I would not want to live in a world where tighty is not righty and loosey is not lefty.

[Elok]

It works with any liquid flowing out of any container.

The Coriolis effect, sure, but we were talking about testing toilets specifically. Er, weren't we? Anyway, I'm not going north of the equator anytime soon.

[MikeH]

The toilets thing is just an instance of the coriolis effect.

[Elok]

Yes, but between the angled injection and the unusual shape, wouldn't the Mythbusters be terribly disappointed if I "tested" this with something other than a toilet? Come to think of it, they probably already tested this. And I bet Kari was involved...but Youtube doesn't have it. Here's the search results for "Mythbusters coriolis":

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mythbusters+coriolis&oq=mythbusters+coriolis&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&gs_sm=e&gs_upl=1330l5616l0l5977l20l19l0l8l5l0l262l1845l3.4.4l11l0

[MikeH]

They'd probably rule it out because it's too boring and you'd have to travel to the equator, so it's expensive.

If it involved the shrapnel from an toilet that's exploding as it's hit by a rocket car flying in a different direction above and below the equator, then I think they might be up for it.

[Hauldren Collider]

The toilets thing is just an instance of the coriolis effect.

I'm pretty sure this actually isn't true.

[Hauldren Collider]

Think about it--the coriolis effect applies to tropical storms, some of the largest weather patterns that exist. They are like 1000 km in diameter or so. Drains are tiny. There's no way the coriolis effect could have a measurable impact.

[Elok]

I seem to recall reading somewhere (Straight Dope?) that the toilet-water thing is a myth; the Coriolis Effect is too slight to be noticeable, and most toilets inject water at an angle that would overcome any natural predilection anyway.

Yes, it is a myth.

And any people you see demonstrating this on the equator, are charlatans who angle the bowl slightly to create the effect.

Does reading the thread first have an effect, HC?

[Tuberski]

Toilets in Australia flowed the same direction as they do in America.

ACK!

[Hauldren Collider]

Does reading the thread first have an effect, HC?

Yes. Probably.

[Elok]

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/149/do-bathtubs-drain-counterclockwise-in-the-northern-hemisphere

[MikeH]

Think about it--the coriolis effect applies to tropical storms, some of the largest weather patterns that exist. They are like 1000 km in diameter or so. Drains are tiny. There's no way the coriolis effect could have a measurable impact.

As Elok pointed out, that's what I'm arguing, but your logic is wrong.

That's equivalent to saying :

Tropical storms are affected by gravity, drains are tiny there's no way gravity could have a measurable impact.

[MikeH]

The magnitude of coriolis forces on such as small scale ARE tiny compared to other small variations in the water in the bowl. Theoretically in ultra perfect conditions, you could get this to work. It just doesn't happen in the real world.

[Hauldren Collider]

The magnitude of coriolis forces on such as small scale ARE tiny compared to other small variations in the water in the bowl. Theoretically in ultra perfect conditions, you could get this to work. It just doesn't happen in the real world.

Yes, this is what I meant. Obviously it has an impact in the absence of other effects.

[Aeson]

We just need giant toilets that flush with mist.

[MikeH]

Mist is german for sh1t, pun intentional?