. Toilets made after 1980 and through the mid-1990s were improved to 3.5 gpf. After that, because of a federal mandate, toilets became much more efficient, improving to 1.6 gpf.

High-efficiency toilets are those that have been improved to use less than 1.3 gpf. The EPA gives these toilets its WaterSense label, indicating they can save 4,000 gallons a year in a typical home.

The natural question arises: Will that small amount of water clear the bowl? According to the EPA, yes. "The technology is ready, it's been tested and it's receiving rave reviews from customers," an EPA spokesman told the Associated Press for a story about advances in the toilet industry.

In California, the new-generation toilets so impressed Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger that he signed a bill regulating their sales. Now, by law, 50 percent of all toilets sold in the Golden State must meet high-efficiency standards. By 2014, 100 percent of all toilets sold there must be highly efficient.

Two research groups recently studied water use in Southern Nevada and noted the potential for much more indoor conservation. With the level of Lake Mead having dropped 100 feet since 2000, we should not discount the role high-efficiency toilets could play in stepped-up conservation programs.