Rex W. Huppke, calls himself the nation’s number one urinalists. And because we can’t find another one, he probably is. Huppke loves urinals, and writes and talks about them all the time.
Recently, he got very involved with what’s happening at Wrigley Field in Chicago, home of the Chicago Cubs. The stadium has new owners who began renovations on the facility back in 2013. Today, most of these updates have been completed, including the men’s restrooms.
According to Huppke, the new owners of the ballpark wanted to keep the traditional urinal experience alive at Wrigley, so they installed “trough” urinals. This type of urinal has been used here and in many other ballparks, schools, correctional facilities, bus stations, and other locations around the country for decades.
Trough urinals, for those that do not know, are typically made of stainless steel, but may be made of porcelain or other materials used to make restroom fixtures. They often are four to six feet long and about 15 inches wide. This allows them to accommodate many fellas all at the same time.
But before deciding to keep them, the new owners of the ballpark wanted to make sure if this is what the fans really wanted. What they did is conduct a survey and found that older men have no problems with what he calls the “communal nature” of the troughs.
Says Julian Green, a Cubs spokesperson, “What we found is that our older male fans not only have no problems with the troughs but [they believe] its part of enjoying the game.”
However, a little more in-depth research found that this was not true for all males. The survey indicated that younger guys, like the Millennials, prefer some privacy. As a result, the new men’s restrooms at Wrigley also provide traditional – partitioned - urinals in men’s restrooms.
Typically, trough urinals release a set amount of water on a continuous basis or flush automatically, based on a pre-determined schedule. However they are regulated, Huppke claims it still results in a lot of water waste. Because of this, “many facilities are switching to waterless urinals.”
On top of using no water whatsoever, the other significant benefit of going waterless, is cost savings. The water-using trough urinals and traditional water-using urinals still must be plumbed for water. Waterless urinals do not. Plus, because they use no water at all, sports venues and other facilities typically find their water and sewer rates are reduced as well.
Will we see more trough urinals in the future? Huppke says, no, they are likely to disappear. Will we see more waterless urinals in the future? Our urinalists believes the answer to that question is, yes.
For more information on waterless urinals, contact a Waterless Co
