Pottygirl made it on the News flushing her potatoes: Road Warrior: Georgia Home, Garden Show

Road Warrior: Georgia Home, Garden Show.

Dekalb County, GA approves Water Rate Hike

The DeKalb County Board of Commissioners approved an 11 percent water and sewer rate increase to pay for nearly $1.4 billion in water and sewer system upgrades in the County.

If your home was built prior to 1993 and you haven’t upgraded your toilets yet, you are wasting a significant amount of water and money. By upgrading an old, inefficient toilet to a WaterSense labeled High Efficiency Dual Flush toilet you can reduce your water usage between 40% and 70%. On top of the water savings achieved by reduced water usage, you will also receive a $100 rebate from Dekalb County Watershed (if you meet the requirements) – details can be found here. If you opt for a Caroma Dual Flush toilet, you can also retire your plunger, as these toilets virtually do not clog (want proof? view this flushing video from ecoTransitions).

Caroma Toilet Review | H2O Report

Caroma Toilet Review | H2O Report

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Caroma was started back in 1941 by a man named Charles Rothauser, the company’s production and innovation on these toilets start back in 1945. They have been successful in their endeavors and have since produced two new urinals that have become the leaders in water saving technology. This company is based in Australia and their products have found the world over. Their products will save you money on your water bills.

By using Caroma Toilets it has been proven that you can save water up to 18,000 gallons of water every year. These toilets have proven reliability and dependability. The technology that has gone into creating these toilets is one of a kind. If you are tired of wasting water and wasting money on your water bills, then you should check out the Caroma Toilets.
One of the series of toilets that Caroma pride themselves on is their WaterSense Toilets. These toilets are considered to be High Efficiency Toilets or HET. In the United States, the federal law, all toilets must not exceed 1.6 gallons of water per flush. With Caroma, their toilets use less than 1.3 gallons of water. The Water Sense label is used on High Efficiency Toilets as they are certified to be. These WaterSense Toilets Meets the EPA Criteria.

The Water Sense Toilets are available in many different styles. Let’s take a look at the top three in the Water Sense Toilets. The Adelaide Cube 270 Easy Height Round Front Plus, Bondi 270 Easy Height Elongated and the Caravelle 270 Easy Height Elongated. Take a look at these popular Caroma Toilets and see which one would best save you money on your water bills.

The Adelaide Cube 270 Easy Height Round Front Plus
The Adelaide Cube 270 Easy Height Round Front Plus is a High Efficiency Toilet or HET. It has a 1.6/0.8 gallons per flush. It is a two-piece toilet with a two button dual flush toilet. The bowl is a higher bowl with a measurement of 16.5 inches. It also has a larger concealed trapway and it is an easy cleaning. This toilet is floor mounted and works in conjunction the connection to the waste outlet for a 10-inch to 12 inch rough in.

This Adelaide Cube 270 Easy Height Round Front Plus offers a standard bottom entry; this toilet design is available as a left-handed inlet and includes a quiet water control assembly. It also is designed with an internal overflow only. The tank is installed directly to the closet bowl with a robust base fixing system without having to do any wall fixing of your own.

The Caroma Adelaide Front Round Toilet is nearly unblockable; you should have confidence when you use the Adelaide that there won’t be any clogs. The dimensions of this toilet are 29-5/8 in length x 13-3/8 inches in width x 32-5/8 inches in height. This is a standard size toilet with a round front design. If you are looking for a new toilet, one that will save you money on your water bills then you should check out this model. The price on this toilet is about $ 600.00; you could shop around for a better price.

Bondi 270 Easy Height Elongated Bowl Front
The Bondi 270 Easy Height Elongated Bowl also has a 1.6/0.8 gallons per flush high efficiency. This toilet is made from vitreous china, which is one of the most durable materials used for manufacturing toilets. This toilet has an elongated bowl design with 17 to 19 inches in height. The adjustable rough in on this toilet is between 10 inches and 12 inches. This toilet is a two-piece, two button dual flush. A dual flush toilet has two buttons, one is actually for flushing the toilet half flush and the other is a full flush.

The benefits of having a dual flush on the Bondi 270 is that is you are flushing urine then the half flush would be perfect, it would use .08 gallons of water and for solids you would use the full flush with a 1.6 gallons per flush. Imagine how much water you will save by using half flushes. The 270 was designed with water conservation in mind. Since the bowl design is elongated you will get a more accurate flush every time.

The Bondi 270 has a free fitting lid and would work great either in a domestic situation or a very light commercial application. This toilet comes with a Vandal Resistant Conversion Kit; this is an easy to install kit that locks the lid onto the tank. If you don’t have a lot of heavy traffic at home as opposed to a commercial application then you probably don’t need it. This toilet has the WaterSense label and is ADA compliant. This toilet is priced around $550, prices vary if you shop around.

The Caravelle 270 Easy Height Elongated
The Caravelle 270 have a great European style design, they will give your bathroom that elegant yet modern look. These toilets are two-piece toilets with elongated bowl front. This toilet is a high efficiency toilet with a dual flush. One flush is used for urine and liquids, when you use this half flush you will use a .08 gallons of water per flush and when you use the full flush for solids, you will use 1.6 gallons per flush.

The Caravelle 270 Easy Height toilet has a 17 inch elongated bowl for a more accurate flush. This toilet has a large 100% concealed trapway and like the Bondi and the Adelaide Toilets these are almost unblockable. These toilets have a full flush wash down with a closet bowl and an open flush rim. It can be floor mounted suitable for a connection to the waste outlet with a 10 inch to 12 inch rough in.

This tank is also a free fitting lid and a Vandal Resistant Conversion Kit is available. It is not recommended for residential homes. The Caravelle has a standard bottom entry tank that is available as a left hand inlet that includes a very quiet water control assembly. This toilet costs about $ 451.00 and you could find a cheaper price if you shop around.

Caroma Toilets have been around for since 1945, they are not considered to be mainstream toilets like American Standard, Kohler or Delta but they have a reputation for being high quality, high performance toilets with a water conservation design. You can purchase these toilets from certain distributors. If you are interested in taking a look or getting more information on other Caroma Toilets, log onto their website and check out the Where to Buy button, click on the map and find a dealers nearest to you.

If you have any questions, you can click on their Contact Us link and find the nearest customer service number to you. Caroma will answer any questions that you may have. They have quality products and they will surely last you a long time. They will also save you money every month on your water bills. If you are looking for a new toilet that will save you money rather than cost you money, Caroma Toilets should be considered. They have a full inventory of great products.

Save Water While Saving Money—Georgia Sales Tax Holiday Features WaterSense® Labeled Products

If you’re planning to buy a toilet or bathroom sink faucet this fall, timing your purchase to coincide with Georgia’s sales tax holiday for WaterSense labeled products can help you save a little money. Between October 1 and October 4, 2009, customers will not have to pay sales tax on toilets and bathroom sink faucets and accessories that have earned the WaterSense label. Consumers can be sure that products with the WaterSense label have been independently certified to meet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) rigorous criteria for water efficiency and performance. 

Purchasing and installing WaterSense labeled products is a key way Georgians can save water. If just one out of every four households in Georgia would retrofit their bathrooms with WaterSense labeled bathroom fixtures, it could save nearly 10 billion gallons per year—enough for every Georgian to take a shower daily for about two months. 

Whether remodeling a bathroom, constructing a new home, or simply replacing older, inefficient fixtures that waste money and water, consider installing a WaterSense labeled toilet or bathroom sink faucet. 

As consumers shop for WaterSense labeled toilets during the sales tax holiday, they can be sure these fixtures use 20 percent less water than the current federal standard for toilets and that WaterSense labeled bathroom sink faucets and accessories will reduce a sink’s water flow by 30 percent or more. Because all products must be tested to meet EPA’s criteria before earning the WaterSense label, these water savings are achieved without sacrificing performance. 

The sales tax holiday on WaterSense labeled products will start Thursday, October 1 at midnight and will continue through the weekend until 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, October 4.  Any WaterSense labeled product purchased for noncommercial home or personal use during the sales tax holiday will be Georgia state sales tax-free. 

For more information on the sales tax holiday, visit Conserve Water Georgia.

For more information on WaterSense, please visit www.epa.gov/watersense. 

For more information on WaterSense labeled, High Efficiency Toilets, please contact GA’s largest seller of the award-winning Caroma Dual Flush toilets, ecoTransitions. All of Caroma’s 47 floor mounted models also qualify for the $100 toilet rebate offered by most Metro Atlanta Water authorities. For more information, visit http://www.ecotransitions.com/ or contact them via email at sales@ecotransitions.com or by phone at (678) 313-9260.

Sales Tax holiday in Georgia October 1-4, 2009

October 1-4, 2009

A culture of conservation is growing in Georgia.

We are responsible for the stewardship of our state’s natural resources. Incorporating energy and water conservation practices into our daily lives benefits everyone in our state now and for generations to come. And small changes can make a big impact in our pocketbooks. To help make those changes a little easier, Georgia is offering the ENERGY STAR® and WaterSense® Sales Tax Holiday, Oct. 1-4, 2009.

During the sales tax holiday, you can purchase ENERGY STAR-qualified or WaterSense-labeled products up to $1,500 without paying sales tax. In addition to the up-front cost savings, purchasing and installing more-efficient appliances and products can reduce in-home utility costs and improve both energy and water conservation.

 

ENERGY STAR®

ENERGY STAR products meet strict energy efficiency guidelines set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Energy. These appliances, electronics and lighting operate while using less energy – and less money – than older models.

Americans, with the help of ENERGY STAR, prevented 43 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions in 2008 alone – equivalent to the annual emissions from 29 million vehicles – and saved more than $19 million on their utility bills. By looking to ENERGY STAR for best practices and products, households can reduce their energy use and save about one-third, or $750 annually, on their utility bills, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

 

WaterSense®

WaterSense, a national program sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, makes it easy to find water-efficient products. Toilets, faucets and other products that are independently certified to meet U.S. EPA criteria for water effi­ciency and performance can earn the label.

The average household spends as much as $500 per year on its water and sewer bill. By installing WaterSense-labeled fixtures and ENERGY STAR-qualified appliances that use water more efficiently, a household could save about $170 per year. If just one out of every four households in Georgia retrofit their bathrooms with WaterSense-labeled fixtures, it could save nearly 10 billion gallons of water per year – enough for every Georgian to take a shower daily for about two months.

For more information on ENERGY STAR, please visit http://www.gefa.org/Index.aspx?page=352

For more information on WaterSense, please visit http://www.conservewatergeorgia.net/documents/ waterSense_taxHoliday.html

Flushing potatoes at the Sweetwater 420 Festival 2009 in Atlanta

created by Creative Artists, Monroe, GA

“Go Green Expo” Set to be Atlanta’s Largest Eco-Event

Source: CSR Press Release

ATLANTA – June 10, 2009 – Over 230 of the most exciting eco-friendly companies will be exhibiting in Atlanta June 26 – 28 for the Go Green Expo at the Cobb Galleria. As one of the largest tradeshow for eco-friendly products & services in the United States, Go Green Expo introduces guests to national eco-celebrities, the latest fuel-efficient cars, eco-fashion and beauty products, green products for families and children, organic food, health and wellness events, the latest in green building and solar products and more.

 

In an effort to encourage Atlanta’s business leaders to embrace eco-friendly products, services and practices, the Expo will open its doors on Friday, June 26 from 10 am – 5 pm for a complimentary business to business day. Business buyers, wholesalers, CEO’s, government agencies, procurement officers, and environmental industry professionals are encouraged to attend. Admission is free on Friday with a company business card.

 

Open to the public on Saturday and Sunday, tickets are only $10 for adults, $5 for students and seniors and military families, free for kids under the age of 12. For a full schedule of events and to purchase tickets, visit: http://www.GoGreenExpo.com Please use code “GGE50” for 50% off ticket prices (online registration only).

 

Show highlights include:

• Test-drives of the latest fuel-efficient cars including Toyota’s 3rd generation Prius and Smart Car on Saturday & Sunday.
• Free Yoga sessions from Dahm Yoga and My Traveling Yogi.
• Rock climbing walls for kids and adults alike on Saturday and Sunday – those who reach the top will have a tree planted in their name in Atlanta!
• Meet Oscar-nominated actress, model, eco-mom and author Mariel Hemingway, Saturday, June 27 at 1:00 pm. Mariel will be signing copies of her new cookbook, Mariel’s Kitchen: Simple Ingredients for a Delicious and Satisfying Life.
• Acoustic Musical Performances all day Sunday from Magic Hat, Jeff Hix & the Heretics and the DejaBlue Grass Band.
• On Sunday, June 28 meet Atlanta Falcons fullback Ovie Mughelli, one of the “greenest” football players in the NFL. Ovie will be signing autographs, posing for photos and discussing how to inspire kids to go green.
• Free organic food samplings and FARMER D Organics will be creating organic and biodynamic eco-garden that will help foster healthier communities that grow their own food at their homes, schools, businesses, farms and more.
• Win tradeshow prizes including an exciting weeklong stay in Costa Rica and an eco-friendly scooter from Ride Green
• The Ann Jackson Gallery will showcase the Dr. Seuss Lorax collection. Long before saving the earth became a global concern, Dr. Seuss, speaking through his character the Lorax, warned against mindless progress and the danger it posed to the earth’s natural beauty.
• Atlanta eco-living expert Laura Turner Seydel will speak about greening your body and home and give a photo tour of her LEED certified residence EcoManor on Saturday.
• The GREENandSAVE Eco Academy is a cutting edge training program designed to give individuals all the necessary tools to have a rewarding career in the “green” industry as a Home Efficiency Consultant. Become a Home Efficiency Consultant in as little as 30 days!
• Learn about green building from the Director of Sustainability for the City of Atlanta, Mandy Schmitt and the President of the USGBC Atlanta chapter Ben Taube. 

Go Green Expo sponsors and partners include: WSB-TV, Dave FM, Captain Planet Foundation, Mother Nature Network, Creative Loafing, Green Chamber of the South, CareerEco, PrintResponsily.com, Atlanta Business Chronicle, Southeast Green, Atlanta.com, Earth Share of Georgia, The Georgia River Network, Sustainable Furnishings Council, HowYouEco.com, Natural Awakenings Magazine, EcoScene, The Architects Newspaper, Boho Magazine, Earth-List, Green Energy Council, Yelp.com & more.

 

Grow your green business! Limited booth space still available, please contact Nicole Boyer (212) 655-4505 x226 or NBoyer@GoGreenExpo.com.

See how much water and money you can save by upgrading an inefficient toilet to a High Efficiency, Caroma Dual flush toilet

What is Earth Day about?

Source: Wikipedia

Earth Day, celebrated April 22, is a day designed to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s environment. It is held annually during both spring in the northern hemisphere and autumn in the southern hemisphere. It was founded by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in in 1970 and is celebrated in many countries every year.

The United Nations celebrates an Earth Day each year on the March equinox, a tradition which was founded by peace activist John McConnell in 1969.

Read more on Wikipedia

ecoTransitions is participating at several Earth Day events to promote water conservation in the home. Please visit us at these fun, family friendly events where we perfom our famous flushing demos:

Sweetwater 420 Festival, April 18-19, Candler Park, Atlanta

Enjoy great music, great beer and a variety of local, regional and national non-profits and environmental organizations.  Last year festival goers could visit over 15 organizations to learn ways that they could take earth friendly practices back to their community and homes.

View the full schedule here 

Sweetwater 420 fest schedule 2009

View other events where we will be showing how you can conserve drinking water by making small changes in the bathroom

http://www.ecotransitions.com/events.asp

Fix a Leek Week

Every Drop Counts

More than 1 trillion gallons of water are wasted in U.S. homes each year from easy-to-fix leaks. That’s why ecoTransitions is participating in Fix a Leak Week, March 16 to 20, 2009, and we encourage you to join us.

Sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) WaterSense^® program, this week is an opportunity to improve the water efficiency of your homes by checking for and fixing leaks, which waste an average of 11,000 gallons of water per home each year. That’s more than enough water to fill up a backyard swimming pool!  

Here’s how to identify and address leaks around your home:  

• Check your water meter before and after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter changes at all, you probably have a leak.           
• To determine if you have a leak, now is a great time to check water usage. If a family of four exceeds 12,000 gallons per month in the winter, you probably have leaks! 
• Search for toilet leaks by placing a drop of food coloring in the toilet tank. If any color shows up in the bowl without flushing first, you have a leak. (Be sure to flush immediately to avoid staining the tank.) 
• If you decide it’s time for a new commode or faucet, look for WaterSense labeled products, which use 20 percent less water and perform as well or better than standard models. The vast majority of leaks can be eliminated after retrofitting a household with new WaterSense labeled fixtures and other high-efficiency appliances.

Faucets and Showerheads:

• A leaky faucet that drips at the rate of one drip per second can waste more than 3,000 gallons per year. A home with WaterSense labeled toilets could use that water to flush for six months!
• You can reduce faucet leaks by checking faucet washers and gaskets for wear and replacing them if necessary. If you are replacing a faucet, look for the WaterSense label.
• A showerhead leaking at 10 drips per minute wastes more than 500 gallons per year. That’s enough water to wash 60 loads of dishes in your dishwasher.
• Most leaky showerheads can be fixed by ensuring a tight connection using pipe tape and a wrench.   

Toilets:

• If your toilet is running constantly, you could be wasting 200 gallons of water or more every day.
• If your toilet is leaking, the cause is most often an old, faulty toilet flapper. Over time, this inexpensive rubber part decays, or minerals build up on it. It’s usually best to replace the whole rubber flapper-a relatively easy, inexpensive do-it-yourself project that pays for itself in no time.
• If you do need to replace the entire toilet, look for a WaterSense labeled model. If a family of four replaces its older, inefficient toilets with new WaterSense labeled ones, it could save more than 16,000 gallons per year. Retrofitting the house could save the family approximately $2,000 in water and wastewater bills over the lifetime of the toilets.

Outdoors:

• An irrigation system should be checked each spring before use to make sure it was not damaged by frost or freezing.
• An irrigation system with pressure set at 60 pounds per square inch that has a leak 1/32nd of an inch in diameter (about the thickness of a dime) can waste about 6,300 gallons of water per month.
• To ensure that your in-ground irrigation system is not leaking water, consult with a WaterSense irrigation partner who has passed a certification program focused on water efficiency.
• Check your garden hose for leaks at its connection to the spigot. If it leaks while you run your hose, replace the nylon or rubber hose washer and ensure a tight connection to the spigot using pipe tape and a wrench. 

As a WaterSense partner concerned with preserving our nation’s water supply, ecoTransitions can help you learn more. Use our water savings calculator to determine how much water you can save by installing a Caroma Dual Flush toilet.  

 

Learn More 

Fix a Leak Week is March 16 to 20, 2009. Grab a wrench or contact your favorite handy person, plumber, or WaterSense irrigation partner to address leaking toilets, faucets, and irrigation systems around your home. Visit the WaterSense Web site to learn more. 

 

About EPA’s WaterSense Program

WaterSense is a partnership program sponsored by EPA. Its mission is to protect the future of our nation’s water supply by promoting and enhancing the market for water-efficient products and services. Currently, there are nearly 250 WaterSense labeled toilets, 500 labeled faucets and faucet accessories, and more than 550 certified irrigation partners. WaterSense labeled products must achieve independent, third-party testing and certification to prove they meet EPA’s rigorous criteria for efficiency and performance.

Green is the new Black – Introducing Green Friday

Despite the current economic outlook, Black Friday will still be one of the biggest shopping days of the year. Last year, the weekend after Thanksgiving alone, Americans spent nearly 28 BILLION DOLLARS shopping.

 

Why not make this coming Friday a Green Friday? You don’t have to spend a lot to save a lot. If you opt for energy and water saving fixtures, you will not only start saving money on lower utility and water bills, you will also help our environment and our economy. Just by replacing one light bulb with a CFL (or, even better: an LED), you can save $30 or more in electrical cost over each bulbs lifetime. Because they last about 10 times longer than regular light bulbs, you also keep waste out of landfills.

 

You can save Water AND Money if you replace an old, inefficient toilet with a Caroma Dual Flush toilet. If you are a customer of one of the below mentioned Water Utilities and meet the qualifications listed you will receive a $100 credit on your water bill for up to two (2) toilets each.

 

Qualifications to receive a toilet rebate

1. Have an individual residential account with a participating water utility in the District and be up to date on your billing payments.
2. Own or rent a single-family residential home built in 1993 or earlier (this will be verified).
3. Purchase an approved toilet after September 28, 2007 to replace an older toilet using greater than 1.6 gallons per flush (gpf).

The following Utilities participate in the Toilet Rebate program

• City of Atlanta Watershed Department
• City of Austell
• Cherokee County WSA
• Clayton County Water Authority
• Cobb County Water System (3 toilets per household)
• City of Dallas
• DeKalb County (3 toilets per household)
• Fayette County Water System
• Fulton County Department of Public Works
• City of Gainesville
• Gwinnett County Water Resources
• City of Hapeville
• Henry County Water and Sewer Authority
• City of Marietta (3 toilets per household)
• City of Roswell
• City of Smyrna
• Paulding County ($50 limit per household, for homes built prior to 1995)

 

ecoTransitions is offering $25 off  each model until the end of November, local pick-up at our warehouse in Austell or delivery available for a small charge.  

 

Please visit http://www.ecotransitions.com/ to view our models and http://www.youtube.com/ecotransitions to see why you can kiss the plunger good-bye. 

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Caroma: Conservation Leader becomes a GreenPlumbers® Premier Partner

GreenPlumbers® announced Caroma, a longtime Australian partner, as a premier partner in the United States. Caroma was founded in 1941 in Australia, and has since become a worldwide leader in reliable, high quality, water-efficient bathroom products. Their ‘green’ sensibility makes them a perfect match for GreenPlumbers® ‘s goal of making plumbers into conservation experts.

 

“Protecting the environment is critical for the sustainability of our natural resources, and preserving water, the most valuable resource, is a growing concern,” said Derek Kirkpatrick, Caroma North America manager. “Caroma is pleased to partner with GreenPlumbers®  to promote water conservation and water saving technologies. Caroma is the world leader in innovative, high efficiency toilets with leading edge Caroma Smart™ technology. The stylish and water-conserving 1.6/0.8 gallon per flush toilets can save nearly 30,000 gallons of water per year for a family of four. Our partnership with GreenPlumbers® helps us spread the word that water conservation is easy with just the touch of a button.”  

 

41 models in the EPA’s WaterSense program are made by Caroma – the most of any brand in North America. All of Caroma’s 41 WaterSense labeled models are dual flush fixtures, the only type Caroma manufactures. The list includes Caroma’s latest model, the Sydney Smart, which offers the lowest water consumption of any toilet now available in North America. Sydney Smart flush volumes – 0.8 and 1.28 gallons – set a new benchmark for water conservation in North America. Caroma’s philosophy is that environmentally-responsible products can be highly functional and aesthetically beautiful. The company’s motto is “Conservation With Style.”

 

For more information on Caroma’s line of products or environmental vision, visit http://caromausa.com.  

 

GreenPlumbers® is an innovative, national training and accreditation program that assists plumbers in understanding their role in the environment and public health. The organization’s goal is to train and deploy a green army of thousands of plumbers to promote the benefits of water conservation and the reduction of GHG emissions. The focus is on changing consumer and plumbing behavior through the use of energy efficiency and water saving technologies. As a grassroots effort, the plan is a voluntary one that can be implemented quickly without legislation or regulation. How can we expect the homeowners and business people of America to be serious and knowledgeable about water and energy conservation unless the plumbers that bring the water and energy to their houses are not equally serious? The GreenPlumbers® goal is nothing less than complete culture change for the plumbing industry.

GreenPlumbers® training consists of a five-course, 32 hour, accreditation in environmental and technical issues including Climate Care (8 hrs), Caring For Our Water (8 hrs), Solar Hot Water (4 hrs), Water Efficient Technology (8 hrs), and an Inspection Report Service(4 hrs).

For more info about GreenPlumbers, visit www.greenplumbersusa.com.

Source Press Release Sep 9, 2008 Caroma USA and www.greenplumbersusa.com

 

 

Sales tax holiday in Georgia for energy and water efficient products will be held October 2 – 5, 2008

The Oct. 2-5 sales tax holiday applies to ENERGY STAR appliances and, for the first time, products that carry the WaterSense label for water efficiency.

Georgia’s fourth annual ENERGY STAR Sales Tax Holiday begins at 12:01 a.m., Thursday, October 2^nd and continues until midnight on October 5^th.  During this period, products carrying the ENERGY STAR label as well as WaterSense labeled products are exempt from the State Sales and use tax. 

ENERGY STAR is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy helping us all save money and protect the environment through energy efficient products and practices.

WaterSense helps consumers to identify water-efficient products and programs. The WaterSense label indicates that these products and programs meet water efficiency and performance criteria. WaterSense labeled products will perform well, help save money and encourage innovation in manufacturing. For additional information on WaterSense, please visit http://www.epa.gov/watersense/.

The sales tax exemption is intended only for individuals and their personal use.  It does not apply to purchases made for resale, purchases by businesses, items leased or rented, or items sold at sports facilities, theme parks, restaurants, public lodging establishments and airports.

SAVE even more:

If you live in a home built prior to 1993 and have an individual residential account with a participating water utility, you may qualify for the $100 rebate on the purchase of a WaterSense labeled, High Efficiency toilet.

Authorities that participate in the Rebate program:

•·        City of Atlanta·        City of Dallas, GA·        City of Hapeville·        City of Marietta

•·        City of Smyrna·        City of Roswell·        Cherokee County·        Clayton County

•·        Cobb County·        DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management

•·        Fayette County·        Fulton County·        Gwinnett County·        Henry County

•·        Paulding County

 Visit http://www.ecotransitions.com/rebate.asp for details on the rebate program by County.

ecoTransitions Inc., a WaterSense partner is a local supplier for Caroma High Efficiency toilets. Check out their huge selection at http://www.ecotransitions.com/caroma.asp. To see why these toilets work so well, visit http://www.youtube.com/ecotransitions.

Order your Caroma High Efficiency toilet today for pickup or delivery during the Sales Tax Holiday October 2-5, 2008 and SAVE Water and Money! For more info contact sales@ecotransitions.com.

Caroma’s Latest Introduction Sets New Conservation Standard

Caroma has launched its most water conscious toilet yet – the Sydney Smart. This latest addition to the company’s line of dual flush toilets, and already WaterSense approved by the EPA, offers the lowest water use of any toilet available in America.

Caroma is the world leader with innovative, high efficiency toilets. The Caroma Smart (TM) Technology is leading-edge and has been developed and mastered over the last decade to deliver the ultimate of design, water savings, and performance. Sydney Smart, Caroma’s newest dual flush, is the first dual-flush toilet utilizing 0.8 gpf for the half and only 1.28 gpf for the full flush, therefore provides significant water savings. With the built-in lower flush option, typically used four times more often than the larger flush, Sydney Smart provides the highest water savings of any high efficiency toilet (HET) available, as it calculates to an average of 0.89 gallons per flush.

Like all Caroma toilets, Sydney Smart uses Wash Down flushing instead of siphon action and has a trapway nearly double the industry average. Caroma engineers enhanced the water dynamics from the flush valve to the bowl to ensure that a small volume of water would successfully evacuate the bowl and all the way through the drain line. The Smart models maintain Caroma’s reputation for clog-proof performance.

The continuing drought in the South, California’s new legislation mandating high efficiency toilets and the eco-movement are forcing Americans to consider water saving strategies like those developed in Australia, where droughts are measured in years, rather than months.  Dual flush toilets are credited as one of the chief ways per capita water consumption has been cut 25 percent over the last decade.

Since introducing dual flush toilets twenty-five years ago in Australia, Caroma continually has advanced the performance of its products.  The Smart technology, setting a new benchmark for water efficiency, was used in product installed at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 and later incorporated into the line in 2004.  The Sydney Smart arrives here after years of market acceptance in Australia and Caroma’s Asian markets.

The Sydney Smart is an EPA-approved WaterSense toilet, meaning it is among the most water-efficient and best performing models on the market.  Caroma is the industry leader with 41 Water Sense models. 

Caroma, a wholly owned subsidiary of GWA International Limited, a Brisbane, Australia-based company, is at the forefront of water efficient plumbing, and exports products to 39 countries. Its development and constant improvement of dual flush technology have led to dual flush toilets outselling single flush toilets around the world.

SOURCE  Caroma USA, ebuild and Reuters

If you are interested in finding out more about Caroma Dual Flush toilets, visit www.ecotransitions.com. To view videos showing why Caroma toilets work, visit ecoTransitions on YouTube. Watch an amazing video of Eddie Wilcut, the Water Conservation Manager for the City of San Antonio, flushing a Russet potato down a Caroma toilet with the full flush (1.6 gallon) AND half flush (0.8 gallon), which is meant for liquid waste.

Learn even more about Caroma Dual Flush Toilets here

Dual Flush toilets mandatory in Ireland – the way to “go”!

This is an article published on August 20, 2008 in the Irish Times

New building controls to ban traditional toilets

by HARRY McGEE, Political Staff

THE STANDARD toilet is about to be flushed out as part of a new Government water conservation measure.

Environment Minister John Gormley has signed off on new building regulations that will lead to a ban on traditional toilets.

The Government says that the move will lead to hundreds of millions of gallons drinking water being saved each year.

Under the new regulations, all toilets fitted into homes will be required to have a dual-flush system.

In addition, dual-flush toilets will be the only models available at DIY stores, plumbing supplies stores and hardware shops. The regulations will be implemented from November.

Yesterday, Mr Gormley said that making dual flush toilets mandatory would lead to greater efficiencies in the use of water, and was a sensible and practical step that formed part of the National Water Conservation Programme.

Official estimates suggest that as much of a third of the country’s drinking water is used to flush toilets, which the Government considers poor use of a valuable resource.

Standard toilets in Irish homes and workplaces flush between six and nine litres.

Dual flush toilets release four litres in water-saving mode, and six litres for a full flush.

“It demonstrates how simple but practical ways can be found to conserve water,” said Mr Gormley, adding that further water conservation measures would be introduced.

These are unlikely to include any attempt to introduce water charges or metering, issues that have proved politically divisive in the past.

If you are interested in finding out more about Dual Flush toilets, visit www.caromausa.com. Caroma, an Australian company has invented the Dual Flush system in the 80’s and has a 90% market share in Australia. With a fully glazed 4″ trapway, blockages are virtually eliminated.

What you should know about toilets

Toilets account for almost 30% of residential indoor water use in the United States.

Toilets are also a major source of wasted water due to leaks and inefficiency. In a home that was built prior to 1993 it is most likely that the toilet uses 3.5 gallons or more for every single flush (in Dekalb County alone, approx. 165,000 homes were built prior to 1993 – there are approx. 1 Mio. Homes in the Greater Atlanta area that still have old, inefficient toilets in use). Experts say that the minimum needed to meet the basic human needs of drinking, cooking and hygiene is five gallons of clean water per person per day. It’s far from enough to ensure health and well-being-just enough to get by. Do we really need to flush down that much each time we go “Number One”?

In the beginning of modern toilets there was the seven-gallon flushing porcelain lavatory. Then there was the low-flush toilet. And by the time you’d flushed several times the bowl was “clear” and you had flushed more water than you did with the faithful lavatory.

Then there was the new and improved low-flush toilet, which was better but still not what always got the job done. And finally, the High-Efficiency toilet arrived; you now have your choice of flushing as little as .8 gallons with dual flush toilets. The best part is that they really work!

What Are High-Efficiency Toilets?

Under federal law, toilets must not exceed 1.6 gallons per flush (gpf). High-efficiency toilets (HETs) go beyond the standard and use less than 1.3 gpf. The WaterSense label will be used on HETs that are certified by independent laboratory testing to meet rigorous criteria for both performance and efficiency. Only HETs that complete the third-party certification process can earn the WaterSense label.

 Do High Efficiency Toilets Work?

Everyone is concerned about the performance of low-flow toilets. Do they clear the bowl and leave it clean? Do they stop up frequently? Unlike the first 1.6 gallon / flush toilets, WaterSense HETs combine high efficiency with high performance. Advances in toilet design permit WaterSense HETs to save water without loss of flushing power. In fact, many perform better than standard toilets in consumer testing. Want proof? Watch this amazing video of Eddie Wilcut, the Water Conservation Manager for the City of San Antonio, flushing a Russet potato down a Caroma toilet with the full flush (1.6 gallon) AND half flush (0.8 gallon), which is meant for liquid waste.

How Much Water and Money Do HETs Save?

High efficiency toilets save you money by reducing your water and wastewater costs. Over the course of a lifetime, an average person flushes the toilet nearly 140,000 times. If you install a WaterSense HET, you can save 4,000 gallons per year and your children can each save about a third of a million gallons during their lifetime. If a family of four replaces one 3.5 gpf toilet made between 1980 and 1994 with a WaterSense toilet, they can save $2,000 over the lifetime of the toilet. If the toilet being replaced was made before 1980, it uses 5 gallons per flush so the savings will be much greater. If you’d like to calculate how much water you can save try the water savings calculator on www.ecotransitions.com.

With these savings, new high-efficiency toilets can pay for themselves in only a few years. Even better, many local utilities offer substantial rebates for replacing old toilets with HETs. Detailed information on the rebates available in Georgia can be found here Rebates in Georgia. 

What are Dual Flush toilets?

Dual flush toilets offer a patented dual flush technology consisting of a 0.8 Gal flush for liquid waste and a 1.6 Gal flush for solids. They can save up to 40% (approx. 4600 gallons) compared to today’s standard 1.6-gallon single flush toilets. On an average of 4/1 uses a day,  Dual Flush toilets have the lowest water consumption of all – 0.96 Gallons per flush. Caroma, an Australian manufacturer that invented the Dual Flush technology manufactures award winning toilets that are both user friendly and, with a full 3.5″ trap way, virtually blockage-free!  Wouldn’t that be nice to be able to finally kiss the plunger good bye? Beware of some products reducing the amount of water flushed to use with your existing toilet. Existing bowls are not designed to perform with reduced amounts of water, so the likelihood of clogging your toilet while you are trying to flush paper and solid waste increases drastically.

Select a WaterSense Labeled High-Efficiency Toilet!

Whether you are remodeling a bathroom, beginning construction of a new house, or just want to replace an old, leaky toilet, a WaterSense labeled HET is your best bet. Look for the WaterSense label on any toilet you buy. If every home in the United States replaced just one old toilet with a new HET, we would save almost one trillion (spelled with a T)

gallons of water per year, equal to more than two weeks of the water flowing over Niagara Falls!

Note that some manufacturers offer high-efficiency and ordinary models with very similar names, so be sure and look for the WaterSense label. A list of WaterSense labeled High-Efficiency Toilets can be found here List of WaterSense labeled HET’s published by the EPA.

Where can I find a HET?

To find WaterSense partners and resources in your area, please follow the link and click on your state below or choose from the list that follows. EPA – Where you live

For a watersavings calculator and more information on Dual Flush toilets please visit www.ecotransitions.com.

San Antonio Water System gives away 20,000 free Caroma Dual Flush toilets

Perhaps the City of Atlanta should consider this. San Antonio has implemented an incredible program, resulting in tremendous water savings PLUS lots of business for plumbers. Read full article here 

http://www.reevesjournal.com/CDA/Articles/Cover_Story/BNP_GUID_9-5-2006_A_10000000000000283282

New Atlanta Distribution Center for Caroma High Efficiency Toilets

ecoTransitions Inc., a Watersense Partner, has partnered with Caroma USA to distribute WaterSense labeled high-efficiency toilets (HET) in Georgia.February 2008 – ecoTransitions encourages Georgians to actively conserve water and decrease their monthly water bills by offering high efficiency Dual Flush toilets. From its newly opened Distribution Center, ecoTransitions broadens the selection of water conserving toilets available in Atlanta.  “In a time of a dwindling water supply in Georgia, it is time to look at the No. 1 water-wasting feature in every house”, said ecoTransisions owner and Georgia resident Andrea Paulinelli. “Toilets are still the biggest water users in our homes. When we think about conserving water and long term savings, retrofitting our toilets is the single best solution.” Most of ecoTransitions Caroma High Efficiency Toilets (HET) are listed on EPA’s Watersense list and qualify for the rebates currently offered by many counties and the City of Atlanta. Because water use reduction is an integral part of LEED™, credits can be obtained as well. Caroma toilets employ an integrated dual flush mechanism, letting the user select either a full flush (1.6gpf) or a half flush (0.8gpf). The patented technology can save up to 72% (approx. 18,000 gallons) of annual water usage compared to the traditional 3.5-gallon flush and up to 40% (approx. 4600 gallons) compared to today’s standard 1.6-gallon single flush toilets. A sophisticated redesigned bowl and a larger 4 inch trap allow waste to easily be pushed down with less water. The larger trap way eliminates clogs caused by excessive paper waste in the bowl. Other key strengths include: Elegant Design – Contemporary European design fits with just about any bathroom décor. Well-rounded corners and an easy closing seat provide easy cleaning. Installer-friendly – most Caroma US toilets can be roughed in at 10″ to 12″ with the use of a plastic offset connector. A larger footprint makes for easier replacement of old toilets. Virtually Maintenance Free – Dual Flush Technology eliminates the need for flapper, ball cock, chain and handle failure issues. Complete Fixture Range – The current US line includes a mix of toilets and lavatories for residential and commercial applications. ecoTransitions Inc.

 

Visit www.ecotransitions.com or email Sales@ecotransitions.com for more info, Contact: Andrea Paulinelli, ceo