Will low water use toilets clog more?

Question

I need a toilet for the bathroom off a master bedroom that's being built in my house.

Once when my Mother had a plumber in to fix something else, he told her to hang on to her old fashioned toilet as long as she could - plumbers have far more problems and calls about the new high efficiency toilets.

I see that Home Depot and Lowes primarily have 1.23 Gallons per Flush (GPF) toilets in stock, but you can also get 1.6 GPF toilets.

According to Consumer's Reports, more water sometimes (but not always) means better flushing. And all of their best rated toilets use 1.6 GPF.

Should I go for the 1.6 GPF toilet to avoid problems and having to clean the toilet as often? Or have the 1.28 GPF toilets improved enough to use one of those instead?

I live in Minnesota where water usage isn't as big of an issue as it is in California.

Answer 1

Bigger GPF is usually better for disposing waste, but it's less environment friendly. If You don't mind that little bit of extra water and sewage costs, go for the toilet that's more comfortable for You.

Also, it's always a good idea to get a tank with dual flushing system (I don't know if You have any others, I'm not from US)

Answer 2

Some of the low volume toilets manage to flush very quickly because of newer designs. Some of it has to do with coatings on the bowl, and the pathways inside of the toilet. But one change that makes a large difference is a larger flapper and opening that allows the water to drain much faster (the only downside is that you'll need special replacement parts in the future).

The last time I was shopping for toilets, they had a rating of how powerful the flush was in each toilet, which is much more useful than the gallons per flush. My newest toilet flushes much better than any of the older toilets, while using much less water.

Answer 3

TLDR: The answer to your irrelevant. It's the shape of the bowl and not the volume of water that determines clogging.

There are 3 types of flushing toilet pans:

Siphonic (washout)

The siphonic toilet has a higher water level and uses a siphoning wash to "suck" out excrement. If you're in North America, this is probably what you're using. It has a narrower flow and is prone to clogging.

"European" (wash down)

The wash down has a shallow water level with a wide flow. It used the fast moving water to "push" out the excrement. If you're in a "civilised" country, you're probably using this and wondering how anyone could clog a toilet.

Reverse/shelf/German

Don't use this. Don't even look up information about it... it's like a nightmare.

Personal recommendation

I live in a "civilised" country where "wash down" is the standard - I'm a big fat man and I... use toilets to their full extent, if you know what I mean. But I have NEVER clogged a wash down toilet and I didn't understand how anyone could clog a toilet until I travelled to America, then I understood how easy it is. If you want a toilet that doesn't clog, get a wash down and not a siphoning pan.