How to save water in WCs

An estimated 400 million litres of water are wasted a day due to WC dual flush systems. That’s enough to fill 16 Olympic swimming pools, have more than 6 million showers or run over 14.5 million dishwasher cycles. When it is put like that, it is obvious – a change has to be made.

There are two main contributors to this issue, one being the fact that up to 50% of users are unable to tell which button is meant for the large or small flush, leaving a scenario where a guess needs to be made. When unsure, the user may have to end up using more than one flush, causing the whole point of the dual flush system to become pointless.

The other big problem with this method is fact that it is very prone to leaking. Most of these systems use a drop valve; this opens every time a flush is required and allows the water to flow out and into the bowl. Often, debris in the bowl can cause the valve not to close meaning there is a slow, constant flow of water left in the WC.

If you compare this method to the standard old-fashioned siphon, it is much more unreliable.

Even though the dual flush mechanism is designed to reduce the water usage in the washroom, they end up using much more than they conserve.

HSG’s Solution

At HSG, we realised a change had to be made. We offer a range of products able to reduce water consumption in the WC, however our primary product for this is the Ureflush WC Cistern Saver (Green Button). The Green Button is designed to reduce the amount of water needed for a toilet flush from 11 litres to just 1 (a decrease of more than 90%), simply by pressing the button on the product after the normal flush is used.

The Green Button is also a retrofit product, meaning there is little chance that you will get the annoying ‘leak’ that comes alongside with the dual flush system as no extra valve is needed. This means that if the occasional full flush is required to prevent costly blockages and clear the WC of debris there is no issue.

We often find that the Green Button can be especially effective in schools due to the interest children find in taking responsibility and doing their own bit to help save water, making it a great tool to encourage children to take their first steps into being conscious about their environmental impact.

Due to the nature of the Green Button, it is capable of providing a quick payback period – especially in sites with a large footfall. Along with providing busy sites with positive financial savings, it can also speed up the time that customers spend in washrooms, limiting the amount of close interaction between people, something that is becoming increasingly important in the current period. As the Green Button retains water in the cistern, it means that there is a much shorter refill time, shortening the time a customer has to queue for the WC.

If you are interested in the Green Button, or want to check out any of HSG’s other water conservation products, click this link to find out how you can start your water saving journey.