According to the latest report from Pew, 1.6 million Americans lack indoor plumbing. This leads one to ask: do they lack toilets, pipes, or sinks?
The latest American Community Survey, according to Christopher Ingraham of the Washington Post, counted nearly 630,000 households from Maine to California without working indoor plumbing. A map of no-plumbing spots points to several counties in Texas, namely counties traversed by the Rio Grande River. Duval County reportedly has the most number of households without plumbing in Texas.
“According to the latest American Community Survey, nearly 630,000 occupied households lack complete plumbing facilities, which means that they are without one or more of the following: a toilet, a tub or shower, or running water.”
Most, if not all, of these households still operate outhouses. These structures collect solid and liquid waste in a chamber underneath the toilet seat, which is manually removed to dispose of its contents and cleaned before use. Outhouses are the toilets of choice in areas where the nearest water source is many miles away.
The modern toilet virtually delegated that chore to history, as it can dispose waste with just the push of the lever or a button. The cleaning part, however, still remains as even modern toilets need some good old scrubbing and disinfecting every now and then. Suburbs close to major cities such as Austin enjoy the comforts of modern plumbing, being close to sewage plants and all.
In any case, plumbers in Austin, TX from a company like Pure Plumbing Service can’t stress the importance of fully functional indoor plumbing systems well enough. Even an off-grid system needs a network of pipes to deliver water and wastewater in and out of the house respectively. These pipes dispose of waste from toilets and drains so you don’t have to.
Some homes deep in the woods or on the plains still rely on indoor plumbing. Pipes and valves close the distance between a rural cabin and the closest plumbing network or source of water. Unless you fancy making round trips to the river carrying barrels, indoor plumbing is a must for any home, rural or urban. Whether you operate on or off the grid, leave major plumbing concerns to a professional Austin plumber.
(Source: “1.6 million Americans don’t have indoor plumbing. Here’s where they live,” The Washington Post, April 23, 2014)
