Who doesn’t love a good, automated toilet flush? The device is usually activated by the sensor which sits near your pooper. When you break its infrared light beam and send it into action, all of those clogs will be cleared out in no time!
But an automatic toilet flush is costly, so can you make it at home! Let’s see how to make an automatic toilet flush at home…
What is an Automatic Toilet Flush, and how does it work?
The automatic toilet flush is a device that can be installed at the press of a button to flush a toilet automatically.
It is usually activated by an IR sensor that is mounted near the toilet. When the person sitting on the toilet seat breaks the infrared light beam of the sensor, the device will activate and flush the toilet.
This handy little invention will save you time washing up after yourself- no more waiting around with wet hands until someone comes over here, so we don’t get caught trying to do our business right next door (not if they’ve got kids, though!)
When the automatic toilet flusher is activated, there are several things to keep in mind:
1) be sure to hold or balance yourself firmly when the toilet is flushing; 2) do not stand with your feet in or near the sensor when the flush is activated.
The device is activated by the presence of any object or body entering its detection zone. This means if you are close to the detector when it’s being flushed, it may also activate. To avoid this, don’t stand with your feet in or near the detection zone when the flush is activated.
A toilet flushing device of any kind is not a toy. Don’t let your kids play with it or place the sensor of the automatic toilet flusher in an area where your kids can reach it.
· This is because the sensor beam of the toilet flusher is very strong and may cause damage to your eyes when you or your children stare into it directly.
Do not attempt to reset the automatic toilet flusher by inserting objects in its detection zone to unblock the infrared beam. The device is not designed to work this way, and it can cause damage or malfunction if you do so.
Instead, you can manually flush the toilet to unblock the beam.
Be sure that the automatic toilet flusher is installed at a safe height level. It should be installed at a level where your kids can’t reach it.
Dispose of any batteries that are used in the toilet flusher carefully. Do not put them in the trash. Batteries of this type contain mercury and may be hazardous if discarded carelessly.
How To Make An Automatic Toilet Flush?
A DIY Guide on Building an Automatic Toilet Flush and controlling it using a microcontroller.
The idea is simple, the flush mechanism is activated by pushing a button on top of the tank, which rotates a servo motor that pulls a chain to flush.
The water-filled tank will keep the float in position so that it cannot reach the button until enough water has left the tank by flushing.
Then simply let the water fill up again, and the whole thing starts over again.
No cranking, no-touch, nothing! Simply hit a button and then forget about it!
For about 5 bucks, you can make this work for the rest of your life (or until the servo dies).
Here’s a quick video showing how it works:
Materials you’ll need:
1. A water tank (round shape is better, but any will do)
2. Some monofilament line, fishing line works well
3. A small weight (again, if you don’t have it, a washer will work)
4. A servo
5. A microcontroller (unless you prefer to use a relay and an Arduino, but I don’t recommend it as the price difference is minimal, and it’s easier with a microcontroller)
6. Some wire, solder, test leads, etc
7. A small switch
8. 4 wood screws, ~2″ long
9. Some hot glue to hold the switch in place
10. A small piece of wood, around 1″ by 3″, but anything thicker than 1/4″ would be fine
11. A small piece of acrylic or plexiglass at least 4 by 3
12. A battery pack if you don’t have a 12V power supply
13. Maybe a piece of sponge to fit in the tank so that it absorbs sound and doesn’t produce loud sounds when pressing the button
The two main pieces have holes so wiring can pass through them safely without anything getting tugged around inside when moving the whole thing. Try not to use metal wire because it will scratch anything.
This is a simple automatic toilet flush that I designed for my own use but decided to publish on instructables.com.
It is very compact and easy to install. It can flush a tank in 1-2 seconds. You must connect the gravity switch with the black wire to the black wire in the tank and connect the switch with the red wire to the tank’s water supply.
When you push down the switch, power is connected to the LED, which lights up. When you release the switch, it disconnects from the LED and connects to one of the pump switches. The first pump pressurizes the tank, and the second pressurized flush’s the toilet.
You may notice that I originally designed this to use a stepper motor and a control board. It turns out that it is straightforward to just hook up two-directional switches and a power supply to a DC motor and have the same effect.
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What do you do if your automatic toilet won’t flush?
If your automatic toilet won’t flush, a common reason for this is that the water level in the tank is too low, and it has flushed up against the supply valve, stopping water from flowing.
Drain some of the excess water from the tank to get rid of enough weight on top of the supply valve so that it will work again.
Another thing automatic toilet won’t flush, the first thing you should do is check to see if something is blocking the toilet.
If there is, remove the obstruction and try to flush the toilet again. If the issue persists, you may hire a plumber to repair the toilet.
How to install an automatic toilet flusher?
There are several ways to install an automatic toilet flusher.
One way is to use a battery-operated unit that is installed in the tank of the toilet.
Another way is to use a water-powered unit that is installed near the toilet. Although a water-powered unit is more likely to work when there is a power outage, a battery-operated flusher can be installed in the toilet’s tank.
This is useful because the tank will refill after each toilet flush, which can cause a water-powered unit to overflow if it is installed near the toilet.
There are a few things to consider when installing a battery-operated unit in a toilet tank.
1. First, check what size batteries the unit uses. Some use only one battery, while others use four or more. The batteries are usually AA or AAA, so this can be purchased at a store.
2. Consider the size of the unit. Some units are larger while others are smaller. When installing more than one unit, make sure that they are the same size.
3. The installation process. Kits are sold for this purpose, and these can be helpful.
· However, some units have a weight on them that activates the unit when someone sits on the toilet. These types of units do not require installation and can be placed in the toilet tank.
· It is essential to remember that this weight will need to be cleaned periodically.
4. Fourth, consider warranty information. For example, many battery-operated units are covered under warranty for one year.
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How to make an automatic toilet stop flushing?
Here are a few things you can do to make your toilet stop flushing automatically:
1. Ensure your tank lever is fully up. It should be fully closed if you have a push-button or flush valve.
2. Adjust the length of time between flushes. If your toilet flushes every few minutes, switch to a different setting.
3. Add water to the tank if you think there isn’t enough.
4. If you have a dual flush toilet, switch to the half-flush option. It’s not as powerful but is usually more appropriate for most bathrooms.
5. Invest in a low-flow toilet, which uses about 1.6 gallons of water per flush.
6. Switch to the low-flush system, which uses about 1 gallon per flush (GPF). Alternatively, consider getting dual flush; it works on the half-flush system and uses about 1.6 GPF or less for liquid waste and 3.8 GPF or less for solid waste.
7. For double-flush toilets, insert a brick or block into the toilet tank to reduce water flow. You also can buy a device that attaches to the top of your tank and stops the water flow when flushed.
8. Stop flushing every time you use the toilet. You may want to address some of the reasons why you don’t want to use your new system, such as not liking the new feel of the clean bowl.
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Q1. Do all automatic toilets have a manual button?
Most automatic toilets have a manual button, which is used for flushing the toilet manually in case of a power outage or other emergency.