EPA Keeping Tabs On 'Phantom Flush'

Haunted by the "phantom flush," some public buildings may struggle with their water conservation goals because of toilets that automatically flush, government data suggests.

"We’ve all been there. You walk into a public-restroom stall, and the automatic toilet flushes before you come anywhere near it. It flushes again a minute later, then again after that, and perhaps again as you exit the stall," the Guardian recently reported.

Automatic toilets seemed like good sense when they first came out in the 1990s. They popped up in high-traffic restrooms because they are more hygienic.

But now, government data is available to show how much water they waste. "Today the US Environmental Protection Agency estimates the US has 27M [automatic flush] toilets installed in its restrooms. Many of the older models still in service use 3.5 gallons per flush or more – well beyond the current federal standard of 1.6 gallons. But even newer, more water-efficient models have a reputation for the so-called 'phantom flush,' which can waste gallons of water at every restroom visit," the report continued.

John Koeller, an engineer and water efficiency expert, explained why these toilets may be a tripwire for conservation goals.

“People now expect the flushes numerous times while they’re in the stall,” he said, per the report. “It’s pretty obvious to water efficiency people that they’re big water wasters.”

Ed Osann, a senior policy analyst at the Natural Resources Defense Council’s water program, put the amount of water wasted into perspective.

“In terms of the absolute amount of water involved, it’s not large, but it’s sort of like a sprinkler in a public park that’s over-spraying the sidewalk and running into the street,” he said, per Mother Jones.

In 2010, Veritec Consulting Inc. and Koeller & Company studied the question of how often the "phantom flush" actually occurs. Conducted at a Tampa office building, the study found that "water consumption jumped by a staggering 50 percent after automatic-flush toilets were installed to replace older manual-flush models," Mother Jones reported.