Iterating a Better Toilet
My thoughts on the Toto Washlet and the current state of bathroom tech
This week brings another story from the bathroom!
Maybe it’s the fact that I’m a proud, potty-training Dad right now, but I wanted to take a moment to appreciate the modern toilet. Or more specifically, the Toto Washlet which has built a cult-like following of fans who claim it is the best purchase they’ve ever made. It may also be the subject of the most glowing review I’ve ever read.
The Modern American Toilet
Americans can be so resistant to change in certain areas. I’d say that the washroom is one of these areas. While the rest of the world has been gradually upgrading their bathroom tech, Americans have largely clung to their antiquated porcelain.
I believe I first experienced some automatic, electronic, remote-controlled toilet seat/bidet action while on a trip to Thailand nearly a decade ago. I considered it to be a fun, quirky cultural difference. I never really considered upgrading my own toilet at home. In fact, I couldn’t really recall my parents ever updating our toilets growing up. Come to think of it, I couldn’t really recall anyone ever discussing what makes a good or bad toilet in general. It just isn’t a topic of American (or maybe plenty of other countries) conversation.
Why can’t we think differently about toilets, bidets, smart showers, and new ways to make the entire bathroom experience feel as modern and luxurious as so many other aspects of our lives? Let’s truly iterate here!
The Tushy
A few years back I installed the excellent Tushy Bidet in our bathroom. You’ve probably seen their cheeky (pun intended) ads online. They’re all about making the bathroom experience more joyful, and you have to appreciate that.
The tushy is about as simple of a plumbing install as you will find. Just a few twists and tightens and the thing is attached to the existing waterline on your toilet. It doesn’t require any electricity which is wonderful in terms of ease of installation, but also makes it so you won’t be enjoying a heated seat or warm water.
It has a simple knob to control the intensity of your bidet experience, but that’s about all it has. It’s reasonably priced and can attach to pretty much any existing toilet. It’s a pretty low barrier of entry that will work for home owners and renters alike.
It’s the perfect “no frills” toilet accessory to get you in the door of the fancy toilet club. The gateway bidet if you will.
The Toilet Thought Process
Late last year, I became a “real adult” and purchased a home. This was the first time I really thought long and hard about bathroom upgrades. I really thought that this year would be “the year of bathroom tech” not just for me but for an entire industry. Maybe I was a little premature in that declaration, but I was still in the market for a modern toilet for my new abode.
Buying toilets is actually way more complicated than you’d think. So many different sizes, colors, shapes, water-efficiency. We settled on some nice svelte looking johns to replace the ancient (and partially operating) toilets in the new home.
But in all my toilet research, I couldn’t keep away from mentions of the Toto Washlet. There were several models of the bidet toilet seat. Some had attached remotes, some wireless, some with extra bells and whistles and sound effects that I could never imagine needing. And of course, these features came along with shocking price tags.
I wasn’t about to break the bank for a bidet, but it did get me thinking about where we spend a lot of our time as human beings. We spend a huge amount of our lives asleep right, so don’t skimp on a good mattress! And I found myself thinking the same way about a toilet. If you’re going to be using the thing everyday (one would hope) it’s ok to spend some money on modern features.
The Washlet
So yeah, I splurged and bought the Toto Washlet. I went with the more reasonable C5 model that has a detachable remote and the least jarring price tag. Do I think it was worth the money? Yeah, I’d say so.
It required some wiring to get a new power outlet installed right near the toilet (it does need power for all those bells and whistles). Getting everything setup did take a little getting used to, but all-in-all it was fairly painless. Let’s look at the benefits.
Sitting on an always perfect temperature toilet seat is a minor luxury in life. You don’t realize how nice it is until it happens. A personalized bidet experience can not be underrated. You can customize every feature to exactly how you want it. This may sound daunting, but the learning curve is not steep at all. The remote is intuitive and works like a charm.
Conclusion
I won’t waste your time with any further details about my time in the bathroom. The purpose of this is to just examine an area of your life that maybe hasn’t been improved in a while (like your toilet.)
I enjoy writing pieces like this that examine areas of your life that could use a technological upgrade.
Maybe you don’t have any interest in purchasing a bidet, and that’s totally fine! Hopefully you could just digest this as humorous piece of potty humor and get on with your day.
Any Washlet fans out there? Any other areas of your home in dire need of some iterating?
Thanks for reading, I’ll see you next week!
I’ve been a Toto toilet super fan for almost 20 years. The other great thing about Toto toilets is that they are near impossible to clog, and that’s why I originally bought them and installed them in any house I’d move in to.
I discovered the washlet about 10 or 12 years ago. Once you have a bidet, you don’t want to poop anywhere without one anymore because it’s so much more of a sanitary experience.
There’s a great WSJ article in the last 5 or 10 years about people who love their bidets so much they hate to use anything else, but I couldn’t find it to leave a link.
Toilets and mattresses and pillows and office chairs and couches are items that you use for many, many hours over the course of a lifetime. It is a major life improvement to spend whatever necessary to get the most useful and comfortable item, and a very good use of your money.
Enjoyed the email.