How You Can Save Water by Dropping a Brick in the Toilet

With California in a water crisis the San Francisco creative community has come together to launch a self-funded, non-profit, green solution: drop a brick in the toilet tank. Born of tradition and innovation, the Drop-A-Brick movement is a Silicon Valley take on the old tradition of dropping a brick in the toilet tank to displace, and in turn, save water. Only this unique version involves not just any brick, but an ecologically designed and green-friendly brick. 

The Drop-A-Brick movement is the brainchild of a multi-agency collaboration between barrettSF, Level2 Industries, Pre-Future and Tube Media International, four shops representing San Francisco’s advertising, manufacturing, and production industries. The movement is being self-funded through an Indiegogo program launching today, with the goal of reaching every toilet in the state. Through Indiegogo, the bricks are being sold at cost and sponsors can donate bricks to toilets in need.

If 1 million Californian households had a brick, we would save 8 million gallons of water per day.

“It’s rare that a conservation effort can be both wonderfully stupid and totally effective,” says Pete Harvey, director of the Drop-A-Brick spot and Partner/Creative Director at barrettSF. “It’s such a simple and achievable thing. If we all drop a brick in our toilets it will help pull California out of a terrible drought.”

Details on the Drop-A-Brick movement can be found at: www.dropabrick.org. People are encouraged to “drop bricks” in toilets everywhere: at home, work and play. Now there is no reason to be shy about dropping a brick at a friends’ house.

Drop A Brick Practice: then and now

People have been placing bricks in their toilet cisterns for decades. But the practice has always had its problems: namely that clay bricks can start to disintegrate in water and ruin the plumbing. They also tend to be too big to fit in the smaller tanks of most modern toilets without damaging delicate flushing mechanisms.

Long story short, real bricks are not design-optimized for toilets.

The Drop-A-Brick is a safe, easy way to accomplish the same effect. It’s ecologically designed and made of natural rubber. Each brick ships flat and collapsed and weighs less than 8 ounces.  Inside each brick is an eco-friendly hydro-gel that expands dramatically when water is added. With this flexible core it can fit in any commode, won’t crack the toilet or rust like a traditional brick

Full Credits

Agency: barrettSF

Agency Location: San Francisco, CA

Creative Directors: Jamie Barrett, Pete Harvey

Art Director: Martina D’Alessandro, Brad Kayal

Producer: Nicole Van Dawark

Account Manager: Brooks Dennard

Account Intern: Libbie Maine

Sr. Proofreader: Elle Banyo

Production Company: Pre-Future

Director: Pete Harvey

Director of Photography: Joel Jackson

First AD: Jamie Barrett

Grip/Electrical: Gus Hoffman

Sound: Paul Dorough

Line Producer: Nicole Van Dawark

Production Designer: Martina D’Alessandro

Locations Manager: Libbie Maine

Hair & Make-up: Brooks Dennard

Production Assistant: Stefanie Ku

Editorial Company: Pre Future

Editor: Ian Montgomery

Audio Record & Mix: Mark Pitchford, M Squared

Animator: Tom Yaniv

Color Correction & Online: Mark Everson, Everson Digital