Page 50 - The Homeowner's Handbook 2017

THE HOMEOWNER’S HANDBOOK EIGHTH EDITION

come to embrace the technology.
From a green perspective, tubing made from high-grade plastic is
a welcome alternative to vinyl-based PVC pipe. And from a practical Waterproof Tile Installation
perspective, PEX is ideal for tricky retrofit jobs, because the flexible Standard grout is not waterproof! It must be
tubing can snake around obstacles, so you can avoid unnecessary coated every two years or so to keep water—and
demolition. mold growth—out of walls. Behind the walls and
floors, a waterproofing system such as the one
shown below from Schluter (www.schluter.com)
SUPER TOILETS can add many years of leak-proof performance to
Water Misers a shower and/or floor.
The toilet efficiency race has been a big win for the environment.
We’ve seen models with water usage of less than .8 gpf in dual-flush
models, and a 1-gpf single-flush model. Flush technology is probably
approaching its bottom limit.
But other approaches may squeeze water savings. For example,
graywater-fed toilet tanks are now on the market (ones that use
lavatory water to fill the toilet tank), along with hand-washing faucets
built right into the top of the tank.
Manufacturers will continue to tweak toilet efficiency, no doubt,
but the biggest gains could probably be made by simply adjusting
our behavior: “If it’s yellow, let it mellow.” GB

The Benefits of Bidets

Bidet toilets work by using water, rather than toilet paper, to clean the
nether regions. Bidets save more water indirectly by eliminating the need
for toilet paper, the manufacture of which is a water-intensive process. But
is a bidet really a better choice than, say, a water-efficient dual-flush toilet?
Annual toilet paper use in the U.S. tops out at 36.5 billion rolls. This equals
473,587,500,000 gallons of water and 15 million trees—and that doesn’t
account for the additional water required to treat and dispose of toilet
paper waste. As the chart shows, a bidet attachment in combination with
an efficient toilet saves about 200 gallons of water annually, compared to a
dual-flush toilet. Other advantages? Water cleans better and is less abrasive
than toilet paper, and bidets keep hands free—and clean.
If you’re ready for a hands-free toilet, you don’t have to purchase a new
one; instead, you can opt for a bidet seat attachment. Depending on
the model you choose, the money saved by crossing toilet paper off the Avoid Toxic Cleaners
grocery list will potentially pay for the bidet seat in a matter of months.
Keeping highly toxic
Annual Water Use in Gallons (Per Person) cleaners such as bleach
and clog removers under
your sink is a good way
Water required to Water used by toilet to pollute your bathroom
manufacture toilet paper
air. Purchase non-toxic
cleaners instead, and
1.6-gpf Toilet
make your bathroom a
0.8-gpf Dual-
Flush Toilet friendly place for kids and
pets—as well as adults.
Bidet with 1.6-
gpf Toilet
0 600 1,200 1,800 2,400 3,000 3,600 4,200
Gallons of Water

Water Savings? For this analysis, we assumed bidet users would still
require 20 percent of the toilet paper used by “conventional” toilet users,
and would require 0.125 gallons of water per use, in addition to the
water required for flushing.
®
IMAGE: VISION HOUSE TUSCON
(LATHAMARCHITECTURAL.COM)
48 GREEN BUILDER The Homeowner’s Handbook 2017

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