Thoughts on Home Urinals

A few years back, some people were installing home urinals primarily to make some type of design statement, make their bathrooms stand out, or have something nobody else had in their bathrooms.

Very often, these were unusual looking urinals, nothing like what we see in public restrooms.  Typically, they were colorful, uniquely designed urinals, looking like giant frogs, fish heads, snails, even cactus plants.

Today, however, we are finding more and more urinals installed in home bathrooms, but now they are no longer a fashion or décor statement.  Instead, they invariably look just like the urinals installed in men's public restrooms, and are installed for very practical purposes.

The following are stories about some men that have installed home urinals in their homes and their thoughts about them:

Kris Karnsworth, Oklahoma

The master bathroom of the home Kris purchased in 2013, had the typical bathroom arrangement: two sinks, toilet, bathtub, and a separate shower.  When updating the bathroom, he realized, as many people do, it's been ages since he took a bath.  So why go through the process – and the added costs - of installing a fancy bathtub.  Instead, "we punched out one wall and put in a big shower.  We had this drain leftover from where the old shower used to be, so I had the idea of putting in a urinal.  We had the space and the plumbing for it."

Now that the home urinal is installed, Kris says it offers many conveniences, "no one must worry about putting up or down the toilet seat, and it just seems to make sense.  It wasn't like it was some statement or anything, it just works for us."

Jerry of Arizona

Jerry and his wife also remodeled their master bathroom. “One night, my wife woke up at 3 a.m. with what she called an ‘epiphany.’ The next morning, she told me, ‘We’re not going to have a bathtub, we’re going to have a urinal!’ I didn’t say anything.  She’d already made up her mind.”

It was a good idea Jerry decided not to say anything.  It turns out that purchasing and installing the urinal would only cost about $500. To purchase and install the extravagant bathtub under consideration, would have been around $10,000.

Now, years later, Jerry still thinks installing the home urinal was a wise decision. “I’m fortunate enough that I live in a nice house. I’ve worked hard for it over my years, and the house has a lot of nice features, but I tell you, [when people come over], the number one thing they always talk about is that urinal. They love it.”

Curt Slater, Minnesota

When Curt and his wife were remodeling their home's basement, they both made a list of the things they would like to have installed.  At the top of his wife's list was a rock fireplace.  At the top of his list was a home urinal.

"See, before, whenever I had my buddies over, my wife would remark about how sloppy we all were, and now with the urinal, it cuts down on the splashing, and it's much easier to clean. It also just looks like a nicer bathroom with the urinal in there."

Apparently, his buddies and their wives agreed. "I put my home urinal in seven years ago, and since then, I know nine other people who have put urinals in their homes after seeing mine," adding "now my wife has her rock fireplace, I have my urinal, and everyone is happy."

Some of these home urinals were traditional, water-using urinals, while others were waterless urinals.  When it comes to costs, flexibility, and practicality, installing a waterless urinal is typically the best option.  They have fewer plumbing needs, are invariably less costly, and easier to install.

For more information on how to reduce water consumption, waterless urinals, and to use water more efficiently, contact a Waterless Co Specialist

Does This Mean Boeing Is Going Waterless?

In January 2020, the United States Patent and Trademark Office published an application for a “waterless urinal” and “waterless urinal cartridge.” This typically would not be news.

Because the market for no-water urinals is expected to grow significantly over the next decade, several restroom fixture manufacturers are jumping into the no-water urinal marketplace.

However, this application was different. Instead of being from a restroom fixture manufacturer, it was from Boeing, the company that makes passenger airliners. An abstract from the patent office referencing the application reads as follows:

A waterless urinal cartridge for waterless urinals includes a housing and a cover. The housing includes a waste reservoir configured to hold a predetermined volume of wastewater, and a drainage aperture configured so that an amount of wastewater exceeding the predetermined volume of wastewater flows through the drainage aperture to exit the housing.

But why the patent and why are they doing this?

Boeing is planning on installing urinal-only restrooms in some future airliners. It is believed that by installing urinal-only bathrooms, airlines will be able to carry a few more passengers when air travel returns to normal.

But why waterless urinals? The answer to that is Boeing discovered the following facts about waterless urinals that many building owners and managers are already aware of:

Waterless urinals tend to be less costly to purchase than traditional urinals. Primarily, this is because there are so many fewer parts.

They are less costly to install. A waterless urinal needs to be connected to the sewage pipe. That is all. No water or water connections are required nor the plumbing that comes along with them. On an airliner, the waterless urinals would be connected to an onboard reservoir that holds wastewater until it can be emptied at an airport.

Waterless urinals are most likely lighter than traditional urinals. While weight is rarely an issue when a no-water urinal is installed in a building, weight is everything on an airliner. The more weight the plane can shed, the more fuel-efficient it is. It’s highly likely that Boeing had their own form of “weigh-in,” and found waterless urinals, because of their fewer plumbing needs, came in lighter.

Because waterless urinals have fewer plumbing requirements, there is greater flexibility as to where they are installed. Boeing probably found this to be a significant plus.

Waterless urinals are easy to clean. Whether installed onboard a plane or in a restroom, in most cases, a waterless urinal just needs to be wiped clean using an all-purpose cleaner. A disinfectant can also be used once the urinal has been cleaned, adhering to cleaning “best practices.” However, no abrasive powder cleaners are necessary. Usually, powder cleaners are used to remove water stains and spots. These do not develop with a waterless urinal.

No-water urinals tend to be odor-free. It is water combined with urine, which increases the chances that bacteria will develop in the interior of the urinal. Without water, bacteria cannot survive, minimizing if not eliminating the opportunity that odors will develop.

Most men are accustomed to using waterless urinals now, unlike a decade or more ago when a sign had to be posted—“use it and then walk away.” Today, most gentlemen have used no-water urinals at school, in the office, at trade conventions and elsewhere. In fact, they are so accustomed to them, they often wonder why more facilities do not install waterless urinals.

Let’s Not Be Shy: Let’s Talk About Paruresis

About twenty million of us suffer from what is known as paruresis.  The dictionary definition of Paruresis is an inability to urinate in the presence of others (as in a public restroom) and/or the fear of being unable to initiate or sustain urination when other people are nearby.

Often it refers only to men who have trouble urinating in urinals in a public restroom. For men, it is sometimes known as “shy bladder.”

But women can experience it too. For them, it is a generalized anxiety about going into and using a public restroom.

By the way, the word anxiety is an important word. There is usually nothing physically wrong with someone who suffers from paruresis—it is a fear or mental condition.

In a worst-case scenario, it may prevent people from socializing and keep students from going to school; it may compel someone to go home from an office or workplace to use the bathroom and then return to work; or force someone to avoid different forms of travel, especially in an airplane.

In milder cases, persons suffering from paruresis simply may wait until a public restroom is empty. Once it is empty, they feel comfortable using the restroom.

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Many people who have suffered with paruresis for a long time have become very clever about coping with it and creating workarounds. If they get a new job, start a new school, stay at a hotel or attend a convention, for instance, the first thing they do is scour the building, looking for a little used or one-toilet restroom. Then they feel safe and their anxiety dissipates.

As to what it’s like to suffer from paruresis, most sufferers say their heart starts beating fast, and they start hyperventilating, sweating, shaking and in some cases even fainting. Just walking by a restroom entrance can trigger some of these reactions.

Because it is an anxiety, it typically is the result of something we learned or experienced while growing up. Talking about it can help. Often people with shy bladder say they remember being teased or harassed in public restrooms. Others remember a parent or a friend embarrassing them in a restroom.

Sometimes, people take it upon themselves to overcome paruresis. They just force themselves to go into a restroom. But as soon as they are in the restroom, the anxieties surface. Sometimes they get sick in front of others in the restroom, embarrass themselves, and usually regret the entire experience. According to doctors who have investigated this mental condition, what often happens next is that it is even harder to go into the restroom than before.

So, what can be done about it?

If someone is really having problems, doctors will prescribe Xanax or Valium. However, these drugs are now tightly controlled, so they typically can only be used in an emergency, for instance, when flying long distances on a plane.

Sometimes drugs that relax the bladder are given. For many men, the problem is not that they can't enter the restroom. The problem is they just stand at the urinal or toilet, unable to use it. These types of drugs often help ease urination.

But what might be the best course of action is what we mentioned earlier, and that is, talking about it. This is not considered a complex mental condition. In fact, psychologists who treat people with paruresis say it typically requires only six to ten office visits.

The Urology Care Foundation estimates that with just these few therapy sessions, possibly supplemented with drug therapy, 85 of 100 people can control their shy bladder problems.

Strange but True: Three Things You Probably Never Knew About Urinals

Photo by Ant Rozetsky on Unsplash

Urinals and the Industrial Revolution

Something many of us may not know is that urinals helped foster the Industrial Revolution

When the Industrial Revolution began in the 1800s, industrialists were putting up factories as fast as they could. They were also looking for ways to squeeze as much space out of each factory so it could be better utilized for manufacturing.

It was mostly men working in the factories at that time, and a factory could have a couple of hundred, possibly a couple of thousand, men working in it. Many large restrooms scattered throughout the building would be necessary, and all those restrooms took up a lot of space.

But then someone came up with an idea: What if we remove some toilets and installed more urinals in each restroom? That would cut the size of the restrooms significantly, creating more factory floor space. As a result, the standard restroom of the day, with rows of toilets, was eliminated. It was replaced with what we are more accustomed to seeing, a men’s restroom with a combination of toilets and urinals, which is far more space efficient.

Urinal as Art

Did you know that a urinal was once submitted to an art society as a work of art? Yup, in 1917, the French artist Marcel Duchamp submitted a urinal to the Society of Independent Artists in New York. He believed urinals should be viewed as an “artistic concept,” and not just a piece of craftsmanship to be used for a specific purpose.

To make his point, Duchamp submitted his urinal upside down. What’s more, he did not even call it a urinal; he titled it "The Fountain." Plus, get this, he signed it R. Mutt, 1917.

Was he trying to be funny? Was he making a joke of this prestigious organization, which still exists more than a century later?

Well, the New York art world certainly did not think it was a joke. According to one reviewer of Duchamp’s upside-down urinal, it:

Reflects the dynamic nature of art today and the idea that the creative process that goes into a work of art is the most important thing, the work itself can be made of anything and can take any form.

But, that’s not the end of the story. The Fountain, otherwise known as an upside-down urinal, got incorporated into a style of art now known as DADA-ism. According to one definition, this form of art is characterized by a rejection of traditional art forms, especially those of the Victorian age still popular at that time. DADA-ism is “anti-art” that throws traditions out the window. Whatever the case, now you know a urinal was once viewed as a work of art and started an art revolution to boot.

The Waterless Revolution

Unbelievably, there were not that many restroom innovations in the 20th century. True, the design of fixtures changed a little over time.

Instead of large urinals built into the wall of a restroom, smaller urinals were installed on the wall. Sensor-controlled fixtures were introduced in the 1950s, but they were not commercially available until the 1980s. Even then, their popularity was limited because they were often costly devices; they did not always work well; and they needed to be repaired frequently.

Fast forward to 1991.

Waterless Co., Inc. introduces waterless urinals to the United States. This was quite an achievement. It was not until waterless urinals were introduced that we realized just how much water was wasted flushing urinals worldwide. Billions of gallons were lost in a world where water was getting increasingly scarce.

Now we know a bit more about urinals. They helped build this country by addressing the needs of the Industrial Revolution; they were viewed as a piece of art; and now they are saving billions of gallons of water every year. I bet if toilets knew about this, boy, would they be jealous.

For more information on how to reduce water consumption, waterless urinals, and to use water more efficiently, contact a Waterless Co Specialist

The Why’s of Reducing Water Consumption

Here at Waterless Co. Inc., we are always discussing why we must reduce water consumption and take steps to use water more efficiently and wisely. The reasoning behind this seems obvious: water is our most precious resource. In times of drought, it can become very finite, making the need to reduce consumption even more critical.

However, let's look at the big picture. What are some of the key reasons we should reduce water consumption and make it a lifestyle, in our personal and professional lives going forward? 

Among the reasons are the following:

Photo by Ishan @seefromthesky on Unsplash

Population Growth

In 1950, 2.5 billion people were living in the world. By 1970, that jumped to 3.7 billion. In 1990, 5.2 billion people were living on our planet. By 2020, it is estimated we have now crossed over the eight billion mark. 

In other words, there are nearly four times more people alive today than 70 years ago. Now I ask you, have our freshwater supplies increased four times during this period? No, at best, they have stayed the same. Therefore we must use water much more efficiently, conservatively, and develop more technologies that help us do this.

Rising Costs.

Since 2007, the cost of water in the San Diego area has doubled. In Chicago, water and sewer rates are almost four times more today than a decade ago. Since 2007, the cost of water in New York City has increased by approximately 80 percent.

See a trend here? Water rates will continue to go up around the country, and because the Federal government is only offering states minimal help – at this time – in updating their water infrastructure, expect these rates to go up even more in the future. If we reduce water consumption, we still will be paying more for water. But we will be paying far less than if we had taken no steps to reduce consumption.

Political Conflict

Most experts believe that the demand for water will exceed availability by 2040. It may even come sooner due to climate change. What happens when there are water shortages? Among other things, food scarcities occur, electricity is limited, economic activity is negatively impacted, and governments become unstable. When all of these dominoes start falling, conflict is often the outcome. We already have border conflicts in the US, Africa and South America.

Chemical Use

All the water we use at home or in buildings becomes effluent and flows to treatment facilities. We need filters and chemicals to clean our effluent so it can become irrigation water or is sent to rivers and oceans. We need to reduce chemical use everywhere and reducing the amount of water we use reduces the amount of chemicals used.

The Environment

Many water utility companies in the U.S. use natural gas, petroleum, and some still use coal to power their operations. While natural gas is the cleanest source, all produce pollution, and they do so in such large quantities that it is harming the environment. We sometimes forget, but it takes energy to deliver and remove water from homes and commercial facilities as well as use huge amounts of energy to treat effluent.

If we reduce water consumption, we can help reduce the power needs of water utilities, helping to reduce the amount of greenhouse gasses released into the atmosphere. We could call this an example of “positive” dominos falling.

Using water more efficiently and responsibly requires forethought and strategy. In commercial facilities, look to where you are using the most water. Unless your building has large landscaped areas, most water is used in the restrooms. That's an excellent place to start looking for ways to reduce consumption.

For homeowners there are only three words they need to reduce water consumption: aerators, aerators, aerators.

Installing aerators in faucets and showers can cut water consumption dramatically. And because most aerators only cost about $2.00 and can be installed in minutes, the return on the investment starts in seconds. 

Hard to beat that.

For more information on how to reduce water consumption, waterless urinals, and to use water more efficiently, contact a Waterless Co Specialist

Plumbing problems due to the coronavirus pandemic is possible

While millions of people are under orders to stay home amid the coronavirus pandemic, water is sitting in the pipes of empty office buildings and gyms, getting old and potentially dangerous.

When water isn’t flowing, organisms and chemicals can build up in the plumbing. It can happen in underused gyms, office buildings, schools, shopping malls and other facilities. These organisms and chemicals can reach unsafe levels when water sits in water pipes for just a few days. But, what happens when water sits for weeks or months?

Photo by Wilhelm Gunkel on Unsplash

There are no long-term studies of the risks and only minimal guidance to help building owners prepare their water for use again after a long shutdown.

As researchers involved in building water safety, we study these risks and advise building owners and public officials on actions they can take to reduce the potential for widespread waterborne disease. A new paper highlights these issues and our concerns that the COVID-19 stay-at-home orders may increase the chance of harmful water exposure when people return.

What happens when water gets old?

To find out, click here to read more on GreenBiz.com.

Warnings of bacteria lurking in water systems while buildings are empty

Stagnant water inside buildings can become a spawning ground for potentially lethal bacteria, including Legionella, Portland city officials warned.

Legionella can cause Legionnaires’ diseases, a kind of pneumonia.

"Water delivered to your building by the Portland Water Bureau is safe to drink and is not impacted by the COVID-19 virus," a city press release stated.

"However, reduced occupancy of buildings, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic, can lead to poor water quality and increase the risk related to Legionella bacteria," the release stated. "Water that sits in pipes for long periods of time without flushing can have negative impacts on water quality and human health."

To read more, click here to read the article on Portland Business Journal.

Should You Select Waterless Urinals? These Questions May Help You Answer that Question

Most building owners and managers realize the value waterless urinals bring to the table. They know they reduce water consumption, often dramatically, which in turn can reduce energy and operating costs. However, while the benefits are recognized, many still question if they are needed in their facilities.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

To help address this, we have prepared the following ten questions building owners and managers should ask themselves. (TIP: If you answer yes to five or more, waterless urinals should be a consideration)

Pencils and paper ready?  Here are the questions:

1.  Are there 50 or more males using your facility each day? While there would be benefits in both water and operating cost savings, it would likely not be enough to warrant installing no-water urinals with fewer than ten males?

2.  Have you been asked to reduce water consumption in the past three years? In most cases, if utility companies have asked you to cut back on water use at least once in the past few years, you can expect to be asked to do so again and possibly scale back even more in the future. In such cases, a long-term water reduction strategy, including installing waterless urinals, is recommended.

3.  Have your water and sewer rates been going up substantially? The keyword here is “substantially.” While the average water increase in the U.S. is about three percent per year, some areas have witnessed far more significant increases. If your water bill has been going up substantially, waterless urinals is one way to keep them in check.

4.  Do you expect more tenants moving into your facility? As a result of COVID, many employees are working remotely, which may continue once "shelter in place" orders have been lifted. Unless you are expecting more tenants to move in, at this time, it might be best to hold off on any restroom retrofits until the future is a bit clearer

5.  Are you renovating your restrooms? If so, water-reducing strategies should be high on your list. In such cases, waterless urinals, again should be considered.

6.  Are you seeking LEED certification? One of the easiest ways to earn water-related credits for LEED certification is by installing waterless urinals.

7.  Related to this, is your facility looking for ways to operate more sustainably? Water reduction strategies constitute a significant part of building sustainability, making the installation of waterless urinals something to consider.

8.  Are tax rebates or incentives being offered in your state for installing water-reducing fixtures? The return on installing waterless urinals is about one to two years. If tax rebates or other incentives are available, this can be reduced by a few months if not fully paid depending on the amount of the incentive.

9.  Does your facility use more water than comparable sized properties? Many water utilities are now comparing your facility to similar ones as to water consumption. While many factors can impact how much water one facility uses compared to another, if yours is using considerably more water than others of similar size and occupancy, this should be investigated. Highly likely, others have installed low/water and no/water restroom fixtures.

10. Ready to select waterless urinals?  If not, do not install waterless urinals until you are sure they will prove useful for your facility. Talk to a distributor or contact a major manufacturer of no-water urinals. Bring your questions and concerns with you. These urinals are designed to last for years. Selecting waterless urinals should not be a cost; instead, we want to make sure you view them as a long-term investment.

For more information on how to reduce water consumption, waterless urinals, and to use water more efficiently, contact a Waterless Co Specialist

What We Can Learn from a Water Audit

Many of us know what a water audit is. In simplest terms, it involves finding everywhere that water is being used in a facility. However, what is not always discussed is what we do with the results once an audit is conducted.

For instance, a high-rise condominium conducted a water audit. As is happening throughout the country, their water and sewer bills have been skyrocketing and they were looking for ways to reduce these costs.  

Further, if water bills are going up, this can cause monthly assessments to go up and this applies to hot water as well. If hot water is not being used efficiently, it means the association's utility bill may be impacted, further increasing assessments.

To conduct the water audit, engineers went into each apartment unit, counted how many faucets, toilets, showers, bathtubs, and other water-using fixtures were installed throughout the entire building. One of the first things they discovered was that the number of fixtures installed in the building did not correlate with the original architectural plans for the building back in 1960.

Over the years, with renovations, many more bathrooms had been added. Now they knew precisely how many fixtures were installed.  The water audit also uncovered the following:

• Many fixtures were older, possibly installed when the building was new sixty years ago. This is important information because older fixtures are not water efficient, contributing to the high water bills.

• They found leaks galore. Many were uncovered that tenants had no idea existed. Repairing these would make a big dent in water consumption.

• Some of the bathrooms and kitchens had DIY (do it yourself) fixture installations. This raised alarm bells because many DIY installations are not up to code, often not installed correctly, or are prone to leakage.

• Many of the fixtures, both new and old, were not working properly. This could also contribute to the escalating water and sewer bills.

With this and other information collected, the complex now had a good idea of where water was being used, wasted, the types of fixtures installed, and the age of the fixtures. They also now had a benchmark they could use to track their future progress in reducing water consumption and related costs.

Armed with this information, the condo association took the following steps:

·       Building engineers were brought in to fix leaks.

·       Because there were so many old fixtures in the building, including many original fixtures, the association gave unit owners 18 months to replace those fixtures with new, water-efficient fixtures.

·       Individual water metering systems were installed. Before, none of the tenants knew how much water they were using. Now, they would know.

·       Taking this a step further, water consumption in each unit was compared to consumption in comparable units. The belief was that aware of this comparison, tenants would reduce water consumption.

·       Finally, the association wanted all tenants to know how much water the entire building was using and what it was costing.  

The ultimate result of the water audit was that over a two-year period, water consumption was reduced by over 15 percent. This reduction in water consumption helped lower water bills, lower utility bills, and kept monthly assessments from going up. 

Further, the tenants felt a camaraderie.  They were all proud to have helped make this happen.

For more information on how to reduce water consumption, waterless urinals, and to use water more efficiently, contact a Waterless Co Specialist

“Nudging” People to Reduce Water Consumption

More countries are working with their citizens to become mindful of the amount of water they consume, with the goal of reducing consumption.  This is proving increasingly necessary because even though water-reducing or water eliminating technologies, such as waterless urinals, have lowered consumption dramatically around the world, there is another factor that must be added to the mix.  To make lasting reductions in water consumption and use water more efficiently, we need to change behaviors.

However, changing behaviors is not easy.  During a serious drought, consumers often adhere to consumption restrictions and do reduce water use.  However, when there appears to be no specific reason to reduce consumption, changing behaviors can be much more difficult.

To see what we mean, let’s visit a small town in Costa Rica called Belen. This is a working-class community of just over 20,000 people.  This area of Costa Rica is being impacted by climate change.  The result is that water is not as plentiful as it was a decade ago. Further, to upgrade the water infrastructure to improve supplies would be very costly.

While the community ultimately was “nudged” into reducing water consumption, it took a while.  Some of the obstacles civic leaders encountered were the following:

While people living in Belen realized the community had to reduce water consumption, most people did not believe that meant they had to cut water use. “If someone were to suggest to me that I reduce the amount of water consumed, I would tell him that I am using the amount that is necessary,” was the reply of one resident.  In other words, most people in

Belen thought someone else had to reduce consumption, but not them.

Most of the residents had no idea how much water they were using. Some water bills were mailed out monthly, others quarterly, and still others every few months.  While people knew how much their water bill tended to be with each billing, they paid little or no attention to how this dollar amount translated into gallons.  In other words, they had no idea how much water they were using.

Most residents said their bills were confusing, if not impossible to understand.  The amounts were often listed in cubic meters, and these numbers were mixed with dates and other figures.

Some residents could read their water bills and did know how much water they were using on a set basis. However, they had no idea how this compared to their neighbors. 

Finally, while residents of Belen assumed if they watered their lawns less or took shorter showers, this would reduce water consumption.  But what they did not know is by how much.  Would they save more water if all family members took three-minute showers or was it better to just water lawns every three days instead of every other day?  

For many of us, this might all seem interesting and reflect issues in a country thousands of miles away.  However, if we look more closely, virtually every obstacle discussed here applies to us as well.

For instance:

·        Do you believe you are doing your part, and reducing water consumption, or is it someone else’s problem?

·        Do you know how much water your home uses every day?

·        Can you understand your water bill?

·        Do you pay it without looking to see how much water is being used in your home or facility?

·        If you were a building manager and had to decide between installing “native” vegetation, which uses less water, or retrofitting the facility with waterless urinals, do you know which would produce the most significant water savings?

If we are going to change water consumption behaviors, whether in Costa Rica or the U.S., we must have a much better understanding of our behavior when it comes to water. Water use behaviors can change, but the first step in the process is awareness.

For more information on how to reduce water consumption, waterless urinals, and to use water more efficiently, contact a Waterless Co Specialist