Using less water at home is an easy way to save some money. Replacing a 20-year-old toilet with a new model that carries the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's WaterSense label, for instance, can save you 16,000 gallons of water and $99 a year, according to the EPA.

That's because to qualify for WaterSense, toilets like the Kohler Cimarron Class Six model must use 20 percent less water than a standard low-flow toilet. They achieve these savings by a 1.28-gallon flush for liquid waste and a 1.6-gallon flush for solids. (Some models use 1.28 gallons for both.)

The first-generation of low-flow toilets got low marks from consumers. And older Class Five toilets, for example, fell short when it came to cleaning the bowl after bulk flushes, explains a Kohler spokesperson. But according to Kohler, the rim-jet flow on the company's Class Six toilets has been redirected in an effort to improve bowl cleaning.

Kohler's $360 Cimarron Comfort Height toilet (shown) is available at home centers and in showrooms nationwide. We will be testing this toilet as part of report slated for our August 2009 issue.—Ed Perratore