Eli5: Why do we use clean, potable water in toilets?
In: 228
You can flush your toilet by pouring in water until it triggers the flush. You can make a rain collection system outside and just flush by pouring a bucket of it into the toilet each time.
…where would I get unclean, non-potable water to flush my toilet? I presume I’d have to have to get that nasty stuff trucked in from somewhere.
normal clean water is abundant and comes out of the ground from the sky in excess
because my cat drinks out of it. Thats the reason for a multi 100 million dollar system, and she deserves it
Pipes for transporting common sources of non-potable water would be expensive to install and maintain and would likely clog often.
The cost to prepare the water for transportation would be expensive and not worth it.
As for salt water near the ocean? Salt water is very corrosive and is very hard to transport in pipes.
Is dirty water available for flushing?
I’m aware of any source I could for sufficient supply.
It’s cheaper. And can you imagine the smell if it was dirty water?
Because we were too shortsighted to build a practical system that did otherwise.
BUT in some places you’ll find toilets that use the drain from a hand sink to fill a toilet bowl
Don’t you drink from yours?
There is 1 pipe that brings water to my home. That pipe contains clean water that I can drink, shower and shit in. 1 pipe.
If we had a system that provided drinking water in 1 pipe and non drinking water in another, that would be double the infrastructure.
Instead we just build a water treatment plant that’s larger than it would otherwise need to be. This is actually the less expensive option since running a second waterline to every house in town would be much more expensive.
Latest Answers