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larrys

Jul 10, 2006, 12:50 PM

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And still another question

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Which will we have in Mexico....the itsy bitcy water-saver toilettes like here in the US....you know....the ones you have to flush twice to get the deisred result?
Or the old-fashioned regular ones I gew up? I'm 51.

esperanza

Jul 10, 2006, 1:16 PM

Post #2 of 8 (1106 views)

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Re: [larrys] And still another question

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You're expecting toilets?

http://www.mexicocooks.typepad.com

Cynthia7

Jul 10, 2006, 1:24 PM

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Re: [esperanza] And still another question

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If she's expecting flush toilets I bet she's expecting toilet paper. too. Maybe rose colored paper. Only kidding..we do have both kinds ..just depends how old the toilet is and where you are. Manufacturing toilets is big business here in Mexico. Toilets are considered a luxury item like a car so they are taxed differently.

NEOhio1

Jul 10, 2006, 2:41 PM

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Re: [Cynthia7] And still another question

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and then there's the seatless issue, or worse the broken, pinchy seat...ouch!!

Gringal

Jul 10, 2006, 3:03 PM

Post #5 of 8 (1079 views)

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Re: [larrys] And still another question

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Are they giving you a hard time again?

I haven't seen any of those water saver toilets around, but if you must install a new one, Kohler makes one that actually does the job in one flush. Some pre-existing toilets have a digestion problem, which is why you see all those plastic lined baskets around. Some sewer systems are so ancient that the baskets are there to make it easier on a senior sewer. So: it depends on where you are moving, how old the sewer system is and how new the house is. We bought a new house on a street with new sewers. It's no baskets and no problemo. So far.

(This post was edited by Gringal on Jul 10, 2006, 3:06 PM)

Rolly

Jul 10, 2006, 3:35 PM

Post #6 of 8 (1062 views)

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Re: [larrys] And still another question

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I have looked at a lot of toilets in several different stores and bought 7 for my various building projects. I have never seen a "water saver" model in Mexico. They may exist, but they sure have evaded me.

Rolly Pirate

jerezano

Jul 11, 2006, 12:43 PM

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Re: [Rolly] And still another question

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Hello,

Water saver toilets exist here in Mexico and can be ordered.

There are several problems with toilets. The first is that the plumber who installed the drainage pipes probably never heard of drainage gradients and installed those pipes level. The second is that the plumber never heard of a vent on the toilet for drainage and gas discharge. Or if he did he installed a 1" pipe rather than the 4" required. The third is that the senior piping mentioned above probably esists throughout the city, especially San Miguel de Allende in my recollection, and will not accept the Mexican toilet paper which is usually not very digestible either. So be prepared for the Mexican custom of a waste basket next to the the toilet; do not put your paper in the toilet and try to flush it. If you insist on doing this anyway be sure to keep the famous hand pump handy to break up the paper jam. You will need it at least once a week.

Another problem is the odor. Without the air vents and with a floor drain that has not been trapped or is dry without its water block, and acting as that necessary vent, the bathroom can stink up a whole house. Buy a rubber mat you can put over the drain, make sure the bathroom door is always kept closed, use lots of deoderant spray. You can at least make the room tolerable. The same problem exists on the shower drain. Many of them are not trapped and act as gas vents. Tub and lavatory overflow drains are a real problem. So you will need a mat or other block over those drains as well. If you are building your own house make sure the plumber or albañil knows what he is doing and puts in the necessary gradients and vents and traps.

Usually the sink and lavatory drains are properly trapped. It is customary to sell the necessary traps along with the sinks. So the unknowing plumber just installs them because they are there, even if he doesn't know why.

Other floor and patio drains can have the same odor problem including the entrance of rats if there is no trap and there is not a heavy or screwed down grill. Those rats can push up a loose aluminum or chrome grill very easily and do so.

Adios. jerezano.

Gringal

Jul 11, 2006, 1:10 PM

Post #8 of 8 (939 views)

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Re: [jerezano] And still another question

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Just a few things about the aromatic subject at hand. San Miguel de Allende finally put their new sewage treatment plant on line last year. I can't say the canal smells like roses yet, but I think some of the newer sewer installations are feeding into the system more directly and thus, have fewer digestive issues. Our drains have not clogged up within the two years of our residence here, basket-free. Downtown it is another matter. There are picturesque streets where the smell would gag a maggot.

What you said about the sewage smell is on point. There are apparently no effective or enforced regulations about venting drains. Our new house by a reputable local builder is pretty typical. No vents, except for the water heater (which is located in a hallway closet of its own. Eeek.) No vent over the gas stove or over the fireplace. It is definitely up to the buyer to notice and perhaps correct these features. I said "perhaps" because the logistics of correcting them in houses with solid brick and cement walls, firmly wedged between their neighbors, may make it impractical. I just open the window in the kitchen when I'm cooking, cover the drains and bought a ridiculously expensive "safety featured, automatic shutoff" fireplace insert last winter. That last is not on topic, but I'd recommend considering it. Carbon monoxide poisoning is all too common in Mexico when the winter chills hit.

(This post was edited by Gringal on Jul 11, 2006, 1:13 PM)