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can females use this? i mean what do i gotta do turn around backwards and straddle it and splash water up there like a bird bath?

They were common in all the hotels I stayed in while visiting Japan last year, and now I'm a total convert. Some toilet seat bidet manufacturers even started a campaign here in the States, http://cleanishappy.com/

"can females use this? i mean what do i gotta do turn around backwards and straddle it and splash water up there like a bird bath?"

Bidets were invented for women.
Most of them have a little fountain in the bottom that shoots the water up - the photo attached on this post is a poor representation of what a traditional bidet is.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bidet

Proving how complex "being green" is, my concern is the scarcity of water in many places. For instance, most of North Carolina is under severe drought right now and might run out of water this summer.

That said, I've always liked the idea of using a bidet instead of TP.

When I was young, we moved into a home that had a bidet in every bathroom. The bidets remained unused for years! It was such a waste of space. Instead, my mom installed little sprayers on a hose similar to the sprayers attached to kitchen sinks. The sprayers were somehow attached to the plumbing of the toilet. These sprayers are also very common in Europe and Asia because I've seen them in public bathrooms there when I travel. Now that I live in NY, I miss those sprayers! I actually purchased a sprayer but my super didn't allow me to connect it.

Okay, this post is going to be SOOOOOO TMI, but considering the subject matter, I think that's unavoidable!

I had a bidet while living in England and enjoyed it. I would seriously consider installing one if I had the space & the money.

Ours was the sort with an adjustable nozzle that allowed you to point the water in many directions. So basically, you'd have to, uh straddle & sit on the bidet, turn on the water, get it to a comfortable temperature, and then adjust the nozzle so that the water is spraying on your bits. :D Afterwards you can dry off with a towel or toilet paper, but frankly ... well, my technique was not perfect and I prefered using TP just in case. So since I was using extra water and extra TP, it really wasn't any better for the environment. But I felt a lot cleaner!

TMI, TMI!

I'd go for the Toto washlet.

Check out these butt faces!

http://www.cleanishappy.com/

Well, I can't imagine using the drying towel again after one usage so wouldn't the washing and drying costs of several towels a day be less green than using toilet paper?

From my understanding, bidets are more common in Europe because they bathe and shower less often.

I have a problem with the towel situation.

*After water cleansing, users pat themselves dry with a cloth towel.*

Which towel? Whose towel? His and Her towels?

I'm not going to give my opinion on bidets one way or another, but that agrugment quoted above as a reason FOR bidets is ridiculous!

To say that splashing a bit of water around and then wiping with a cloth towel that presumably gets REUSED is cleaner than TP is totally ridiculous. If you have a salmonella spill on your counter, would you splash some water on it, wipe it up with a dishcloth and call it clean? And then use the same dishtowel to dry your clean dishes? No!!! Its not clean and bacteria-free until you throw soap into the mix, which a bidet doesn't do. It just gives the illusion of being cleaner.

green or not... i need my baby wipes. water isn't going to cut it. TMI?

I totally agree mh330 - it's water, not soap, or an anti-bacterial - that is *not* hygenic. Baby wipes, or toilet wipes are much better, if not really greener.

When I went to school in France, there was a bidet in my dorm room. We used it to chill down beer. Heinekens was 95 cents a six pack, and somebody had a ice connection. I can't see a bidet today without breaking out laughing imagining it filled with beer and ice.

However, now I would LOVE to have a bidet for the traditional use. It takes some getting used it, but they are fun, even without the beer.

I'm with grtdrg on the little sprayer hose concept over a bidet. Saves space and is very easily maneuvered, helping you avoid technique problems like Nougat experienced :)

Oh you squeamish Americanskis!

Bidet's are great -- use them whenever in Europe/Latin America etc. Truth be told, you can skip a day's shower when keeping the critical parts clean. Can't say I blame folks for not wanting to share a towel, but most places where I've been there were several small, thin fresh towels near the bidet -- pretty minimal water usage when bundled up with the rest of the laundry.

Oh, and in the TMI category -- bidet's are so much healthier for you -- hemorroids are a real american thing, much lower incidence in europe. So much for squeezing the charmin . . . !

I have a bidet. It's extremely useful. You can use it as a sink or as a fountain. It's as hygienic as a bath. Also great for soaking your feet or undies. Uses very little water in the scheme of things.

So....is the Bidet part of the toilet? Or like the picture above is the toilet on the left and the bidet on the right? So after you are done going....you have to get up and move over to the bidet? I'm so confused....i mean wouldn't you like drip everywhere? LOL And yes i'm american so i have no idea what these are like.

Water alone will wash away a lot of bacteria. It'll also wash off sweat, the salt in which can lead to irritation of sensitive tissue. That's an issue, since we all wander around fully clothed most of the time, even in warm, damp climates. And it'll wash away any remaining waste, without causing the irritation TP can cause. Waste can also irritate if it's allowed to sit.

That having been said, you can get the same benefits just by using pre-moistened wipes, which are available at your local grocery store, without the need to purchase and install a bidet.

Something tells me splashing water on yourself and patting dry with a TOWEL is as clean as they say. No thanks, they gross me out!

My wife is French and I've lived in Asia, we have a bidet attachment on the toilet. Toilet paper is wasteful especially the huge wads americans use and not that great for the job anyways.

Never tried one, but I just don't think I would like it. I think I would have more control with TP, not to mention the possiblity of soaking my pants or clothes with one wrong move using a bidet...

bidet use information: yes, one use *soap* with the water, usually there is 'soap dish' next to the bidet, it's exactly as cleaning your hands, really (and one is supposed to clean one's hands afterward too). Next to the bidet there is usually also a towel rack for little bidet towels, which are very small and changed often.
In Italy, where I am from, bidets are I think even *obligatory*, in CZ, where I live, they are a modern trend and still not much accepted. Since I live in an old flat with no room to install one (the toilet is in a separated closet-size room as it's normal here), we instead installed next to the toilet a mini-sink connected to a shower-pipe (?), which is definitely an improvement but not it's not so easily used without splashing water everywhere.
I agree with ebrown: not much water used in a bidet

Very common in Europe and Asia... I use one whenever I travel to a place that has one in the hotel room. It leaves you feeling a lot cleaner than just using TP, but I think Americans are too squeamish for the bidet to catch on over here.

I'd really like to try one. Now that I understand how it works, it makes a lot of sense.

BTW: it's rather difficult to soak one's clothes using a bidet, really... don't be afraid :)

I know that "they" say that bidets are common in Europe but I have stayed in (or used the facilities in) hundreds of homes and hotel rooms and bed and breakfasts in Europe and never yet saw one. Maybe they are used in certain countries?

AHAAHAAA!!!! This reminds me of South America. I was an exchange student living in a big city, and bidets were common. I didn't know what they were, and since I didn't yet have enough of a grasp on the language to address the topic, I just left them alone.

Shortly after, I bumped into another exchange student and we had one of those "man this place is weird" conversations. He gave me a stone cold sober look and said "you know that other thing they have next to toilets here? I don't know what it is, but trust me on this, it is NOT a urinal."

I'd already figured out what a bidet was by that point.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand that's why I'll never own a bidet. I wouldn't want to have to explain the bathroom every time I have a guest.

we used one on a daily basis for several years, while living in Europe. It's easy to get used to. Just don't invite Americans to your place--they will use it as a urinal or worse!

My childhood home in Queens had one in the masterbedroom and they are in most middle class homes in the Dominican Republic. As plch said, you are supposed to use soap so it really is way better than TP.

bepsf,

oh ok, but no.

THANK YOU. I will never understand how people in this country can just wipe their behinds with a piece of (flimsy) paper and consider themselves clean. Coming from, and having lived in, an Arab country, bidets (or at the very least a hose connected to the toilet) are a must. But not all bidets are created equally--I hate bidets that have the tap at the top (ie. like the one pictured in this post); I much prefer those that shoot up water from the bottom like a fountain.

The thing I dreaded most when I moved to Michigan for college was the whole lack of bidet thing. Thankfully, I have a very handy father who managed to attach a hose to the toilet, thus saving me from a life of perpetual uneasiness. Thanks, Dad!

PS. A good, squeezy sports water bottle is a great (and portable!) alternative to a bidet/hose.

I'd give it a try but I wouldn't buy one without being used to using one first.

Yuck! Doesn't the water just spray dirty droplets everywhere? Also, no way would I put those poo towels in my washer and dryer! Especially not with other types of laundry. TP does the job just fine for me.

My last condo in Charlottesville, VA had a bidet in the master bath and I LOVED it. I miss it very much and I swear the next home I live in I will have one installed!

Good lord...so many of you anti-bidet folks sound rather ignorant and narrow minded about a very traditional bathroom fixture. I wish more Americans would get a life and learn more about the rest of the world and learn to embrace other cultures a bit more. Stop being so squeamish and open your minds a little and stop whining!

When I lived with 5 other girls in France during a semester in college. We had one of these in our apartment...and we used it to wash our socks.

Why do people freak out about using a bidet? Think of it as a mini shower for your bum.

jooly - "..no way would I put those poo towels in my washer and dryer!" - It's not like you're using the little cloth towel like TP, you're using it like a regular towel (or is someone going to tell me they don't use their bath towels anywhere near that area? You stand there and air dry?) And think about underwear - think about where that's been all day, and you throw THAT in the washer and dryer. ALSO, cloth diapers (while maybe not mainstream nowadays) are more like "poo cloths", and those go in the washer and dryer as well - a lot.

To mh330, with the salmonella example - you forgot to compare that to TP use: maybe you think splashing water on the counter and then wiping it off with a dish towel won't clean the salmonella, but the other choice would be to take a dry paper towel, rub it around the counter, and then say it's clean. Of those two options, yea, I think even just water would be cleaner.

The concept sounds like it would be invigorating - weehoo! Especially for the ladies. But....I have to side with the people that are a little dubious of the bidet for #2. Just seems like you'd need soap and a washcloth to get the job done right. I'm not saying it doesn't work but I don't really see any advantage as far as actual cleanliness.

And are they factoring the laundering of the towels into the greenness factor of this plan?

I've had a washlet style bidet (like the Toto ones mentioned) for years. I absolutely recommend them and can't imagine not having one now.

As an alternative to the towels you can also just use the water and a small amount of toilet paper. You'll still reduce your paper usage, and be cleaner. My bidet even has a "blow dryer" so you can opt to go paper free if you like.

Well said choby!

Monica, this has nothing to do with being narrow-minded. It's more a "to each his own" thing. Personally, I have serious concerns about using a bidet. First off, if you are using soap, what does one use to apply the soap? And are people really taking mini baths in them or washing their socks? Because I personally wouldn't take a mini bath in the toilet. And you can't convince me that the bidet is any cleaner than the toilet bowl.

I use the shower when I want to clean those bits. Sit over the edge of the bads and spray from below/behind. It is hardly messy, just keep the bath clean after this.

Now I've read this I want one of those sprays for my toilet. Hoever all watery nits are tiled in, which makes this difficult (replacing the flushing mechanism is supposedly done through the flush button panel).

Moeyknight, what do you use to hold toilet paper, I'm curious? And do your parts really need that much cleaning that your bidet would be as dirty as a toilet bowl? Just wonderin'.

Bubble, I didn't ask about holding, I asked about applying it. When I take a shower, I don't rub around my bar of soap directly on those parts, so I'm really curious if that's what peope do. So, while using TP might be gross to you, rubbing a bar of soap on a dirty bottom only to return it to a soap dish is gross to me. Like I said, to each his own. And if I was to have/use a bidet, no, I would not wash other things in there. Just because you don't see the germs doesn't mean they aren't there.

I prefer my Cottonelle wipes. They've got the water/soap element taken care of and I get to flush them.

My mom just got one of those built-in electronic toilet seat bidets with a seat warmer. She swears by it but it totally grosses me out. Never used the bidet action but apparently there's a separate line rigged beneath the seat from which "fresh" water sprays. That combined with the warmth of the seat... eiw... I call it her disease seat.

I think the bathrooms at the Google offices are all equipped with the washlets?

Ok, moeyknight, but why couldn't you lather up your hands and use them, instead of rubbing your bar of soap all over? Or you could just use liquid soap. Seems like people are just looking for excuses without having even tried bidets.

pardon the interuption, butt:
this thread is awesome!!!
everyone's so intense :)

i second the "squeezy sports bottle" technique. i learned it after giving birth and it's a very thorough way of cleansing.

poo towels in the washer and dryer? to be honest, compared to the poopy clothing my two sons put out, i think "poo" bidet towels would be quite sanitary!

I have a question:
Since the bidet is seperate do you go #1,#2 in the regular toilet and then hobble over to the bidet to spritz? That seems sort of weird - why isn't the bidet just a feature of the regular toilet?

For the "Green Concious" folks, we have a choice:

We can wash ourselves with soap and water and wash reusable cotton bidet towels in the laundry.

Or we can also chop down trees, chop them into bits, mix with water, bleach all the color out with chemicals, roll into sheets, perforate, add chemical fragrance, roll up and wrap in more paper or cellophane, then ship all over the country - only to flush them down the toilet when we're done.

Do you wear paper underwear? Do you dry yourselves after a shower with a paper towel?

Thank you Choby and Monica.
If you can reach your sink faucet while crouched on the toilet
then just make your near final wipe with toilet paper a moistened one.
Some form of washing after 'going' is most beneficial.

Please tell me women on here don't use soap or chemicals to clean their girly bits!

"Do you wear paper underwear?"

Yes, in fact, I do. But I wipe with cloth to stay in balance with the rest of society.

Thanks for asking.

:)

...this thread cracks me up!

"I think the bathrooms at the Google offices are all equipped with the washlets?"

I'd love to see the toilets and urinals there labelled as Poogle and Peegle.

OK, ok... with that, I'm done.

This thread is hilarious!
Bidets are almost a given... except in the US.
This subject reminds me of having to explain how soccer is *such a big thing* every where else and trying to understand that the "world series" really, honestly, you know, doesn't involve, like- the world.

No surprise that 95% of Americans have never used one...95% of Americans have never been outside America!

I love the idea of a bidet, it can keep you fresh when the rest of your body is still clean.

As far as being eco-freindly,

I think a bidet is worse for the environment because water is such a precious resource and treating the water is very energy intensive in most places. But the flip side is is probably doesn't use that much water if you aren't playing around.

This is a great discussion. I just renovated my tiny 4x6" bathroom and tried as hard as I could to figure out how to fit a bidet in there. After learning how to use one properly in the course of my travels it seems hard to go without one. There is a lot of confusion about how they work in this thread. Since I am used to the American TP way, I just add the bidet in to the equation when its available. Basically, I treat it just like a bath or shower, soap, rinse, etc. This cannot but be cleaner than TP alone. Q: how do you attach the sprayer to the toilet - and doesn't that mean the water is really cold?!

Actually, I was inspired by a really interesting art exhibition in New York a few years ago about Lotahs, a South Asian version of the bidet, a water jug that sits in the bathroom for this precise purpose. For more great discussion of culture class over bathroom practices, see this review of Lotah Stories. A whole new decor question too!

Bepsf, you're argument is quite disengenuous.

"We can wash ourselves with soap and water and wash reusable cotton bidet towels in the laundry.

Or we can also chop down trees, chop them into bits, mix with water, bleach all the color out with chemicals, roll into sheets, perforate, add chemical fragrance, roll up and wrap in more paper or cellophane, then ship all over the country - only to flush them down the toilet when we're done."


You're implying that there is no ecological cost to the soap and clean water used in a bidet. You're also making the assumption that toilet paper is never made of recycled paper of perfume-free.

I don't have a strong opinion on bidets: to each his own, really. But I don't think either side has the right to claim environmental or sanitary superiority without some cold hard facts to back up their claims.

I agree with the post about poopy kid clothes and cloth diapers getting clean in the wash. I have even heard from a dad that when those items are dumped into the washer *whole* (with out being emptied over the toilet first) They will still come clean and his wife never knew.

I have a friend I call little miss tmi. She uses wash cloths when at home after #2. I am glad that I no longer visit her house and that I have never used one of her washcloths. She also has other much more disgusting bathroom habits. I am not sure which are more disgusting, then things she tells me or the things that she does not tell me.

i'm always curious about how most of the world and for most of time people just went without toilet paper. does anyone know if there are online resources about all the different methods of after-poo care? i know the sears catalog was used in the so-called 'old days', and i know about the bidets. but i know there are other ways. any links?

there's a lot of great stuff in that lotah article.

i love this:

She looked at me as if I was slow and then continued, “They keep [medicine] in the bathroom, and then they eat it.” There was triumph in her voice when she added, “And they say we’re dirty.”

so true.

Bidets are great! I have two in my house and don't use them half as much as I should.

The spray attatchments that some have mentioned that can be added to American style toilets (like the spray nozzels on kitchen sinks) are being sold at cloth diapering vendor websites as a way of washing off the solids in a cloth diaper into the toilet without the icky dunking process. It works very well according to reports (will be trying it soon...) and helps to keep the solids out of the wash. AND, apparently, this same attatchment is also very useful to new moms in their post-partum care instead of using the squeezy bottle that the hospital sends home with us.

I've lived abroad, even in the Dominican Republic for a couple of years, but apparently, bidets are not common in outhouses, so I have never had an opportunity to use one. (Hmmm... maybe I'm too low class?) Not narrow minded, thank you, just unsure of the how to's...

Good article! By the way, I've just bought the Bidan - bidet seat with warm water and blower. You can google it or enter here:
www.bidet-plastom.com