Learn about Dual Flush Toilet

Dual flush toilets do exactly what their name implies. They have two options for flushing; a low volume flush for liquid waste, and high volume flush for solid waste. New dual flush toilets have effective, efficient water volumes for both low and high flush, making their average flushing volume low enough to meet high-efficiency or ultra-high efficiency standards.

Federal guidelines in both Canada and the USA specify that new toilets must meet the standard of a maximum of 6L (1.6 gallons) per flush. The US EPA Watersense labeled toilets have a maximum of 4.8 L (1.28 gallons)per flush. They also must flush at minimum 350g of waste per flush. These toilets are also called High Efficiency Toilets (HET). Dual-flush toilets often meet these same standards too, and give you the chance to save even more by choosing which flush button to use.

The Maximum Performace (MaP) Testing Program which was developed in partnership with the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corportaion (CMHC) and Canadian Water and Wastewater Association (CWWA). The MaP initiative tests toilets under realistic conditions and grades them based on overall performance. You can search the grades for different toilets.

A dual-flush, high-efficiency toilet saves a tremendous amount of water, compared with previous toilets that used 10 to 18 litres (3 to 5 gallons) per flush. Toilets are the single largest water user in a household, accounting for up to 30% of household water use, so installing a more efficient toilet is your best way to reduce your water consumption. With dual-flush, you can choose to save water on each flush by using the low-volume or high-volume flush button.

Quick Tip: Whether you already have a low-flow toilet or not, be sure it is functioning properly and not leaking. To do this, open the top of the toilet tank and drop in a few drops of food coloring. If that color appears in the toilet bowl within the next 10 to 20 minutes, you have a leak that needs to be fixed as soon as possible.