Funny Business: January

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Flush With Success

By Neil Michel

Amazingly, the United States consumes 5 billion gallons of water per day flushing toilets, that’s enough to drain Folsom lake in 21 months. Architects of new “green buildings” are doing their part to help stem the tide of waste by installing dual-flush toilets and waterless urinals in new commercial construction.
    Restrooms inside the new DPR/ABD building in Natomas (Office Design, page 42) cut water use by 45 percent through the use of dual-flush toilets and waterless urinals. The local building is one of 30 nationwide participating in a pilot program helping define the new LEED certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for commercial interiors.
    A small sign above the company restrooms’ two-button toilets explains the choice between “a No. 1 half flush” and “a No. 2 whole flush.” Given the choice, it appears most people go for the half flush, contributing to a savings of 94,000 gallons of water per year. The waterless urinals in the DPR building save another 78,000 gallons of water annually.
    The advent of the waterless urinal is also surely a sign that plumbing-fixture designers have finally realized most men don’t flush the urinal even if it does have a handle. Now the handles, and the water, are disappearing from urinals, apparently replaced by something that smells a lot like lemon.

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