The Ultimate in Low Impact Restroom Fixtures

When we hear the words "low impact," what often comes to mind is different types of cardio machines in a gym. A low-impact cardio machine allows us to exercise, but with less impact on bones, tendons, knees, and joints compared to other types of cardio machines.

Of course, these words are used in other realms as well, especially the environment.  

For instance, the official definition of green cleaning products is that they have a reduced impact on the environment compared to traditional cleaning solutions. In other words, they have a low or lower impact on the environment when compared to other cleaning products.

Today, we are starting to hear this term applied to restrooms, specifically the toilets and urinals in a restroom. For instance, a low-impact toilet uses far less water than a traditional toilet, especially one that is several years old.

According to an article in the San Francisco Gate newspaper, in homes, toilets account for about 30 percent of all the water used in the average home. If all those toilets were replaced with low-impact toilets, which use far less water, "it would save more than two billion gallons of water per day." (Italics added.)

Along with toilets that use about 1.6 gallons of water per flush, some other forms of low, or at least reduced impact toilets, include the following:

Image: compostingtoiletsusa.com

Composting toilets. Just small amounts of water are used with these toilets, just enough to allow aerobic bacteria to break down waste. The "finished product" can then be buried or hauled away.  

Recirculating toilets. These toilets do not use water, a significant savings. Instead, they use mineral oil. "Solid and liquid waste is separated and filtered out of the oil medium and stored for later removal," according to the newspaper, "while the oil is recycled back into the toilet for reuse."

Toilets on fire. Yes, you read that right. Incinerating toilets use a heating chamber to burn waste after every use. They can reduce the amount of waste after each use into a tablespoon of sterile ash. While these are low-impact toilets because they do not use water and reduce waste so significantly, they do require gas or electricity for the fire and do create some air pollution.

Low Impact Urinals

A low impact urinal is one that also uses as little water as possible. Possibly, the easiest way to explain what a low impact urinal is, is to describe what it is not, such as the following:

· Any urinal manufactured before 1992. Surprisingly, there are still many of these around. Before 1992, there were few regulations as to how much water a urinal could use per flush. As a result, these urinals often used several gallons of water per flush.

· Many urinals more than ten years old. The problem with older urinals is that they tend to use more water per flush with age. Unless the flush mechanisms have been updated, they may not be releasing 1 gallon of water with each flush as they were when manufactured. The pressure may be higher – releasing more water - or lower, releasing too little water, often requiring more than one flush to remove waste.

Today, there are only two types of low impact urinals:

Urinals that use about a half-gallon of water per flush. These are found primarily in California, which now requires them with new installations. While these are considered low impact urinals, because they still do use water, many refer to them as "reduced" impact urinals.

Urinals that use no water at all. Waterless urinals are the ultimate low impact restroom fixture because they use no water whatsoever. Further, these low impact urinals do not produce any air pollution, need mineral oil, or fire. Instead, they work with no impact at all on the environment.

When it Comes to Water, You Have Two Choices: Wash Hands or Cook Food

Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash

Effective and frequent handwashing are considered essential in preventing the spread of COVID-19.   However, we are learning some things about hand washing and water around the world that we may not have realized.

For instance, did you know that according to a study by the U.K.’s University of Birmingham, conducted in late 2019, fully 77 percent of the people surveyed in China did not wash their hands after using the toilet. It just was not a regular habit as it has become in so many other parts of the world.

In India, the same study found hand washing routines are better, but not much.  The researchers reported that 60 percent of those surveyed did wash their hands after using the toilet, but 40 percent of those surveyed said they did not. 

We should also add that washing hands, according to the researchers, meant using soap.

In both India and China, some people rinsed their hands with water and some dried them off before leaving the washroom. However, because they did not use soap, they were counted as "non-hand washers," and rightfully so. 

Photo by Christine Sandu on Unsplash

Soap loosens and breaks down soils so they can be washed off hands.  Rinsing alone does not do this.

Since COVID, people in both countries have increased their hand washing rituals, which means they are also using soap.

Some are even washing their hands for twenty seconds or longer, as is recommended. “The change and awareness about [hand washing] now, as compared to a few weeks ago, is phenomenal,” says VK Madhavan, CEO of WaterAid India.

But the study also revealed something about water issues gripping much of India, especially in the remote sections of the country. For many people, water is so limited that people have two choices regarding how they use water:

·  One, they can wash their hands, or

·  Two, they can cook food.

Here’s the situation.

Each time a member of an Indian family washes their hands, they consume more than a half-gallon of water. If a family of four washes their hands ten times per day, that necessitates the use of more than 21 gallons of water.

If this were in the U.S., where each person uses, on average, 100 gallons of water per day, this would not be a significant amount. But in India, where an entire family of four may only have about ten gallons of water to use each day, this is a tremendous amount of water.

And things get worse.

In some of the most remote and drought-ridden regions of the country, there is one shared tap for every five households. This means each family may have access to only a few gallons of water each day. About 142 million households in India are in this situation.  Therefore, these families have just the two choices mentioned earlier when it comes to water: wash hands or cook food.

“To expect that people in water-deficient regions [of India] will prioritize handwashing over daily living is nothing short of a cruel joke,” says Mangal Singh, a resident in one of these remote areas of the country.

Possibly, we are doing a bit too much finger-pointing at India. Worldwide it is estimated that as many as three billion people - more than 40 percent of the world’s population - are essentially in the same situation. They either lack the water resources to wash their hands and cook food or have the water but don’t have soap to wash their hands properly.

So, what is the world doing about this?

Because the pandemic has put the world into an emergency, the United Nations and other organizations, as well as governments such as the Indian government, are working much harder to make sure people have water. The goal is for every household in these remote areas to have access to at least 15 gallons of water per day by 2025.

But this goal is viewed as “ambitious.” Further, if a vaccine is developed to prevent COVID or new treatments come available, it is believed this goal will fall by the wayside.

Hopefully, that will not be the case. Proper hand hygiene promotes health at all time, not just during a pandemic.

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

Making Urinals Easy-Peasy

Larry David of Curb Your Enthusiasm first became famous in the 1990s, when he and Jerry Seinfeld created the Seinfeld television series. However, David has been in comedy, in one way or another, since the 1980s. Before Seinfeld, he got his big break and claim to fame as a writer for Saturday Night Live. 

Now David is trying to grab the limelight again but in an entirely new and very unexpected industry: urinals. Why he chose urinals is not totally clear. However, he has indicated to associates that he thinks urinals could be more hygienic and serve their purpose more effectively.  Consequently, he took the initiative and developed two re-imagine urinals, one for men and one for women.

PHOTO: TWITTER

The Pee Cube

For men, he created the Pee Cube. Because we know he is a comedian at heart, he says the thought behind the Pee Cube was to make using a urinal more hygienic as well as ensure urinating in a public restroom is "easy-peasy." 

More about how "easy peasy" the urinal is will be discussed later.  But for now, let us just see how it works:

· The user enters a "structure," as David calls it. Essentially, this is made up of partitions on either side of the urinal, enclosing it, and offering more privacy.

· As the user enters the structure, he steps onto two large foot petals on the floor.

· Stepping onto the foot petals signals a trap door to open and the Pee Cube urinal comes to life.

· But that's not all. The sensors move the urinal up or down - based on the crotch height of the user.

· When the user steps off the petals, the trap door closes, and the urinal automatically flushes.

That's the gist of it, and what we can say for sure, it's different.

Prayer "Toilets" for Women

Now, for women, he has created what has been described as a "prayer toilet." These look like an elongated toilet. But instead of backing into the toilet to use the device, a woman walks forward, stands, and faces the wall. This allows her to seize a grab bar on the wall. Holding the grab bar, she bends her knees, essentially kneeling into the urinal to begin using it.

Now that we know a bit more about this two urinals, what has been the feedback?  Unfortunately, not all that good.  

After evaluating them, Tim Schroeder, president of a major American bathroom fixture company, reported that "Larry David should stick to comedy."

Why the sour grapes?

For starters, one of the goals of the Pee Cube was enhanced hygiene, protecting the user's shoes from urine and spray when the urinal is flushed. Based on observation, however, the Pee Cube failed.  Visually, urine and spray could be seen collecting on the user's shoes.

As to the sensor-controlled height adjustments - one of the key features of the Pee Cub - Schroeder referred to it as "just a gimmick. It just turns what should be an extremely easy fixture [into] a complicated one." 

Our critic goes on to suggest that the height adjustment system should be scrapped, and that the urinal should not be a traditional flush urinal.  Instead "I suspect it should be waterless."  This would make it more hygienic because there is no flushing with a waterless urinals, eliminating the urine-coated spray produced by flush urinals.

As to the women's urinals, apparently David's idea is not so far-fetched.  There are products like this in Europe today. However, there is no grab bar because most restrooms in Europe are as touchless as possible.  Instead, the user "just kind of straddles the elongated toilet," says Schroeder. "It's a great product, but… these [prayer toilet] fixtures have just not caught on in North America" nor does he expect them to.

As a result, our critic says that not only should David stick to comedy, but for the most part, his urinal ideas have "little merit. They're just a little half-assed."

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

Restrooms of the Future: Less Costly, More Comfortable, Healthier, and More Efficient

Facilities around North America and most parts of the world are taking another look at restrooms, to see not only if they can improve sanitation, user comfort, protect human health, but also reduce the costs to operate. This was happening even before the COVID-19 outbreak. But it has been intensified now that the pandemic has spread far and wide.

You might wonder what we mean by "reduce the costs to operate a restroom." Unlike other rooms in a facility, restrooms do cost money to operate. Further, these are ongoing expenditures.

One cost we probably expect.  Restrooms must be stocked with paper supplies and liners.

But they also must be cleaned, usually every day. Restroom cleaning is one of the most time-consuming jobs in the professional cleaning industry, especially if it is performed manually. When it comes to cleaning, time means money, making restroom cleaning a very-high operating expense.

Fortunately, however, there are ways to reduce restroom operating costs. Among them are the following:

Photo by Eileen Pan on Unsplash

·       Electric hand dryers. If used more than 50 times per day, these can save hundreds of dollars per year, per hand dryer, in paper towel costs. Multiply this by ten or more electric hand dryers in a facility, and this quickly amounts to thousands of dollars that can be saved each year.

·       Sensor controlled faucets. While the savings can vary, it is believed that sensor-controlled water faucets can reduce water bills by as much as 30 percent, if not more, in a larger commercial facility.

·       Waterless urinals. No-water urinals reduce restroom operating costs in several ways. First, each waterless urinal saves 35,000 gallons of water annually. This reduces the amount of water businesses must pay to have delivered and then removed from a facility. Additional savings come because waterless urinals tend to be less costly to purchase, to install, to clean, and in schools, bars, and restaurants specifically, less expensive to service and repair when compared to water-using urinals.

·       Anti-graffiti walls. In the past, if graffiti is found on walls and partitions, businesses have two choices: clean the problem areas and repaint, if on a partition, replace the partition. Both costly. However, new wall and partition coverings have been developed that make it quite easy to remove graffiti with just water and a mild detergent. Further, no repainting is needed.   

We also mentioned, businesses want to improve restroom sanitation, comfort, and health. One way this is happening is by improving ventilation in restrooms. We know the germs that cause COVID can be found on surfaces and, if so, be touched and transmitted to our face or food, spreading the disease. However, in most cases, it is spread because of airborne, aerosol droplets passing from one person to another.  

What we are finding best eliminates this problem is not necessarily more ventilation in restrooms, but more air removal in restrooms. This helps sweep the airborne droplets out of the restroom, preventing them from being inhaled.

Another way to help prevent the spread of the infection, improve sanitation and health, is the installation of "smart toilets." No, these do not necessarily save water. What they do is make sure the lid – removed years ago on most restroom toilets – is down before the toilet flushes. This will prevent toilet plume, the mist that is released when toilets are flushed. Studies have found that traces of the virus have been found in this plume. The lid, in the down position, will help prevent the plume from escaping the toilet.

We can expect more changes to restrooms in the future, some already planned, others resulting from the virus. The goal is to make them more "efficient." An efficient restroom costs less to operate, promotes comfort and safety, saves water, and protects health.

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

What to Look for When Buying a Home Urinal

Maybe it is because more of us are working at home now, but we see an upswing in interest in home urinals. While most people have never even considered installing a home urinal before, many are now thinking about it, and believe it could be an excellent addition.

One big advantage of a home urinal is that you don’t have to worry about putting the seat down. They are also easy to clean, can be relatively inexpensive, and, depending on the type selected, can last for years with little or no maintenance.

However, there are a few things we should know about urinals before getting on Amazon or some other online retail site and just selecting one. Here are some of these.

Flush or Waterless

There are two different types of urinals, flush and waterless. Each has its own features and benefits:

·       Flush urinals come in different sizes, shapes, and designs and are made by many manufacturers.

·       Waterless urinals also comes in different sizes, and shapes, but are made by fewer manufacturers and may not have as broad an array of design options.

·       Both types of urinals are made of durable, waterproof materials such as ceramic materials, china, fiberglass or even stainless steel.

·       Flush urinals must be plumbed so that water is delivered and then removed from the urinal. These installation requirements can make them more costly.

·       Waterless urinals do not need to be plumbed for water. This makes them less costly to install.

·       Flush urinals use about one gallon of water per flush. In some areas of the country, or during drought conditions, this may be a concern.

·       Waterless urinals do not use any water. This can save water as well as money.  Further, because incorporated into every water bill is a charge to deliver and remove water from the home, these charges too can be reduced.

·       Waterless urinals require a cylinder to be placed at the bottom of the urinal. This blocks odors from being released into the bathroom. These can last for months and are very inexpensive. But this depends on the waterless urinal manufacturer selected.

·       The flush mechanisms on flush urinals do need servicing over time. In some cases, they may need to be replaced rather than repaired, which can be costly and may require hiring a plumber.

Size matters

If the urinal will be used by all male members of the family, including young boys, it is best to select a larger urinal. Aim can become an issue with young boys, and a larger urinal can help improve accuracy and decrease floor cleaning needs.

When to Install    

The best time to install a urinal is when a new bathroom is planned, or an old bathroom is being remodeled. This tends to be more cost-effective and prevents “surprises” from coming up during the installation process.

Features and Costs

The initial price of a waterless urinal, for instance, can be as little as $300. However, flush urinals can run as high as $1,000 or more. These are what we could call “designer urinals,” and are often feature-laden. While you may be excited about all the “bells and whistles” initially, these are commonly not used once the urinal is installed. For that reason, take the time to determine if you need all the extra features.

Water Consumption

Waterless urinals use no water, so consumption is not a concern with these types of urinals.

However, flush urinals can use anywhere from 0.25 gallons, 0.5 gallons to 1 gallon per flush—the less water used per flush, the greater the savings on water utility bills. What often happens is that buyers considering selecting a urinal that uses less than one gallon of water per flush decides to choose a waterless urinal instead. This is because of the savings and installation cost savings that come with choosing a waterless urinal.

Wife Approved

Finally, before making any urinal selection, make sure your wife or partner approves of the purchase. Not everyone is comfortable with a urinal in their home, and truth be told, people are still often surprised to find one there.

If you decide to purchase and install a home urinal, you don’t want any surprises. Make sure everyone sees a new urinal as a welcome home addition.

Coronavirus and Flushing Toilets

According to a new Chinese study, pubic toilet flush can potentially spread coronavirus. According to the researchers at the Yangzhou University in China, flushing a toilet generates “strong turbulence within the bowl" that can probably expel aerosol particles containing coronavirus out of it and can spread to the next bathroom user.

Photo by Giorgio Trovato on Unsplash

The researchers explain that the water from a flushed toilet could spray up into the air as high as three feet. Even after flushing (35-70 seconds) after the last flushing, the diffused particles continue to climb causing a huge risk to human health. "Some 40 per cent to 60 percent of the total number of particles can rise above the toilet seat to cause large-area spread, with the height of these particles reaching 106.5 cm from the ground," wrote the authors," said study author Ji-Xiang Wang of Yangzhou University.

To read more on this store at Indiaglitz.com, click here.

When it Comes to Water Problems, Who Ya Gonna Call?

For those that don’t know, there’s a song called “Who Ya Gonna Call?”  It was released in a Ghostbusters movie more than 25 years ago and quickly shot to the top of the charts.

Unfortunately, when building owners and managers ask, "who ya gonna call," it has nothing to do with a song.  Instead, it is an expression many ask themselves when they have water problems in their commercial facility.

This has been elevated with COVID-19. because problems with water may also trigger liability issues.

So, let us use this blog to answer some questions building owners and managers may have regarding water matters. Further, we can suggest who is responsible for correcting them if needed.

Stagnant Water. In another blog, we discussed some of the problems that can result due to stagnant water.  If your facility is now reopening, for instance, and stagnant water is an issue, this is your responsibility to rectify, not the utility company.

Treating and Delivering.  The utility company is responsible for treating the water, ensuring it is potable, and delivering it.  After that, it is yours.

Condition of the water. You might think the utility company is responsible for the “condition” of the water.  This often refers to whether the water is hard or soft. “Hard water” contains a lot of calcium.  “Soft water” tends to have more sodium. 

The condition of the water is your responsibility.  Once it is delivered, if you want soft or hard water, you will need to purchase equipment that turns the water into the condition you want.  Note: Hard water is often better for drinking; soft water better for cleaning.

Safety of the water. Right now, this is a question being asked by many people, again due to COVID. Is the water safe to drink?  Does it contain traces of the virus?  Currently, there are no specific government guidelines involving ways to ensure water safety as it pertains to the virus.  However, this is the utility company's responsibility, and most are actively taking steps to ensure water quality and safety.

Liability issues. This can be complicated when it comes to water.  If the water delivered to a facility contains an unhealthy amount of lead, as happened in Flint, MI, then the utility company is liable for any health consequences that materialize.  But what if the water delivered is potable and healthy but contains an unhealthy amount of lead when consumed by building users? Liability issues are now shifted to building owners and managers.  The problem is most likely due to pipes and plumbing in the building.

When it comes to reopening a facility, after being closed for a long duration, building owners and managers are responsible for the quality and safety of the water in the facility.  One thing building owners/managers can do to help protect themselves should problems arise, is to document all steps they have taken to ensure water quality. 

Further, "messaging" may be necessary. Post messages in restrooms, food service areas, and wherever water using devices are installed, urging users to run the water for a few seconds before using.  This will help flush any sediment or contaminants through the pipes, ensuring only safe, healthy water is dispersed.

Why Stagnant Water is Now a COVID-19 Concern

Building owners and managers have certainly had their hands full the past few months. For instance, in the rare situation a building must shut down, it is usually a temporary situation. In a few days at most, the facility is open, and things are back to normal.

But, as we have heard repeatedly, COVID-19 has created a new normal. Instead of being closed just a few days, buildings across the U.S. have been closed for several months.

Further, now that they are re-opening, building owners that once felt comfortable working or learning in these facilities now are genuinely concerned. Not only are their worries about masks and social distancing, there are also concerns about water.

And rightfully so. When buildings remain dormant, this typically means no water is being used anywhere in the facility. But just as cars are made to be driven regularly, pipes and drains in a building are made to carry water consistently. When that stops, a host of problems can materialize.

One of the most concerning is Legionella. This is the bacteria that causes Legionnaire's disease. We typically think it is related to bacteria development in air conditioning systems. That is true. But along with being dispersed through air conditioning systems, these droplets can also be released in showers and faucets, when they are first used after several weeks or months of inactivity.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) adds that other water-related hazards may greet building users as they return. These include the following:

·   Development of non-tuberculous mycobacteria in water. Often this is transferred to people from contaminated water entering an open cut on the skin. It results in lung disease, causing people to cough frequently, passing the disease to other building users.

·   Changes in water chemistry. Stagnant water can get corroded with metals, lead, and copper.

·   The release of sewer gasses. These enter the facility because the "J" pipes underneath drains have evaporated. Sewer gasses contain many types of pathogens and bacteria that can harm human health if inhaled.

To address these issues, the CDC says that managers should do the following:

·       Before re-opening, maintenance staff, wearing PPE gear, should check water heaters, air conditioning and cooling systems, along with water fountains, and all water-using mechanicals to see if they are operating properly. 

·       Begin flushing water through these systems and mechanicals. This will get the stagnant water flowing with the goal of removing it from the facility and down drainpipes.

·       All toilets should be flushed to remove stagnant water and ensure they are operating correctly. The same goes for water-using urinals.  

·       If waterless urinals are installed, BlueSeal should be poured into the urinal trap cylinder. This is a preventive measure. BlueSeal has minimal evaporation and is designed to last for months. But it helps ensure the trap/cylinder is working correctly.

·       Finally, we need to ensure drainpipes are not releasing sewer odors. While maintenance personnel can pour about a half-gallon of water down all drains, this may be a temporary "fix." A more permanent fix would be to pour a few ounces of EverPrime down drains. This fills in the J trap, blocking sewer gasses and also lasts for months.

This last point - that it lasts for months - may need to be heeded. As this is being written, states in many parts of the U.S. are considering postponing their re-openings. This is due to a rise in COVID cases. Because EverPrime lasts so long, sewer odor problems should not be an issue even if the facility must be closed again until conditions improve.

For more information click here.

Tips on how to handle Restroom Vandalism

Photo by Surchesth

In February 2019, the high-school newspaper of a Wisconsin school had the following headline: "Vandals Overrun the Bathrooms." The story details how vandalism in the bathrooms — more specifically, the boys’ bathrooms — is a growing concern. According to the article, toilets are filled to the brim with paper products, soap dispensers are broken and urinal flush valves are tampered with. Further, garbage cans are flipped upside down, some doors are off their hinges and garbage is "flooding the floors."

One boys’ bathroom is now closed indefinitely, according to the paper, with no estimate as to when it will be reopened. The school has notified students and parents that they only have "so much money" to spend on repairs and they don't want to ask teachers and staff to give up their free time to supervise bathrooms. As to who the culprits are, the article does not provide names or answers. What it does say is that "the school knows these events are on the rise during lunch and after school."

This same situation is occurring in schools throughout the country in varying degrees. It’s degrading to teachers, students and their parents. It makes schools unsafe, negatively impacts morale and, unfortunately, vandalism tends to breed more vandalism, making this an ongoing problem.

There may be several reasons why boys vandalize restrooms. Some studies say it is caused by school bullies, while other studies say it is the boys that are bullied that are the ones causing vandalism. Possibly it’s anger release either way. Maybe it's just part of growing up.

We will let the experts figure it out, and possibly provide some answers as to how to stop it. In the meantime, our focus here is on how to deal with it. The following are some suggestions for school administrators.

To read on, click here…