To flush or not to flush - that is the question!

We should all try and save water. You should also turn tap off when cleaning teeth. I turn water off when soaping in the shower. What an sndolute waste to let water just go down the drain. I also only do washing up when washing up bowl is full. I used to do all these things before I moved to my boat. Is even more important now ad I have to fill my water tank every week with a hose pipe. Droughts will become more common....get used to conserving water. Be thankful that you have it to conserve....

Yes, been doing this for years. Also I always save the cold water when washing, washing up, shower etc before it runs hot and reuse it by pouring it into the cistern after a flush.
Not miserly, just environmentally aware

Surely by now we all know that there is only a limited amount of water on this earth

You’d think so, grandtante. Perhaps they just don’t think it matters?

Where’s Greta when you need her?

We don't flush when we wee, unless visitors are expected or the toilet is smelly.

Surely by now we all know that there is only a limited amount of water on this earth and certainly not enough for us all to flush toilets after each and every use, run the tap when washing-up, brushing teeth or standing under the shower.

Check how much water your cistern uses, if the toilet is more than a few years old, it probably does use more water than necessary for flushing.

dontmindstayinghome My DH sounds exactly like yours, but our 'cloakroom' is beside the bathroom so make a point of not using it then it is 'clean' for visitors.
It is about conserving water

I flush every time, lid down on some occasions.Toothbrush in the bathrom cabinet.

Pluming is reduced when you put the cover down before you flush. If you are taking medication, or eat spicy food, or take diuretics, you will need to flush every so often. Otherwise, the toilet water will smell, and you may well get sediment that you have to clean off with a toilet brush.

i am on a water meter and still find it cheaper to flush after every use. there are four of us living here and that's a lot of flushing! i still tend to clean my teeth with the tap on too.
and it's my water bill is still less than not having a water meter!!

Miss A, the toilet plume effect is reduced if the lid is closed before flushing.
Having said that and as I live alone I only flush every other pee ?

I had a new loo a few years back. with the flush on the top of the cistern in two halves. One side is for a short flush and the other side for a longer flush.

When we had a new loo fitted upstairs, we were warned that , while modern ones were good for conservation, they could cause problems in old houses, which had pipework relying on copious flushing.
We have had a few blockage problems, which I solve with a bucket of water.

We always flush after every visit, and as I have bowel problems it gets flushed many times each day. I couldn't bear the thought of not flushing, disgusting! We are on a water meter and in fact our bills are about two thirds cheaper than they were off meter.

If I was in the position of having a husband who behaved like that he would know my feelings on the matter very quickly.
It is absolutely disgusting not to flush the loo each time it is used. Human beings are revolted by body secretions and fluids more than anything else. To have someone living with you who does not respect your wishes is really crossing a line. Tell him loud and clear that his behaviour is disgusting and embarrassing and it has to stop immediately.
This Martin Lewis character should know better.
If you served meals on dirty plates would that be acceptable? Of course not. Civilization is what holds society together.

I flush every time. We have a water saving cistern that has 2 buttons, one uses less water.

As my name might suggest, we are very careful with our resources - not because we're hard up but because we have a respect for the money we've earnt and our planet. We haven't flushed wee for years! If we have guests then that is different.

DeeDum I booked a free visit from our provider Anglian Water and a chap came and converted our old toilet’s flush into a short and long flush. He also put hippo bags in the cistern. If your shower is suitable (unfortunately ours wasn’t) he can put some sort of water saving device on that too - all free.

It's clean water which will run out, eventually.

Interestingly ‘climate change/global warming’ (whichever is the latest!) has been blamed for an increase in rainfall by some ‘experts’.

Here in the south we have had a very sunny dry summer yet up north it’s been a different story.

I am very sceptical of all these doom and gloom predictions but I guess they make headlines.

We’ve had these dire predictions of running out of water many times before in the past, haven’t we ?

They are invariably followed by the wettest autumn and winter on record!

I am with you Miss Adventure and Chewbacca. Only flush when absolutely necessary, as we are in a drought area of France, at the moment.

Same here Sodapop.

My father-in-law saves the cold water that comes before the hot in a huge container. No idea what he does with it.

I'm wondering about this too. Have three loos in ours, and only one has the half press on cistern to save water.

Perhaps a little bleach round the bowl once or twice a day? Use a cheaper make bleach or it will not be cost efficient..

We flush every use, unless waiting to use then shout don't flush, but nine times out of ten we still flush automatically lol
Only other tip I have is we have a downstairs loo near to our tumble dryer, after use I empty the dryers water tank into the toilet as it smells lovely ..

I don’t flush after every wee but I do go upstairs to my en-suite shower room and use the loo in there. I have a downstairs loo for visitors.

dontmindstayinghome the mantra is not about saving money but about saving what is an incredibly important and finite resource. During the recent heatwave SE Water were asking on a daily basis that we conserve water as some local areas were without water. The demand for clean water was greater than their ability to recycle dirty water.

Clearly for some people, sadly, it is also about saving money and water meters do tend to make you more aware of the way water is used.

winterwhite

How does this advice sit alongside waste-sorting advice re rinsing all tins, plastic milk bottles etc before putting them in the recycling? ?‍♀️

I wash these after washing the dishes.