Recommendations

	Gravity-Fed	Pressure-Assist
	The most popular type of residential toilet	Suitable for homes, as well as restaurants, stores, other businesses
	Numerous models available	Numerous models available
	Pulls waste from bowl with a siphon-like action	Clears bowl with a powerful pushing flush
	Slow flush and recycle time, which can hold up the next user	Fast flush and recycle time for quick, successive uses
	Quieter, but longer flush	Louder, but shorter flush
	Narrow, multi-bend trapway prone to clogs	Wide, single-bend trapway keeps waste on the move
	Tank can sweat	Non-sweating tank
	Smaller water surface area, which causes more bowl stains	Larger water surface area, which reduces bowl stains

Here are questions that homeowners sometimes ask when shopping for a new toilet:

• Which is the most popular type of toilet?

The most common type is a gravity-fed toilet, which uses water from the tank to create a siphon action to pull waste through a trapway. Most have either one- or two-piece construction and come with either a smaller, round bowl or a larger, elongated bowl.

You can choose from different heights, ranging from juvenile models typically found in preschools to chair-height models for adults or people with special needs. Most residential toilets are installed on the floor, but wall-mount models are an option for bathrooms short on space.

• What are those powerful toilets that flush really quickly?

Pressure-assist toilets are found in any tank-type toilet environment (hotels, restaurants, office buildings) and are popular with homeowners as well. Harnessing the energy from the supply line, a pressure-assist toilet traps air in a vessel as it fills with water. The compressed air forces the water into the bowl, producing a powerful, pushing flush.

• What other options are on the market?

Manufacturers continue to minimize water use. Today, some
pressure-assist toilets flush with 1 gallon of water or even less.

Another notable addition to the residential market is dual-flush technology. Dual-flush toilets offer users two flush options depending on need. Push one button to flush with 1.6 gallons of water or push another to flush with 0.9 gallons.

• My toilet clogs a lot. Shouldn’t I find one that uses more water?

You can't find a fixture that flushes "more" water. In fact, the law is 1.6 gpf maximum. Clogs in models stem from a variety of reasons, and it is best to examine the technologies of toilets and the operating conditions in which your toilet operates. (see MAP testing scores).

• What should I think about when considering gravity-fed versus pressure-assist toilets?

There are pros and cons to both systems. Evaluating your needs for performance is the most important question for what's suitable for you. There are tradeoffs in any technology, so examine your requirements carefully. For example, flush sound versus performance.

• Which is easier to install: gravity-fed or pressure-assist?

Besides having to initially flush the water supply line, both install in the same manner and take up the same amount of floor space.

• I'm on a well and septic system. Which technology will work best?

High Efficiency Toilets [HET] reduces flush volume, saves electricity, reduces draw on well and flow of water in leaching fields.

• I have a long drain line with older pipes. Which will work?

Side by side tests show pressure-assist performs best.

Just remember, pressure-assist technology is not an add-on technology to an existing gravity-fed toilet. If you want pressure-assist, you must buy pressure-assist.