by D. Trump

Created on: September 30, 2009

Many things are easy to buy. If you have the money, it is usually safe to buy the most expensive product, and chances are, it will be one of the best. This equation does not work when buying a toilet. The most expensive product is rarely the best, and often not the best choice for the individual family's needs. An example of this is the high-efficiency toilet. These relatively new products are almost forced on the consumer when they go to the local hardware store through promotions and government rebates for water conservation. The sad reality of this is that many people decide to buy a high-efficiency toilet when it is not the best choice for their situation. If it is the right choice, it will save the average family thousands of dollars in its lifetime. If it is not the right choice, it will end up costing them far more than this. This article will give you the information that you need to make the right choice.

High-efficiency toilets are a great invention. They had some flushing problems when they first hit the market, but most of those problems have been corrected. These toilets now flush better than their predecessors and use only a fraction of the water. The water savings can be astronomical, and for some families, installing a high-efficiency toilet can even cut their water bill in half. Add this to the government rebates that are offered, and this can be almost impossible to resist.

The key to choosing whether or not to buy a high-efficiency toilet is knowing when you should not buy one. There are many cases where the home owner should not consider these options regardless of how good the savings look. The first case is if you own an older home. High-efficiency toilets are made for newer homes with PVC pipes. Older home for the mid-seventies and older have cast iron pipes that are very rough inside. Even if you have replaced all of the pipes in your home, there are still pipes that lead outside and connect your home to the sewer system. These pipes are a nightmare when combined with a high-efficiency toilet. This is because the amount of water that the toilet uses in each flush is not enough to make sure that everything flushed is pushed through the rough pipes and into the main sewer. When the waste is not pushed completely out, it sits in your sewer pipe and dries. Over time this will lead to sewer back-up. One instance of sewer back-up can cost more than the savings that you will get from a high-efficiency toilet.

Another case when it may it is not a good choice to invest in a high-efficiency toilet is when you already have sewer problems. It is becoming well-known that high-efficiency toilets are hard on any sewer line. If you have roots that grow in your line or other clogging problems, a high-efficiency toilet will only make the problems worse. As previously stated, the lower amounts of water may not be sufficient to push all of the waste through the line. This increases the chance of waste getting caught on existing problems and making them worse.

In conclusion, it used to be easy to pick a new toilet, but with new technological advances and efficient designs, it is no longer as simple as it used to be. If you are considering investing in a high-efficiency toilet, do not take this decision lightly. If you make the right choice, you will have a worry-free bathroom for years to come. If you make the wrong choice, the repairs and service that you will have to finance will almost certainly cost more than the cost of the toilet.

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