Flushing The Toilet With Rainwater

What thought do you give to flushing the toilet? An odd question, granted, because many people would probably answer, “not a lot, why?”. Which is understandable, after all, life is busy, we get it. We’re made to feel guilty about all manner of things we do too much of or don’t do enough of. Drinking too much alcohol, not eating enough fruit and veg, using too much single-use plastic, flushing our toilet with economically and environmentally expensive drinking water…

But since you’re here, we’re willing to bet you’re considering ways you can make your home, or the homes you’re developing, more sustainable and eco-friendly.

As we’ve previously spoken about, using drinking water to flush away our waste is incredibly, well, wasteful. There is no requirement to flush the toilet (or run our washing machines) using clean drinking water (also known as ‘potable’ water). So why do we do it? Because it’s easy, and that’s just the way our homes are built?

Absolutely that’s the case but as the population grows and we place more and more demand on resources, being more sustainable is something many of us are thinking about.

With weather systems changing and local utilities including water supplies being put under increasing strain from urban sprawl and climate change, we know that we can change the way we use water.

Next time it rains, make a point of looking up at your guttering. All that rainwater flowing off your roof into your guttering and down into your drains is a valuable commodity. Not in terms of hard cash (although harvesting it will save you cash), but in terms of the environmental impact.

In order to produce potable water, water companies must treat rainwater captured in reservoirs – an expensive and labour intensive process. This clean water is then pumped into our taps where we can enjoy a fresh, hydrating glass, whenever we like. But we also use it for everything else from watering our houseplants to running our appliances to flushing our loos when we really don’t need to.

Installing one of our rainwater harvesting systems is relatively simple . Our systems capture the rainwater that flows down your downpipes, filters it and then stores it in an underground tank. The water is filtered and kept at an ambient temperature As it is hidden from light, it won’t be susceptible to bacterial growth, even though it’s sitting still.

Then, when you flush the toilet, this water is pumped into your system on demand, meaning that you’ll be saving money, valuable resources and the planet with each flush.

What’s more, having your tank underground means that it won’t affect the aesthetics of your home, and if we’re having a particularly dry spell, a small amount of mains water will automatically be added to top things up so that the loo will still flush. When it rains again the system will automatically switch back.

You’ll be left safe in the knowledge that you’re doing your best by your eco credentials, and your water bill will also be reduced. To find out more, call us for a chat today!