In the early 1990s, John Koeller worked on distributing eco-friendly toilets in Southern California to save water, responding to EPA mandates. Though over a million toilets were distributed, they were met with frustration due to inadequate flushing power. People had to flush multiple times for proper waste removal, which countered conservation efforts. Complaints abounded, with some feeling overwhelmed by the cleaning demands. While the initiative aimed to save substantial water, user satisfaction became a key challenge undermining its success.
"Generally, you don't complain about free products," says Koeller. But complain people did. "I've got to double flush my toilets, or triple flush," Koeller recalls people saying, specifically about the problem of removing solid waste.
There was just one problem. Many of the new toilets were—forgive me—downright shitty. People across America were similarly frustrated with these newfangled toilets.
The effort promised to save a staggering amount of water every year, enough to flood 43,000 acres a foot deep—a huge win for water conservation, especially in water-starved California.
I felt I literally lived with a toilet brush in my hand," wrote a disgruntled citizen to an Annapolis forum about the cleaning difficulties with the new toilets.
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