1. I have finally clued in that "washlets" are the high tech toilets that I first encountered in Japan 10 years ago. I leave to your imagination the first experience of sitting on something that looked like the console from the star ship enterprise, and not being able to read Japanese. I started to push buttons, looking for the flush one. Well.... I wasn't sure how to stop the thing and was beginning to wonder if I had to a forward roll off it to avoid a total soaking down my back. Most bewildering - if not the most startling - was the button that resulted in the sound of flushing but no action. I found out afterwards it was a "modesty" button, to disguise any rude noises made by one with delicate sensibilities!
Fast forward 4 years to a similar encounter in Korean. Now the Koreans in general are a bit brasher than the Japanese, and I could no more read Korean than Japanese. I fumbled and hit the "modesty button".... but instead of the subtle sound of flushing, I was blasted with a full volume version of "Orpheus and the Underworld" aka music for the "Can-Can"!!!! I had a tough time gathering the tattered shreds of my dignity through my hysterical laughter as I had to re-join the group of Korean businessmen I was with, as there was no way I was going to explain the cross cultural humor of that one. Trauma aside, the idea of a warm seat in a home kept at a nippy 67 degrees F has an awful lot of appeal and "washlet" is on my wish list for the bathroom redo. By the way, the next generation of "washlets" in Asia can do an instant chemical analysis on the urine, complete with print out! Handy for diabetics and hypochondriacs. Haven't tried that one yet.
2. We are planning our build. I had not given a single thought to the toilets (and I tend to over think everything) I was browsing through this thread and see Toto and Washlet mentioned time and time again. I have been reading them and have a few questions... Is the washlet a separate accessory that you buy? Does it have to have a Toto toilet to fit on? What is the big deal? I heard neorest and see them at over $2000! For a toilet??? I am thinking I must be missing something. Most of the posts go on the assumption that you already know what an amazing work of plumbing this is, but I am completely clueless. I picked the toilet for our basement remodel completely based on price and looks. It works ok. It was under $150. We have 4 boys, I am afraid that that they will definitely make even MORE of a mess with the washlet than they already do with the sink, tub, toilet etc... that we have now. Then again, they are the ones that could most use assistance in the hygiene department. I showed my husband a YouTube video showing the washlet. He says he doesn't think he'd use it. What do I need to know here? Feel free to just direct me to the right thread if I am missing it, but I did search and read up what I could see.
My answer to both:
I’m of record many times here on Garden Web about my Washlet. I purchased one earlier in the year not as a luxury, though it certainly is, but as a necessity. I suffer from Parkinson’s and was finding it more and more difficult to keep myself clean. Another contributor wrote about trying to get one installed for her elderly mother in a nursing home and it dawned on me that it would be perfect for me. I now have had it about 8 or 9 months and have said here online and to friends that if I had an MP3 player and a flat screen TV on mine I would probably just move in there. Not only is the seat warmer great but the heated water that it rinses with is even better. It remains a real popular item with my friends and visitors, many who have tried it and it's as much a conversation piece as the casket I bought myself on EBay that sits in the spare bedroom waiting until I need it! My point is that they are a luxury but can be a wonderful adjunct to the life of an elderly or disabled person also. I highly recommend it.
Now I would like to add that I also have the Toto Ultramax toilets and wouldn’t change brands and read, constantly, as in this thread that they tend to be the very best. The Washlet is easisly added to most brands of toilets and retrofitted to a bathroom wintin 30 minutes and without any pre-existing electrical or additional plumbing. As to your children using the washlet, I am the dad of 3 sons and I’m sure they would have figured someway to have fun with a washlet but generally speaking it has an electric eye on it that keeps it from working unless someone is sitting on it so it’s not as easy to "play" with as you might think and as a previous contributor wrote it has cut down on the toilet paper usage by vast amounts. BTW as my screen name (faucetman) indicates I am a Man, and once your husband tries it he will be with me in wanting more entertainment in there so he can stay longer.
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