Saving the Planet One Flush at a Time

I really dig those dual flush toilets. You know, the expensive jobbers with the two-way flusher. One direction releases just enough to flush a bit of paper and the liquid in the bowl. The other direction gives it the full flush for more thrust in times of need. I like the idea of saving water, both for the environment and for our checkbook. But replacing our relatively new toilets with these water-saving contraptions is a bit costly.

Enter an impulse buy today at our friendly neighborhood warehouse store. As I was meandering, child-free, through the aisles, I spotted this HydroRight dual-flush converter. It touted easy installation. Indeed, the box shouted "no tools required!" And it was only 18 bucks; certainly worth a try. I picked up two, hoped for the best, and headed toward home.

The installation was, in fact, a cinch. The most difficult part was removing the existing handle. Before I figured out (on the second toilet) that the handle is reverse threaded, I managed to strip the first handle which then had to be knocked out with the help of a hammer and chisel. Why they were reverse threaded I'll never know, but I thought I'd confess my mistake here to save you some time - and a handle in case you decide to turn back.


The first toilet probably took me close to 15 minutes to complete, including breaking the old handle, actually reading and following the instructions, and finally calibrating the gadget. The second toilet probably took me 8 minutes at most, including the easy calibration.

The only thing I would change about the setup would be to move the link that attaches to the "handle" so that it doesn't conflict with the fill tube. By placing that link on the side of the mechanism, instead of on the back where it mashes against the fill tube, the system would install more easily, and would probably last longer.


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