When the Toilet Won't Flush: Sanitation in an Outage

Nobody preps for this part, but it's the first thing that gets ugly in a long outage with no water.

01Flushing with a bucket

If your sewer or septic system is working but you have no water pressure (a well with no power, or a water main break), you can still flush:

1. Fill a bucket with a gallon or two of non-drinking water: rain water, pool water, water from a tub you filled earlier.
2. Pour it quickly into the bowl, not the tank. The rush of water triggers the flush.

That's it. Don't use drinking water for this unless you have plenty.

02How much water a flush uses

Older toilets can use 3 gallons or more per flush. Newer ones use around 1.3 to 1.6 gallons. Either way, it adds up fast. "If it's yellow, let it mellow" is a real rule in an outage.

03When to stop flushing

Stop flushing if:

• The city tells you the sewer system is down or flooded
• Water backs up in drains or the basement floor drain
• You're on a septic system with a pump (lift station) and the pump has no power

Then you need a backup toilet.

04The bucket setup

• A 5-gallon bucket with a toilet seat lid made for it (sold at camping and hardware stores), or the toilet bowl itself with the water bailed out.
• Heavy-duty trash bags, two layers.
• Kitty litter, sawdust, or peat moss to cover waste after each use. It controls smell and moisture.
• A lid and a place to put sealed bags outside until trash pickup.

05Keep it clean

• Hand washing: a jug of water with a spigot, soap, and a basin. Or hand sanitizer when water is short.
• Disinfecting wipes for the seat and handles.
• Gloves for changing bags.

06Pack it now

A bucket, a seat lid, a box of bags, a bag of litter, and toilet paper in one tote in the basement. It costs less than $50 and saves a lot of misery. See the 72-hour kit checklist.

If you're on a well, see well pump and no power.

Photo by jarmoluk on Pixabay.

Related: Water Storage for a Family: How Much and How to Rotate It