: I was wondering, in North America, in which directions do toilets flush?Eric, the sarcastic answer to your question is DOWN. However, the water swirls in a clockwise direction in any gravity drain in the Northern hemisphere. I had the great pleasure of visiting Sydney, Australia last year, and that was the first thing that I investigated when I arrived at my sons home. The toilet in his home was the type that is different than most toilets in the USA. Most toilets in the USA operate on the principle of a syphon. When his toilet is flushed, there is a cataclysmic inrush of water, and the water just does not swirl. So instead of finding a syphonic flush toilet, I just filled the lavatory with water, and then pulled the plug. Sure enough, the water swirls in a counter clockwise direction South of the equator. I wonder how much water is wasted by visitors from the Northern hemisphere visiting the Southern hemisphere, and vice versa, who simply must test this natural phenomena. JWA
