Pulaski

I doubt it because it's the "oversize" toilets that are sold as "accessible", for those with knee and hip issues, among other things, that make it difficult to get down and back up again from American tweenie-weenie toilets.

Also many of the tiny toilets I have seen very obviously predate the ADA of 1990.

Nutek

Damn you.

Pulaski

Here's an interesting article about toilet design.

In short US toilets block more often because they required a syphon effect to pull the contents of the toilet down the drain, and to get a reliable syphon effect the exit port needs to be narrow, whereas British and European toilets use the flushed water to push the contents into the drain, and can have a much wider exit port.

mrken30

Is that why it's more of a sucking action during the flush? You dont really get chance to see the water spinning.

Also explains the common use of flappers, I assume the syphon effect is suppose to create a better seal.

SultanOfSwing

Today I learned American toilets suck ...

Pulaski

The "flapper" in a US toilet keeps the water in the cistern, and it is completely unconnected to how the water flushes the contents of the bowl down the drain, so I am not sure what you mean. .... For comparison, it is perfectly possible to "flush" a toilet with a bucket full of water - how the water comes to be in the bowl has no bearing on how the toilet flushes.

BTW, when I described, above, the method of US toilets syphoning down the drain, I was desribing how crap goes down the drain, not how water gets from the cistern into the bowl.

mrken30

After the flush there seems to be a vacuum effect that assists the closing of the flapper. There are multiple parts of a US toilet that suck.

Nutek

mrken30

Is that what Siri came back with?

Nutek

I actually had to set up Siri to ask that.

Pulaski

Nope, there is nothing that sucks the flapper down, it settles back under gravity, pushed by any water still above it.

In fact the flapper only stays open to allow water into the bowl because of the cup-like structure on the under side of the flapper which allows the flapper to "float" because of the air trapped inside the cup.

WJS

At least they have a high water level. The toilets in Europe appear to use a couple of tablespoons!

Pica

This is all incredibly fascinating. When our water gets cut off (at least twice a year) we have to take a shovel into the olive grove so we're thankful for any sort of indoor convenience that works. Winter crapping in the dark ain't funny, especially wearing cold wellies and carrying a torch, loo roll and the shovel.

Pulaski

Come to America and you will find that we have indoor conveniences that sort of work!

Pica

Ha ha. I'd need more persuasion than a working loo to persuade me to take that interminable trip. If you can arrange to bring your land closer to Europe and culture then maybe....