My Mom Told Me Not To Flush Every Time
Written By Scrivs on Dec. 4, 2007.
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To save up on my water bill my mom told me I don't have to flush every time after I pee. Is this true?

Mike
Written Dec. 4, 2007 / Report /
I flush extra hard after I pee and my water bill isn't that high. You should call somebody. About the pee.
Tyme
Written Dec. 4, 2007 / Report /
Wow, you pee that much? Don't answer that - TMI.
alexsuraci
Written Dec. 4, 2007 / Report /
I only flush if I just dropped a deuce. I guess if you wanted to prevent unclean splashups the next time you have to sit down you would flush. But that's countered by the toilet paper layering technique.
dreamweaver
Written Dec. 4, 2007 / Report /
Um, only if you want to have to clean more often, which means flushing after you clean, which might negate any potential savings. If it just sits in there, it gets dirty in there faster, and, well, you get the idea, I hope!
Edit: and you know what else? I used to work with this guy in a two person office, and he would start flushing before he was really done peeing, and then it wouldn't all be gone. I'd go in to use the bathroom, and it would smell. Eeeewww. I started using the other bathroom, because it happened all the time. If you live alone, I guess it's okay, but still. Eeeewww.
Josh
Written Dec. 4, 2007 / Report /
You don't have to, but some (myself included) consider it gross / rude to let urine sit in the toilet. To me, it feels strange to go to the bathroom and not flush as soon as I'm done.
You'll save a minute amount of water by "saving up" on pee before flushing, but.. well, people will look at you funny.
dreamweaver
Written Dec. 4, 2007 / Report /
I had this picture in my head of everyone's avatars, AFTER we'd all changed them to pictures of us looking at Scrivs funny because he doesn't flush! He'd be looking at 9rules, and we'd all be looking at him...funny.
estarla
Written Dec. 4, 2007 / Report /
LOL. That is awesome. It makes perfect sense if you take out the etiquitte part. ;)
Then again there are people in other parts of the world who don't have enough water to drink much less flush a toilet so ... it's all about perspective, no?
ErinR
Written Dec. 4, 2007 / Report /
When I was younger, we always vacationed in the Caribbean and one of my favorite signs (in many of the bathrooms) read:
Cleanliness/personal preferences aside, not flushing will definitely help you save money. In addition, baths use up more water than showers.
alexsuraci
Written Dec. 4, 2007 / Report /
In public restrooms though you should always flush.
ESPECIALLY URINALS. I hate that junk.
fuscom
Written Dec. 4, 2007 / Report /
Well...if you don't flush you'll save money indirectly cause you probably won't have to worry about buying that couch.
Why even worry with a toilet? Just go buy yourself a shovel and dig a really deep hole -- works like that in some countries.
Kamigoroshi
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
Only at home I do this and not in public toilets. I'd use the toilet to pee and then not flush it (and put the toilet seat down) in turn for my girlfriend to use and vice versa (except she puts the toilet seat up if it's my turn next).
Of course, we take water saving to a new maximum. We also use the water to wash the dishes to water the lawn and the plants and collected rainwater to do the same thing.
Talk about frugal. :)
JoeLencioni
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
You could get a dual flush toilet, which would help.
And if you really want to save water, get a toilet lid sink, or build one.
fuscom
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
That dual flush system is pretty ingenious. I'm not feelin' that toilet sink lid though.
JoeLencioni
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
How come? It uses clean water that is on it's way into your toilet's reservoir that will wait until the next flush.
Josh
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
Joe: I'm not feeling it either, truth be told. I know the water is clean, but I'd have a tough time with feeling okay brushing my teeth while straddling the toilet.
fuscom
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
I too know the water's clean, I've repaired and replaced more than I can remember many a toilet flushing mechanism in my day and have no problems understanding the water's coming from the same place. But like Josh, I think it's just the idea of putting the two together on the same porcelain device.
Just can't go with you there, sorry bro.
Scoopersmith
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
I'm not sure if someone mentioned this before because I'm a little too lazy to read through all the comments but a good way to conserve toilet water (because it is a big waste!) is to get a brick from perhaps the hardware store and put it in the tank so that with the water displacement you don't use so much water when ya flush!
JoeLencioni
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
You could use a regular sink for that. The toilet lid sink only (and always) runs after you flush, so it's really great for washing your hands after going.
But otherwise, what I'm reading is all yall are pansies ;)
silvertje
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
Dual flush is pretty common here.
What about a water saving repository? Almost all cheap toilets here have one. If you press the flush softly it will just flush 1/2 the amount of water. Would be the answer to all your problems!
Oldskool solution: put a brick in your repository, it will load less water.
Gnorb
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
See, I just do that so I can watch the stream go into the center of the vortex. It's very entertaining.
But yeah, I also flush when I'm done. Only time I don't is when I've been drinking a ton of water that day (like, 2+ gallons) and my urine is voluminous, but virtually clear. And I'm alone in the house.
You know what, just talking about this makes me want to go right now.
a_romig
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
We generally do flush everytime but when we're visiting her relatives in Kentucky, we only flush for #2 since they're running on well water and conservation is key up there.
In one of our restrooms at work, they're trying out those new waterless urinals. It's weird.
Nuthatch
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
Hasn't anybody heard, "If it's brown, flush it down; if it's yellow, let it mellow"?
Older toilets here use 3.5 gallons a flush, newer ones 1.6 gallons. It's not so much a matter of saving money, because water is very cheap in the U.S., but saving water. If you don't think this is important, someone who lives in Atlanta might give us their opinion.
davidhayes
Written Dec. 5, 2007 / Report /
@Nuthatch
I always heard it as "When it's yellow, let it mellow; when it's brown, flush it down." But it was certainly one of my favorite rhymes when I was about five and first heard it.
And in addition to the point about saving water, I've also heard people with their own septic systems request that you only flush #2.
auburn
Written Dec. 7, 2007 / Report /
OK. Whether we flush every time or not, we wash our hands----right? So where is the save on water?