EnviroStats!

That’s 27% of the water usage (or a little less than a third) to be clear, not reducing it to 3%.

A regular “loo” can use 9-12 L whereas the “dual flush loo” was designed to use 2-3 L for liquid waste and 4-6 L for solid waste. That’s why they call it the “dual flush”, I guess. Pick what you’re flushing and it’ll decide how much water it needs. Compare this to the North American High Efficiency Toilet (HET) that uses less than 4.8L of water per flush posted in Stat 0211. Maybe both these “loos” are available in more places than their respective continents now, I don’t know, but they are options I will check into when I get my own place other than the apartment I am in where we have had low-flow toilets for some years now, but I doubt they are either of these types. The rest of the text is for UK residents regarding these dual flush “loos”, from the source article on them. [Envirostats author]

The Centre for Alternative Technology advises that if you are replacing an old loo with a large cistern, buying a new, water-efficient dual-flush is the best option.

The dual-flush loo from Twyfords costs £200 plus the cost of plumbing. B&Q says all but one of the toilets it sells are dual flush; they cost from £69.98. If your existing loo is in good condition the best option is to retrofit a variable flushing device.

These devices allow a half or full flush – the amount of water you save depends on your cistern size. Retrofit devices cost as little as £15 and are available from various retailers. For a list of suppliers see environment-agency.gov.uk.

Cistern displacement devices, such as the Hippo, are the cheapest way to save water when flushing otherwise, saving between 1-3 litres of water per flush. Hippos cost £6.99 for a pack of three. See www.hippo-the-watersaver.co.uk. For more on water-saving devices visit waterwise.org.uk.

- The Daily Telegraph, Sep 30 2007