Older 3.5 gallon per flush (gpf) toilets used plenty of (you might even say too much) water to move waste through drainlines down to the sewer system, but as 1.6 and even 1.28 gpf toilets become the norm, some reports emerged questioning whether the reduced amount of water was enough to power waste effectively through the pipes underground.

Studies to date have found that the reduced water flow is not to blame. A drainline carry study performed in Australia at locations deemed to be of “above average” difficulty in terms of drainline length and slope (or lack there of) found that water saving toilets caused no blockages. Other studies have demonstrated that poor drainline installation is the main cause of sewer back-ups, including rough joints, debris from construction being left in the pipe, and even lengths of pipe that slope the wrong way.

A new study by the Plumbing Efficiency Research Coalition is scheduled to begin early this year, thanks in part to a generous donation of test apparatus by American Standard Brands. With water shortages critical in many parts of the world, and drought forecast for the entire southern tier of the US in 2012, any study that helps build end-user confidence in high-efficiency plumbing will enable this significant water savings to continue, rather than literally sending technical advances in flushing performance “down the drain.”

• 70% of home accidents occur in the bathroom

• Every 2.3 seconds, an adult aged 65 or older suffers a fall

• 40% of those hospitalized from hip fractures do not return home

Whether you are making arrangements to have an aging parent move into your home or simply wish to plan ahead to grow older independently in your own home, incorporating universal design features into your home can be a wise idea. Fortunately, there are many ways to help prevent slips and falls, even while maintaining a stylish and luxurious bathroom.

One task that can be especially dangerous for older adults – and anyone with limited mobility, such as after an injury – is getting in and out of the bathtub. According to a recent report submitted by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, an average of 370 Americans suffer bathtub or shower-related injuries every day.

An increasingly popular solution to this issue is to upgrade to a walk-in bath. Modern walk-in tubs are attractive and available with luxury options like air bath and whirlpool features. The Professor is also impressed by the special Quick Drain option available on American Standard’s line of walk-in baths that drains water from the tub in less than 2 minutes, so there’s no need for a long, cold wait before exiting the tub.

Ready to start making your bathroom a safer, more comfortable place to be? The Professor is pleased to offer the chance to win a single-control JADO Hatteras faucet to help you do just that. The stylish faucet meets the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines and is also WaterSense-certified. For your chance to win, just answer the following questions in the comments. The Professor will choose his favorite response on 2/3/12 as the winner.

Michele Hudec, vice president of product and business development at American Standard, was selected as a panelist because of the company’s water conservation activism, as well as its investment in developing such an impressive selection of stylish, high-performing, water-saving products. American Standard offers the most WaterSense-certified toilets that also achieved the highest MaP score for bulk removal than of any of its competitors. All of American Standard’s bathroom faucets are WaterSense approved, and the FloWise collection of low-flow shower heads are recommended by Consumer Reportsfor their performance and energizing spray. The company also offers a full line of water efficient commercial products including toilets, faucets, and urinals that require a pint of water or less.
Stephanie Thornton from the Environmental Protection Agency’s WaterSense program was also a great guest, as she was able to explain the many benefits of the program. The WaterSense label makes it easy to find water-efficient products and also provides a neutral, third-party verification of a product’s claims about water use and performance. The Professor was impressed to learn that approximately 4,000 products currently carry the WaterSense label. The WaterSense website also offers a “We’re for Water” Pledge, a calculator to help you determine how much water you can save by switching to WaterSense-approved products, and a fun quiz to test your knowledge about water conservation.

For more information about the webinar, watch Practically Green‘s website for a review!

The topic of the day was World Toilet Day, an event designed to raise awareness about the 2.6 billion people on earth – that’s 1/3 of the world population – who do not have access to proper sanitation. Lack of access to toilets lead to diarrhea, disease, and death, and represents a serious problem in the developing world.

This is why engineers are working on “reinventing the toilet” to create a commode that does not require access to a sewer system or clean drinking water for flushing. The Gates Foundation has also created a special program offering grants to engineers to create new toilet prototypes. Dr. Yeh is currently working on a model that uses anaerobic bacteria to digest waste, for example.

The Professor also appreciated the discussion on the challenges faced by toilet designers in the U.S. McHale explained that the main concern at American Standard was to conserve water without sacrificing performance, and discussed the company’s participation in the EPA’s WaterSense program, which promotes water efficient products and encourages water-saving behaviors. The Professor particularly enjoyed McHale’s description of the H2Option siphonic dual flush toilet, an “engineering miracle” that uses smart science on the inside and an EverClean glaze on the outside to ensure that a wasteful “double flush” is never necessary to clean the bowl.

If you missed the original broadcast, you can listen in on the Science Friday podcast page.

Want to do more to support the fight for better sanitation around the world? Donate to the World Toilet Organization now!

Catch the entire Science Friday episode from 2-4 pm. The World Toilet Day feature will start at 3 o’clock.

Follow the link above to find out what stations in your area will be broadcasting the show, or to listen online. In the meantime, check out the great toilet videos that are already posted on the website. And check back soon for the Professor’s recap on the show.

Even fun and fulfilling things in your life can be causes of stress. Traveling is fun, but, as the Family Focus Blogger points out, it can also be tough on your back and shoulders. Working your way through school is something to be proud of but is hardly an easy or relaxing thing to do, as both Amanda of Nutritionist Reviews and Holly of Home Style Tips could tell you. And while it goes without saying that top bloggers enjoy maintaining their websites and attending events related to their field of interest, a recent story from Xenia of Thanks, Mail Carrier illustrates that even these enjoyable things aren’t stress-free.

And then there’s the stress that the Professor knows a lot about: the stress of fixing things around the house and taking care of your home. Katie of MommyKatie.com noted that the stress can get even worse after she struggles to fix something only to have her husband step in and make it look easy. The Professor believes in tackling small projects first – installing a hand held shower head like the Monoglide is an extra easy task that just about anyone can do, for example!

The Professor also sends his warmest wishes to Rose of Networking Witches and to Bridget of It’s My Life who are both working through very tough years! Here’s hoping 2012 will be full of hot showers and roses for you both. And to Rachel of Second Time Around, the Professor hopes your little dog is OK! Sounds like you both could use some relaxing – and cleansing! – time in the shower.

The first step is to remove the existing shower head with an adjustable wrench.

Then, apply teflon tape to the threads of the shower arm.

Next you will use your adjustable wrench to install the shower bracket to the shower arm until the water outlet faces down toward the tub or shower. The bracket is where your Monoglide hand held shower head will hang.

Finally, hand tighten the larger end of the metal hose to the Monoglide hand held shower head and attach the other end to the water outlet on the bracket.

Last step: enjoy a soothing shower with your new multi-function Monoglide hand held shower head to celebrate a job well done!

• If you’ll pardon the pun, the Professor’s hands-down favorite innovation is American Standard’s hands-free dual flush toilet valve. The way it works is that the Selectronic dual flush toilet valve releases a light flush of 1.1 gallons when motion is detected for less than 60 seconds. A standard 1.6 gpf volume is used when motion is detected for 60 seconds or longer.

What’s most exciting to the Professor about all these creative, problem-solving products is the knowledge that even more transformative innovations are still to come. Here’s to a future of cleaner, smarter, more beautiful restrooms for us all.

Note: This post is part of the 2011 Bathroom Blogfest, now in its sixth year. The Professor is thrilled to participate in the blogfest for a third year this year. For more information about the blogfest, visit Bathroom Blogfest. Look for the tag “#BathroomEXP” on flickr, del.icio.us, Technorati, Twitter and Google, or ‘Like’ on Facebook.  A list of participants is below.