I wonder how big the market is in Australiaā¦is it niche or mainstream?
One of our neighbours has a bidet which was in the bathroom when they bought their house. It is still there and now used as a pot plant holder as they donāt have the inclination for a spray and wipe.
I routinely travelled to Japan for 2 decades and fell in love with the Toto bidet seats common in the hotels.
Some sense when a person is about to sit on them and āchargesā the water into the heating unit, as if saluting
Once you have used one most usually wish they had one, at least after the initial curiosity wears off. For others it takes a while, and others, usually from North America, ANZ, and a few other localities are more put off by them for whatever reason.
I donāt have room to install a free standing bidet, and installing a seat would incur electrical costs that have put me off so far. The plumbing connection is straight forward as long as one follows the ārulesā. Bunnings has one for about 1/3 the price of an online speciality company, and it appears Toto is not represented on our shores??? So which to chose?
For @BrendanMays benefit we have often rented appartments and the all in one is universal in our experience.
There appears to be two options for the bidet seats. One version is very basic with a water/wash cycle and remote timer control that is a simple add on. The more complex versions are fully heated seats with a multiple wash options, timers, pressure/ spray control, and wistful melodies to mask human events or encourage relaxation. Actually, we are not really sure what the melodies are intended to achieve?
At a wild guess the notion of a warmed seat in the range of bacteria breeding temperature and electrical devices anywhere near water and plumbing might challenge Australian regulation and approval. Thatās despite it being ok in Japan which has a much greater population of toilet seat testers.
There was a company in Australia advertising online to import and convert Toto seats, however I suspect they were the more basic model. This yearās pricing, I think. Lots of zeros. Y100,000 is approx $1,350 at todayās exchange rate.
While we might not expect Choice to travel to Tokyo to test this one, some informed content on what is and isnāt possible in Australia might be useful advice.
Iāll never forget my first encounter with an integrated bidet toilet in a hotel in Japan.
Went in the bathroom to put some of my things away and the colourful toilet seat caught my eye: there were writings and symbols on one side of it.
I leaned forward and pressed one at random.
Out comes a jet of water from the back of the bowl and, before I could jump back, drenches the front of my t-shirt and splashes onto the floor!
It did take me a little while before I was able to work out what had happened!
While we lament the seeming impossibility of getting anything nationally standardised, the Japanese seemingly go from strength to strength in that regard.
Thank you for the suggestion Natalie - I will be very interested when/if the test appears: particularly in relation to the Bunnings āconversion seatā. Until your post, with the responses it engendered, I didnāt know there was such a thing on the market! I immediately thought of how useful (and dignity enabling) one would have been for an aged parent being cared for at home with only one toilet, and very little room for a carer to moveā¦
Prospectively, another tool in the arsenal of aged care equipment??
Wonderfully true, although the traditional writing system sets a high standard in the use of symbols.
The quality of the pictograms in the BBC header photo are nicely coordinated with the quality of the suits of the all male team of industry leaders. Kenny or perhaps his sister if he has one would have added a nice touch?
The BBC reported, Different manufacturers all use their own pictograms for each function.
But the Japan Sanitary Equipment Industry Association says this confuses foreign tourists.
Perhaps it is not the pictograms that the visitors at first find most confusing. Itās where is the toilet paper? Thereās usually some.
Next to the $1.60 cold coke, or $2.00 BOSS hot coffee. Like the vending machines which just work, are rarely out of stock and always give the right change, the bidet seats just work.
No need for a response. Some might wonder if Japan has itās own version of the ACL or there is simply no need.
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There are also listings on ebay for ānon electricā bidets, mostly priced under $100 and sprays that attach to existing toilet seats, priced under $20.
I would be very careful in buying online as these product possibly canāt be legally installed in Australia. It could be the case that it is legal to buy it but illegal to use it. It could end up being a (expensive) white elephant in the shed unable to be fitted or used.
Any bidet seat or additional/flexible sprays must meet the Australian Building Code WMTS-051, AS1371 and AS3500. These standards include the prevention of the back-flow of water from the bathroom/toilet into the reticulated water system. Many online ones donāt provide any information on their compliance nor that they meet the Australian plumbing back-flow requirements.
A back-flow valve addresses that and seems part of the kit. As for the sprays and so on, most are essentially fancy water spray bottles designed for purpose, no plumbing required thus no more regulation than any other spray bottle?
Further, the brochures from the linked online site include
and from another online merchant that offers installed as well as DIY
conclusion, it always pays to be aware as well as attentive, but assuming the suppliers are all ārogues and scoundrels selling dodgy or illegal kitā seems overly pessimistic, does it not?
Are there some that could obviously be illegal? Those sold by off-shore ebay and others could well be, but that goes with almost any electrical/plumbing purchase.