low flow / water saving toilet

[steamboatscott]

Has anyone done anything to save water on toilet flushes? I can't talk the wife into a composting toilet, so am looking to save water on each flush.

[flybouy]

Originally Posted by steamboatscott

Has anyone done anything to save water on toilet flushes? I can't talk the wife into a composting toilet, so am looking to save water on each flush.

Thats not the place to conseve water. The quickest way to a "poo pyramid" in the blank tank is by using too little water.

[sourdough]

Exactly what are you trying to "save" in your black tank? Leave the water out and you will have a lot of stuff you will regret. Using lots of water in a black tank is "the way it is" and the appropriate way to use it. To skimp is just a recipe for an unhappy trip and lots of work. IMO I would do whatever it took before I put a composting toilet in a small RV...

[bobbecky]

The RV toilet is actually an extremely water saving devise, doesn't have a large tank that dumps a large amount of water every flush.

[travelin texans]

Totally agree with ALL!
The last place you want to conserve water is flushing the RV toilet, if anything you need to ADD more water per flush so that the solids float out with ease when dumping.
You'd be better conserving water when taking showers. Wet down, shut off shower head, lather up, then rinse & never leave shower head constantly flowing. Also replace the original shower head with an Oxygenics, it feels like more pressure while using less water. Or use the campground facilities if filling waste tanks is a major concern.

[notanlines]

Scott, what they have said is very true. You'll open up a box containing problems you don't want to face by trying to conserve black tank water.

[steamboatscott]

For more context, I have already implemented all other water-saving techniques, including low flow faucet aerators and not using the shower. What I am looking for is possible tweaks to the toilet freshwater flow rate in order to save freshwater after already having sufficient water in the black tank to dissolve the solids, which could be accomplished in a variety of methods like adding extra water before the trip, adding untreated (non-potable) water from a creek, etc.

[wiredgeorge]

I would have a hard time talking my wife into carrying buckets of water from the creek to dump in the toilet so as not to use on board or city water hook up.

[flybouy]

It's sort of like the "water saving" flush toilets in your house. An old 2 gal toilet you flushed once, a new 1.2 gal toilet you flush 2 or 3 times. Water is what carries the waste from the toilet to the tank. So if you reduce the flow rate by 1/2 but it takes 3 or 4 times as lomng to flush it down then shoot yourself in the foot with your efforts. The best you can do IMO is to learn to use less toilet paper and keep sufficiant water in the bowl of the toilet to start with.

[travelin texans]

Originally Posted by steamboatscott

For more context, I have already implemented all other water-saving techniques, including low flow faucet aerators and not using the shower. What I am looking for is possible tweaks to the toilet freshwater flow rate in order to save freshwater after already having sufficient water in the black tank to dissolve the solids, which could be accomplished in a variety of methods like adding extra water before the trip, adding untreated (non-potable) water from a creek, etc.

So this is to be able to boondock for longer periods due to limited waste & fresh water storage?
If so you do know what bears do in the woods, with a shovel so can you.

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by travelin texans

So this is to be able to boondock for longer periods due to limited waste & fresh water storage?
If so you do know what bears do in the woods, with a shovel so can you.

When do you suppose a thread will soon go downhill (quickly)?

[Sarge2]

I considered going in that direction but have been able to contain myself... sort of...
If it were me, I'd simply put in water before and then deal with short flushes if that's what you have a mind to do... problem arises in getting the "waste" to fully go down with a "short" flush... Unless your poop is like a rabbit.. sorry..

[notanlines]

Tim, you mean like this thread, rolling down hill?

[Pull Toy]

[Sarge2]

Originally Posted by notanlines

Tim, you mean like this thread, rolling down hill?

Yeah, Basically...

[Blackrock]

Okay I'll take a shot at this.
When you flush the toilet and the guilllotine slide valve closes you can add just enough water to make a water seal on top of the valve. The decision rests with the user how much additional water to add at this point. Lets say just add enough to cover it and lets sat the next person who uses it does a #1. Paper or no paper, male or female you may need to add a little more water in order to clean the bowl.
Now here comes the next person with a #2. How much water needed for a clean bowl flush will depend on consistency and size of the JOB.
So i guess the point I am trying to make is that the person on hand makes the decision how much water to use.

[dutchmensport]

There is no way to consistently save or reduce water when using an RV toilet. Even if you use the toilet with it completely empty of water, you have to add enough water to flush the "contents" down the shoot. If there are smears, or stuck TP, you'll have to wash it off with a brush or something. You'll need to run the water enough to push the stuff down too. So, each flush is always different.

As stated above, conserving water in a black tank is a disaster waiting to happen in the very near future.

Regardless of how much of a cave man or a mountain jack you are, or think you are, living on the rugged side, wives enjoy luxury. She probably won't care about flushing the toilet with a bucket full of lake water, but I guarantee you, YOU will be the one carrying the bucket full of water from the lake, not her!

And if you get a composition toilet, YOU will be the one cleaning it out and you'll also have one very unhappy wife.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by dutchmensport

There is no way to consistently save or reduce water when using an RV toilet. Even if you use the toilet with it completely empty of water, you have to add enough water to flush the "contents" down the shoot. If there are smears, or stuck TP, you'll have to wash it off with a brush or something. You'll need to run the water enough to push the stuff down too. So, each flush is always different.

As stated above, conserving water in a black tank is a disaster waiting to happen in the very near future.

Regardless of how much of a cave man or a mountain jack you are, or think you are, living on the rugged side, wives enjoy luxury. She probably won't care about flushing the toilet with a bucket full of lake water, but I guarantee you, YOU will be the one carrying the bucket full of water from the lake, not her!

And if you get a composition toilet, YOU will be the one cleaning it out and you'll also have one very unhappy wife.

The above is when you lean against a tree, squat or sit on a log and what you need to do to save water when in an RV, not stop putting water in the black tank.

[tanglemoose]

We put a valve on our toliet, each flush was way too much water. We put a less water thru on all flushes.. We start with some water in tank and No paper in tank.... works well for us. And yes we use our RV a lot, just spent 102 nights in it..

[Trevor]

I agree with everyone else in that this is not the place to save water as there will be issues. Similarly, the toilets don’t actually use a lot of water when flushing.

If you are really concerned,, you can take the same approach as living in a home with a septic system: “If its yellow, let it mellow. If it’s brown, flush it down “. This will reduce the number of flushes and the water use associated with each flush.