Monthly Archives: August 2014
Flush with Facts #3 Thomas Crapper
Thomas Crapper was a plumber in the second half of the 19th and early 20th centuries who founded his own company in Chelsea, London in 1861.
Contrary to popular belief, Crapper did not invent the flushing toilet; that is said to have been invented by Sir John Harrington. Crapper however did make several patents relating to drain improvements, water closets and manhole covers. His plumbing business was quite successful, and supplied plumbing to members of the royal family, a feat for which many incorrectly believed he was knighted.
Although he did not invent the flushing toilet, Thomas Crapper & Co did successfully market and mass produce them. As soldiers passed throughout England during WWI it is believed that the slang term “crapper” was created due to the Crapper & Co’s logo being displayed everywhere.
Flush with Facts #2
August is the month of the good toilet flush!
Did you know the dual flush toilet cistern was a 1980 Australian invention by Bruce Thompson, an employee of Caroma?
The dual flush toilet cistern saves 32,000 litres of water per household per year. In 2014 most modern toilet cisterns have an internal overflow tube, so if your float valve doesn’t shut off, the water runs straight into your loo, rather than overflowing onto the floor….. So the single flush toilet cistern should be a thing of the past!
Stormwater drain blockages
Send it down Huey! As Sydney gets through another day of torrential rain and some eastern parts of this country are getting their best rainfall for more than a year, its important to keep your stormwater gutters, downpipes, grates and drains clear.
My own roof gutters were overflowing yesterday ’cause the leaves from our deciduous tree were blocking our down pipes.
Flush with Facts
August is the month of the good toilet flush!
Flowing sewer drains, my favourite topic in the whole wide world, is Not what I mean dear readers!
I’m talking about the toilet and the cistern; the little tank of water that flushes our loo.
So here’s 3 Flush Facts:
1. The toilet flush button is the most un-hygienic place in your bathroom.
2. A full toilet flush is more water than most people in the world use daily.
3. A leaking toilet cistern can waste up to 24 litres of water daily. That’s a whopping 2160 litres of wasted water in your quarterly water rates. And that’s from just 1 toilet cistern.
So, next time you are sitting and thinking………. Think about that!
