[HN Gopher] The Rise of the Japanese Toilet
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The Rise of the Japanese Toilet
Author : Kaibeezy
Score : 48 points
Date : 2025-05-31 15:03 UTC (7 hours ago)
(HTM) web link (www.nytimes.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (www.nytimes.com)
| Kaibeezy wrote:
| https://archive.ph/ZuAQ3
| Mistletoe wrote:
| A bidet is one of the largest increases in quality of life from a
| product I have ever experienced. My brother got one first and
| then it spread like wildfire across our family. I've never met
| anyone that actually uses one that goes back. I hope it takes
| over the whole world.
| dep_b wrote:
| A bidet is standard equipment in Argentinian homes, even the
| poorest houses have it. Once you get used to it, it's
| incomprehensible that in other countries people just wipe
| and...hope for the best.
|
| But often it's hard to install one in bathrooms that are not
| designed for it. So a Japanese toilet is a somewhat over the top
| solution in our house.
| dfxm12 wrote:
| If it's standard equipment, why wouldn't bathrooms be designed
| for it? New expectations? Something else?
| mixmastamyk wrote:
| Most need power at the toilet. Not allowed to be exposed near
| water in US bathrooms without circuit breaker and so are not
| installed.
| simfree wrote:
| You should already have a circuit breaker at the panel.
|
| A GFCI outlet is needed if your breaker is not GFCI
| already, but this receptacle is something that isn't
| terribly expensive.
| mixmastamyk wrote:
| Yes, that's what I'm talking about. These are common near
| a sink but approximately never behind the toilet in home
| in the US.
| dep_b wrote:
| Standard equipment in Argentina, not in Northern Europe or
| the US, where you would have to be in the opportunity to
| completely redo your bathroom to accommodate it. Otherwise
| you need to rearrange, or go for a Japanese toilet.
| ghaff wrote:
| Ideally you need nearby electrical and ability to get water
| to the washlet seat. Which is fairly easy/cheap in a bathroom
| remodel (which is what I did) but not necessarily easy/cheap
| otherwise. (There are simpler ways you can get part-way there
| as noted in this thread.)
| NooneAtAll3 wrote:
| ...why would you need electricity for a seat with water?
| ghaff wrote:
| https://www.totousa.com/tips/toto-washlet-electric-bidets
|
| I'm not sure electricity is required for basic operation
| but at least most models are designed to be plugged in.
| lmz wrote:
| The washlet needs power for the seat warmer (and other
| functions). Toto (and others) also have unpowered add-on
| toilet seat type that just sprays and is manually
| controlled with a knob. https://in.toto.com/product-
| category/ecowasher/ (Not sure if this is available in the
| US)
| dataviz1000 wrote:
| Every bathroom in Thailand and Argentina is built with a
| drain in the floor. It's forward thinking construction.
| Otherwise, without the drain, either the bum gun or the bidet
| can and will easily damage the floor and anything below it.
| csa wrote:
| > why wouldn't bathrooms be designed for it?
|
| No outlet near the toilet.
|
| Non-conforming/non-standard shape of seat and/or tank.
| MichaelRo wrote:
| >> it's incomprehensible that in other countries people just
| wipe and...hope for the best.
|
| Well ... I don't have a bidet but doesn't mean I don't wash my
| buttocks after doing business. Unfortunately it's a bit of a
| taboo subject so it's not discussed, not taught in school /
| hygiene classes, just let it be.
|
| Best example I heard from someone is this: imagine you dip your
| hands in Nutella. Then try to clean them just wiping with
| toilet paper, for more authenticity, without looking. Then look
| at the result, that's your ass, good thing you got underpants!
| Compare that with washing with soap and water!
|
| So how do I do it?
|
| - First step it to use _wet_ toilet paper. I can 't stand raw
| toilet paper, it scratches my hemorrhoids, so I pre-soak it in
| water from the tap if available or just water I keep in my
| mouth if in a public place / at work. I hate public places for
| this matter. This way it's much gentler for the tushy, it also
| pre-washes the area and third advantage, it's much less likely
| to clog the toilet when I flush, being already soaked.
|
| - So after the first step I'm closer to washing Nutella than
| wiping it. If in a public place, that's the best I got. If at
| home, next step is wash my butt with soap and water in a
| plastic bucket. There, that's your bidet! For 2 bucks, you too
| can get one! :) Sure, you have to squat and not wear any pants,
| but you're in your own freaking bathroom. Dry with paper towels
| which you throw in a bucket. Plus, comes the third step anyway
| and you won't be wearing any clothes for that.
|
| - Third step is taking a quick shower. At this point you won't
| be leaving a trail of poo into the shower drain or bath tub (I
| shower in the bath tub) but still get to clean your general
| areas that were in contact with the toilet, hence e-coli and
| sh*t (no pun intended), plus shower feels good.
|
| So there's that: my overly complicated toilet routine that
| takes some 3 minutes extra after finishing with the toilet
| proper, which leaves me perfectly adequate for entering a pool.
| Unfortunately I also know that 99.98% of the population
| entering said pool has their Nutella butt washed for the first
| time in said pool, so no pools for me if I can avoid it.
| hellisothers wrote:
| You could also eat more fiber or change your diet so your
| poop doesn't have the consistency of peanut butter.
| justsomehnguy wrote:
| > just water I keep in my mouth if in a public place / at
| work
|
| Sorry for intruding, but the water from some public place is
| the last thing I want in my or anyone else's mouth. May I
| suggest a water bottle or even a flask?
|
| Or if you already tried that, can you explain why it didn't
| work for you? Just an idle curiosity. Thanks in advance.
| daoistmonk wrote:
| I interpreted this to mean spit.
| rcpt wrote:
| Nutella is oil based you should not have something like that
| coming out of you
| mousethatroared wrote:
| Why don't you hop into the shower after doing number two?
| NooneAtAll3 wrote:
| why take the whole shower, when you can sit on a bath side?
| layer8 wrote:
| > it's incomprehensible that in other countries people just
| wipe and...hope for the best.
|
| Nowadays many people use wet wipes. Probably less
| environmentally friendly, but they solve the same problem.
| ambyra wrote:
| I'm surprised these never took off in Mexico. Water is cheaper
| than toilet paper, and you don't have a basket of used toilet
| paper in the bathroom.
| dpassens wrote:
| Why not just flush the toilet paper?
| abletonlive wrote:
| they lack the plumbing architecture for this.
| blargthorwars wrote:
| Much of the world is like this. Even in some advanced places,
| so I'm always on the lookout for the tp trash can to make
| sure I'm not going to damage their pipes by flushing when I
| visit a new area.
| billfor wrote:
| It's great for your master bathroom. I wouldn't put them in a
| guest bathroom because over time the wand accumulates poo - might
| be unsanitary after a while. I clean mine every couple of weeks.
| mhb wrote:
| Do you have guests who don't appreciate your cleaning the
| bathroom they use?
| amelius wrote:
| Maybe turn the pressure a little higher in the guest bathroom.
| bamboozled wrote:
| I use them everywhere I go. Ive not had any negative effects
| from doing that. Nor does the wand in our house have poop on
| it.
|
| I would honestly prefer to be exposed to germs rather than go
| the whole day with poo wedged in my ass.
| m3kw9 wrote:
| Try to wipe your butt with toilet paper?
| Rendello wrote:
| I've used less advanced versions for a few years. The quality
| varies; the most recent one we put in is pretty horrible to use
| (but better than nothing). I've always wanted to try a real Toto,
| especially with the drying feature.
|
| A word of warning for female users:
|
| > Habitual use of bidet toilets aggravates vaginal microflora,
| either by depriving normal microflora or facilitating
| opportunistic infection of fecal bacteria and other
| microorganisms.
|
| https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21058441/
| rendaw wrote:
| From https://japantoday.com/category/features/kuchikomi/are-
| bidet...
|
| > Over washing the anus risks removing the sebum, which
| lubricates the surface. There have been reports of problems
| caused by over drying of peripheral areas
|
| > This leaves the body vulnerable to dermatitis and possibly
| invasion of staphylococcus aureus bacteria.
|
| From https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8553346/
|
| > Outbreaks of resistant bacteria have been reported to be due
| to the contamination of the cleaning nozzles of bidet toilets
| in hospitals
|
| I.e. the nozzles do get contaminated and if body isn't able to
| fend off the contamination bidet use can cause infection.
|
| From
| https://www.journalofhospitalinfection.com/article/S0195-670...
|
| > Of the 292 [hospital] toilet seats sampled, warm-water
| nozzles of 254 (86.9%) were found to be contaminated by one or
| more of the following organisms
|
| I'm not convinced this is actual sanitation.
|
| Edit: I should say, I know due to physical and diet
| circumstances taking a shit might leave you with more or less
| of a mess that could be uncomfortable or inconvenient - but I
| don't think unqualified praise for bidet use, suggesting bidets
| as a superior lifestyle choice, etc is good.
| Rendello wrote:
| Interesting. I've never been a fan of the warm-water ones
| myself. I wonder how it compares to (only using) toilet paper
| with regards to dermatitis, I find that toilet paper can
| really cause issues sometimes and bidets are more helpful in
| that regard.
| ethanol-brain wrote:
| Seems like some of those problems could be partially
| addressed. Such as a retractable metal nozzle that is
| sanitized with heat or steam after use, not using warm water,
| reducing spray velocity, adjusting angle of spray, limiting
| spray time and throttling subsequent sprays, etc.
| mixmastamyk wrote:
| These are neat, but not an option for those in
| rentals/apartments. Instead, on the advice here, about five years
| ago I bought a "bum gun" from Home Depot, the fancy stainless
| steel version for maybe $60 at the time.
|
| https://www.homedepot.com/b/Bath-Bidets-Handheld-Bidets/N-5y...
|
| These deliver 90% of the benefits for under 10% of the cost, and
| less maintenance. It's like a small metal garden hose with gun
| shaped valve at the end, you attach between the wall spigot and
| hose to the toilet with an adjustable wrench. Takes maybe 10
| mins.
|
| Would never go back to the dirty butt lifestyle. ;-)
| alwa wrote:
| There definitely exist full-featured models that replace _only
| the seat_ of the toilet--a 5-minute, highly reversible effort
| well within the capabilities of even the most nervous renter.
|
| The water hose stacks inline with your existing supply at the
| point where it enters the toilet basin--a simple unscrew-and-
| rescrew operation on the order of attaching a garden hose. If
| the seat and water are heated (vigorously recommend!), the
| extension cord plugs into your existing shaver outlet / GFCI.
|
| I'm familiar with Brondell as a non-Toto option, and I'm sure
| there are others!
| mixmastamyk wrote:
| Power outlets are not allowed near water basins here and so
| are not installed into the wall near the toilet. Most often
| there's only one outlet near the sink with a circuit breaker
| on an opposite wall.
|
| Heated is not necessary in California and more complexity
| means more likely to break, so YMMV.
| simfree wrote:
| You certainly can put a GFCI outlet adjacent a toilet, sink
| or in any other wet space.
|
| Please don't spread electrical code myths.
| sublinear wrote:
| And yet most apartments don't have an outlet near the
| toilet.
| mulmen wrote:
| I have lived in close to a dozen places built over the
| entire second half of the 20th century and into the 2010s
| and never had a bathroom with more than 6 feet between
| the toilet and an outlet.
| mixmastamyk wrote:
| That's exactly what I'm talking about, so thanks for
| confirming the 'myth'. If you think the average person
| knows that acronym you're mistaken. It's an additional
| circuit breaker built into the outlet, as I said.
|
| Should have said 'normal' power outlets not allowed to
| avoid this subthread however.
| ghaff wrote:
| Current code in many/most places in the US requires GFCI
| plugs in a lot of places that may be exposed to water. I
| would think an educated homeowner (though possibly not
| apartment dweller) would be familiar with whether they
| knew what the acronym stood for or not.
| jki275 wrote:
| As already posted, GFCIs are required, they cost ten bucks
| and take about five minutes to install.
| jfim wrote:
| They're totally installable in a rental, takes about half an
| hour to install the first time, and about ten minutes to remove
| when you move out.
|
| The only thing is that one will typically need to run an
| extension cord to reach the toilet, but typically apartment
| bathrooms are pretty small anyway so it's not a particularly
| long extension cord.
| mixmastamyk wrote:
| Right, just buy a thousand dollar Toto and run an extension
| cord across your bathroom! Install it and oh, find a place to
| store the existing toilet.
| ghaff wrote:
| I wouldn't run an extension cord but there are absolutely
| Toto washlets that just replace the existing seat. IMO,
| absolutely the better answer as there things probably can
| break in ways that a regular toilet won't.
| mixmastamyk wrote:
| Hand sprayer still cheaper and less likely to break.
| Power still an issue.
| jfim wrote:
| The seats are like $349 at the local Costco. It doesn't
| involve removing the toilet, just replacing the seat (two
| hand tightened nuts) and adding a T connector to the cold
| water line so that both the toilet and seat have water.
|
| None of those things are permanent and can be done by a
| single person with minimal knowledge and some common hand
| tools.
| tolerance wrote:
| DIY Alternatives
|
| - Plant watering containers.
|
| - Condiment squeezers.
|
| And in a pinch I've seen...
|
| - Dish soap bottles...
| dvh wrote:
| This isn't the first thing that comes to mind when I read
| "Japanese toilet", what is the name of the toilet that is in the
| ground, that long oval shape with bump in front (or back?)
|
| Update: "washiki" is the name
| jogu wrote:
| Washiki literally means "Japanese style" and can be used in
| other contexts but, in general conversation has come to mean
| "Japanese style toilet".
| dvh wrote:
| Yes but it is fundamentally different what article pictures
| as "japanese toilet", so the article is about "japanese
| western toilet" not "japanese squating toilet".
| bamboozled wrote:
| Have you ever used one ? I actually think they are awesome. My
| dream in life is a washiki with a bidet function.
| jbverschoor wrote:
| 25+ later
| unhappy_meaning wrote:
| In almost all of SE Asia, especially Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia,
| all of the toilets come with a hand-held sprayer. They also had
| this in the Doha airport and I'm not sure how common this style
| is outside of SE Asia but I'm guessing it's common. Japanese
| style bidets are very common in Korean households as well and I'm
| sure its easily a billion dollar business.
|
| It is nice but the functionality is quite difficult for a person
| who's not used to this whatsoever. After you're done sh*ing, you
| grab the handheld sprayer and turn it upside down and reach
| behind you toward your butt and try as best as you can to aim it
| into your anus to wash as best as you can. People who have been
| doing this their whole lives can probably aim with a precision of
| a Marine Corp Sniper but to us, we look at it as alien
| technology. It's is quite difficult to use for a first timer and
| there are factors that worry us.
|
| If its not aimed correctly, where does the splash go? If you're
| lucky it stays in the toilet boil. However if your aim is off,
| you can completely miss your anus and either shoot to much under
| or over which will shoot the water outside of the toilet bowl.
|
| Also when I was using the bathroom in the Doha airport, the
| handheld sprayer had a soap dispenser next to it. I was curious
| what it was for so I YouTube'd and searched for instructions on
| what the soap dispenser was for and (kind-of) to my surprise it
| was soap to lather and clean your anus with your other free hand.
| After you lather and clean, you basically rinse your hand with
| the hose as well.
| rayiner wrote:
| What's weird about it. I assume you do clean down there with
| soap periodically ... right?
| mulmen wrote:
| Yes but typically I'm not wearing clothes when I do that.
| marcusb wrote:
| I bought $25 versions of this on Amazon during COVID... We did
| not anticipate or have any of problems you described.
| scotty79 wrote:
| > you grab the handheld sprayer and turn it upside down and
| reach behind you
|
| Why not from the front? It makes way more sense. Easier to aim
| and your butt seals against the back edge of bowl hole so the
| water doesn't splash out.
| n1b0m wrote:
| This is the way to do it
| gruez wrote:
| >If its not aimed correctly, where does the splash go? If
| you're lucky it stays in the toilet boil. However if your aim
| is off, you can completely miss your anus and either shoot to
| much under or over which will shoot the water outside of the
| toilet bowl.
|
| so slowly squeeze the trigger to confirm the aim is correct,
| rather than going full blast at the start?
| latchkey wrote:
| it is often all or nothing.
| mixmastamyk wrote:
| Yeah this overstates the problem. Sure there's a learning
| curve but spraying all over didn't happen for me.
| raincom wrote:
| Those hand sprayer versions are bad to use and unhygienic too,
| because fecal matter gets sprayed beyond the toilet bowl. I
| know why Arabic countries prefer hand sprayer versions: istinja
| practices of Islam.
| sublinear wrote:
| I think paper is perfectly fine for most people who do not have
| certain medical problems, given a few prerequisites.
|
| The main one is diet. Eat enough fiber so it's not a mess in the
| first place. This has many other benefits too. The next in
| priority is wet wipes. I strongly prefer them, and they are
| portable unlike a bidet. They are super useful while away from
| the toilet as well. After that there's technique. I am confident
| that the people who complain about paper and wet wipes are simply
| wiping way too hard causing chafing or even fissures. I don't
| want to get too graphic, but you also need to "relax" a bit down
| there for the most thorough job instead of just a surface level
| wipe. Normal paper first for removal of the "bulk material" and
| wet wipes for the residue.
|
| That's it folks! If you do all this right, washing your hands
| afterwards shouldn't need so much effort either.
|
| Bonus tip: why not just carry a little atomizer bottle filled
| with water so you can make your own wet wipes in a pinch? The
| spray is gentle enough to not completely saturate and ruin even
| the thinnest and cheapest toilet paper you find in the wild, and
| such a spray bottle is again very useful away from the toilet.
| exhilaration wrote:
| Those wet wipes shouldn't be flushed down the down the toilet,
| even if they're labeled "flushable", here's a nice PDF
| infographic from the city of Los Angeles explaining why:
| https://sanitation.lacity.gov/san/sandocview?docname=cnt0365...
| sublinear wrote:
| It's a good thing not everyone lives in LA.
| kwk1 wrote:
| This is a rather glib reply that doesn't address the
| substance of the post you're replying to.
| otherayden wrote:
| https://unbloq.us/https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/29/busines...
|
| Via a tool that I made to auto-redirect to archived links :)
| layer8 wrote:
| By the way, it would be useful if
| https://unbloq.us/www.nytimes.com/2025/05/29/business/toto-t...
| worked as well, for manual use (just typing "unbloq.us/").
| fabiofzero wrote:
| Only North-Americans have trouble with the concept that water is
| the best way to wash yourself after doing your business. Y'all
| seriously need to grow up.
| speed_spread wrote:
| Uh, Water? I use Brawndo, it's got electrolytes!
| mhb wrote:
| It's a bit surprising that every health care facility doesn't
| have these to make things easier on both the patients and
| caregivers. But money and maintenance (also money) I guess.
| mhb wrote:
| That commercial would be more effective if it used Nutella and
| shag carpeting.
| bamboozled wrote:
| I never feel clean after the business. I've always wondered if
| it's my physiology or diet. Something wrong with me ? I've meant
| to try find out but it's not something people like to talk about.
|
| I just don't understand how people like to walk around with even
| a small amount of poop wedged in their crack, irritating the area
| and coming into contact with their underwear, pants, it's
| absolutely disgusting.
|
| I got "stuck" in Asia during COVID for 3 years, when I returned
| back to my home country (zero bidet society) I forgot all about
| the lack of bidets as it was just common place. When I went to
| cleanup I never forget the horror and I had a sinking feeling, as
| if I was ejected from civilization or something.
| layer8 wrote:
| https://archive.ph/JKTIn
| dmckeon wrote:
| If anyone wants to explore the bidet space without replacing an
| entire toilet, I can recommend the Neo line of products from
| https://luxebidet.com/ They sell kits for under $70 USD that
| attach to existing toilets, using the space between the seat and
| bowl, and attach to the toilet's water supply with a tee fitting
| and one-way valve, either at the wall valve, or at the bottom of
| the tank. Installation should take less than 30 minutes for
| anyone handy with a screwdriver and a crescent wrench.
|
| Their bidets are surprising effective, and do not require any
| electricity or hot water, as the water volume needed to be
| effective is small, and the water has usually been sitting in the
| pipes in a home's walls at ambient temperature. 10/10, would
| spritz again.
| pixelready wrote:
| Agreed. I've got one at home too. Was cheap, easy to install
| and works pretty well. Admittedly things don't get very cold
| where I am, so YMMV.
|
| I do dream of installing a legit Toto with the warmed seat and
| self cleaning, but didn't want to deal with the hassle of
| buying the unit and then having to hire both a plumber and an
| electrician.
|
| The only real problem is my son has grown up spoiled with a
| bidet at home, and now hates using the bathroom at school or
| out in public. I mean, I get it, but when nature calls, she
| ain't askin'.
| ashdksnndck wrote:
| From a plumbing perspective, the Toto is no different from
| one of the basic units, you just attach the valve to the
| toilet's water supply. For electricity, it depends on your
| situation but if you have an outlet nearby (eg. where you
| would plug your hair dryer or electric toothbrush) you can
| just plug into that. The plug doesn't need to be directly
| behind the toilet, you run a cord to it.
| ww520 wrote:
| Really don't need an electrician. Just plug in to an outlet
| on the wall or an extension power strip. Don't need a plumber
| as well. It's really easy to install.
| m3kw9 wrote:
| What if you spray diarrhea on the sprayer and that person doesn't
| use it, the next person gets it up their azz
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