Look after your loo and help save water this World Toilet Day

Look after your loo and help save water this World Toilet Day

World Toilet Day is an official United Nations day that happens every year on 19 November, set up to tackle the global sanitation crisis.

It’s easy for us to take our toilets for granted at home, but just as clean water is essential to life, toilets prevent the spread of disease and provide health, privacy and safety.

The link between toilets and saving water

Did you know, as well as being vital for good hygiene, there’s also a significant link between toilets and saving water? While you probably don’t think much about water when you flush, about 30% of our total daily water use at home is flushing the toilet. So here are some tips on how to look after your loo and save water:

Use the right flush

If you have a dual flush toilet then using the short flush instead of the long flush after you’ve had a wee can help to save around seven litres of water each time. Effectively, a short flush only uses half as much water as a long flush, so you should only use the longer flush when you need to.

Pop a Save-A-Flush bag into your cistern

If you have an old-style flush on your toilet, you could look to pop a Save-A-Flush bag into your toilet’s cistern. Also known as a Cistern Displacement Device, this is a perforated polythene bag with water-absorbent granules that swell, displacing water in the cistern so you use less water with every flush – up to around 13 litres a day. You can purchase a bag for around £3 from many DIY stores.

Check your loo for leaks

Another great habit to get into at home is to check your loo for leaks. A leaky toilet can waste as much as 400 litres of water every day and they’re not always easy to spot. Thankfully, there’s a pretty simple way you can test your loo, and you should try to do it regularly.

1. Wait at least 15 minutes after flushing.
2. Dry the back of the pan with a piece of toilet roll and place another piece on the back of the pan so that it’s fully out of the water.
3. If possible, wait for three hours without using the toilet. Then you can go back and check on the toilet roll.
4. If the toilet roll is still dry, you don’t have a leak. If it’s a little wet or has moved slightly, you may have a small leak. In this case, you should try to repeat this process regularly to make sure it’s not getting worse. If the tissue is completely wet or starting to break up, then you have a bigger leak and you should contact a plumber to get it fixed.

If you need help finding a trustworthy plumber, you can use our website to help find an approved plumber online.

Thirsty for more water saving advice?

For more advice on saving water, check out our tips for saving water at home. While you’re there, why not check out our new water and energy saving calculator? Answer just a few easy questions and you’ll get a personalised water report, as well as handy advice on how to save water, energy, and money off your bills, as we head into Winter.