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sassenach
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The toilet thread made me think of this burning question. I have never used a bidet, but I’ve seen them, and my first thought is, isn’t there back splash onto the sprayer? Then does the next person get sprayed with micro remnants of the last person’s backsplash?

 

Help me understand how a bidet can be sanitary.

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I've never been instructed in how to use one, but we once rented a house that had one.

 

I don't understand the backsplash question. No water stays in the bowl. It drains away like a sink. You can leave the spray running a bit to rinse it off. Our one was in an en suite bathroom, so the usual soap and towels were at hand. I didn't find it very comfy, so only used it once or twice.

Edited by Laura Corin
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I've never been instructed in how to use one, but we once rented a house that had one.

 

I don't understand the backsplash question. No water stays in the bowl. It drains away like a sink. You can leave the spray running a bit to rinse it off. Our one was in an en suite bathroom, so the usual soap and towels were at hand. I didn't find it very comfy, so only used it once or twice.

The ones I’ve seen have a little nozzle that sticks out. My concern is the backsplash onto that nozzle.

 

Let me see if I can find a picture...

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I don't know exactly how they work, but dang I wish these existed in America (I mean, as something other than a specialty item).

 

We're not supposed to use those flushable wipes, right?  Because they aren't really flushable and they cause all kinds of sewer problems, or so I hear.  We're renting a house with septic so I don't use them because of that.

 

But look, if I got poop on my hands, I'd never just wipe it off with dry toilet paper and claim it was clean. NO ONE WOULD!  But yet everyone does that with their bums.  Dry toilet paper alone does not clean anything and no one can sway me otherwise.  But I don't know what I'm supposed to do about it other than mostly try not to think about it.

Edited by EmseB
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I don't know exactly how they work, but dang I wish these existed in America (I mean, as something other than a specialty item).

 

We're not supposed to use those flushable wipes, right?  Because they aren't really flushable and they cause all kinds of sewer problems, or so I hear.  We're renting a house with septic so I don't use them because of that.

 

But look, if I got poop on my hands, I'd never just wipe it off with dry toilet paper and claim it was clean. NO ONE WOULD!  But yet everyone does that with their bums.  Dry toilet paper alone does not clean anything and no one can sway me otherwise.  But I don't know what I'm supposed to do about it other than mostly try not to think about it.

I am with you on not thinking dry toilet paper does the job. We use regular baby wipes and keep a lidded trash can with a bag next to the toilet for putting them in (along with pads, etc. that cannot be flushed). I know it still contributes to trash produced, but then, so does toilet paper, and I am not giving that up, for sure.

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I’ve used lots of bidets, although never a fancy bidet, just the bidet sprayer type. Backsplash isn’t a problem in my experience. And experienced bidet users don’t require much toilet paper to dry off since you don’t get very wet. I feel much cleaner with a bidet.

 

Also, bidet sprayers are the best for cleaning the bathroom, especially if you have a drain in the floor. You can just power wash the whole bathroom and squeegee all the water into the drain.

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But look, if I got poop on my hands, I'd never just wipe it off with dry toilet paper and claim it was clean. NO ONE WOULD!  But yet everyone does that with their bums.  Dry toilet paper alone does not clean anything and no one can sway me otherwise.  But I don't know what I'm supposed to do about it other than mostly try not to think about it.

 

Right, but you aren't going around touching things with your rear end, are you? (If the answer is yes, please just pretend you never saw this question.) Who cares if a few extra poop molecules get into your undies. They are rubbing off there all the time.

 

I once heard that the average person has about a teaspoon of poop molecules hanging out in their undies. I have no idea if that's accurate or not, but just due to the nature of shedding skin, everyone has some, you know?

 

As for bidets, I once rented a place (it was in Europe) that had one in the main bathroom. Yes, I tried it out. There really wasn't any splashback once I got the hang of it. You use the toilet, stand, step to the side, use the bidet, wait a second to drip dry, and done. I never used TP or a dryer afterwards.

 

FTR, I, being from the US, have no idea if that's the correct way or not. But it worked for me!

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I always picture spraying things into your body. Not appealing.

Also the ones with the dryers seem even more likely to spread germs around. Like it turns out that hand dryers do, only worse.

 

DH has them at work. He tries to tell me about how great they are and I shut. him. down.

 

La la la I can't hear you.

I can’t think of anything less appealing than using a bidet at work.

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Right, but you aren't going around touching things with your rear end, are you? (If the answer is yes, please just pretend you never saw this question.) Who cares if a few extra poop molecules get into your undies. They are rubbing off there all the time.

 

I once heard that the average person has about a teaspoon of poop molecules hanging out in their undies. I have no idea if that's accurate or not, but just due to the nature of shedding skin, everyone has some, you know?

Well I guess I'd rather have as little "poop molecules" as possible floating around in my undies. A wet wipe or bidet gets the germs off people, especially if (not to be too TMI in a thread about bidets) there's any...hair in the nearby vicinity? And while I don't go around touching my bum and/or touching things with my bum, I have a lot of little kids and I don't think my kids are the only ones randomly putting their hands in their pants.

 

Basically, I just don't think dry wiping gets us clean enough and I don't know why people are ok with it, generally speaking.

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I remember when I was a child having a bidet in France. Dedicated towel by the bidet. Shared bathroom. Did not use bidet or towel.

 

Also when I was a child, I remember a hotel in Scotland that still had chamber pots. 'What's this for?' I asked my mother. Did not use.

 

Not to be too graphics, but a handy bottle of water to dampen a bit of toilet paper does the job, imo.

 

Please do not quote as I may delete. LOL.

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We stayed at a vacation rental that had a bidet. We loved it so much that we asked the owners where we could buy one for our home. And then we did just that. Then the kids kept migrating to our bathroom, so we bought a less awesome but still nice one for them (it sat atop our regular toilet.)

 

The brand is Toto. Run, don't walk. Freaking awesome.

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So how about very cold water in the bidet? 

This is one of the thing that stops me from installing the handheld one I already own (bought it to be a diaper sprayer and never used it for that). Well that, and I wonder about the practicality of getting a good rinse because it's basically aiming a sink sprayer at important bits while not accidentally spraying out of the toilet? I'll just say that my bottom takes up majority of the seat, maybe that design is for skinnier people to have better access?

But back to the cold - right now, the water in our house is quite cold - our well water bladder tank holds it at "room temp" which is probably around 45-50 degrees and maybe even colder since it's along an outside wall in a unheated room.

I suppose I could try to add it to the hot water line too -but that invites new complications.  To get the perfect hot/cold ratio for warm water in our house because that depends on how hot the water wants to be at that moment (hello oil-fired hot water heater with attitude). It's always changing and our water can be *extremely* hot which I think worries me more than an icy blast. 

I've wanted one forever, technically I own an option that would probably suffice, but have let fear of the unknown stop me from using it -- though I almost installed it before my last two births and still wish I had. Cold water would have been welcomed then.

I've since fallen in love with the Japanese models and want a heated one with electronic controls -- that and one of those electronically controlled tubs too, and a center floor drain in my bathroom. And well, maybe the entire Japanese bath room -- but that's another tangent.

 

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Ok I've always totally wondered this.

 

According to some recent article in our local trashy newspaper they are much healthier. Apparently they prevent overly aggressive wipers from hurting themselves.

Isn’t this self correcting? You would KNOW if you’re hurting yourself and dial it down a notch. Is there an epidemic of overly aggressive wipers down under????

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I have a Toto Washlet seat on my toilet. It is everything. The seat is heated, and the heat level is adjustable (it can even be set to only heat during hours in which you are most likely to use it.) Upon sitting down, the seat pre-sprays the bowl to help with "stickage." The bidet feature has a bum setting and a front setting for ladies. The pressure, heat and angle are all adjustable. It then as a dryer, which is also adjustable. And to top it all off, it has a feature that remembers two separate users settings so all you have to do is press 1 or 2.

 

I have Crohn's disease which leads to all sorts of bathroom issues and this thing is a total lifesaver. When I told DH I wanted it when we were building our house, he thought I was crazy but he LOVES it also. I highly, highly recommend!!

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So how about very cold water in the bidet?

 

This is one of the thing that stops me from installing the handheld one I already own (bought it to be a diaper sprayer and never used it for that). Well that, and I wonder about the practicality of getting a good rinse because it's basically aiming a sink sprayer at important bits while not accidentally spraying out of the toilet? I'll just say that my bottom takes up majority of the seat, maybe that design is for skinnier people to have better access?

 

But back to the cold - right now, the water in our house is quite cold - our well water bladder tank holds it at "room temp" which is probably around 45-50 degrees and maybe even colder since it's along an outside wall in a unheated room.

 

I suppose I could try to add it to the hot water line too -but that invites new complications. To get the perfect hot/cold ratio for warm water in our house because that depends on how hot the water wants to be at that moment (hello oil-fired hot water heater with attitude). It's always changing and our water can be *extremely* hot which I think worries me more than an icy blast.

 

I've wanted one forever, technically I own an option that would probably suffice, but have let fear of the unknown stop me from using it -- though I almost installed it before my last two births and still wish I had. Cold water would have been welcomed then.

 

I've since fallen in love with the Japanese models and want a heated one with electronic controls -- that and one of those electronically controlled tubs too, and a center floor drain in my bathroom. And well, maybe the entire Japanese bath room -- but that's another tangent.

I have a Japanese style soaking tub (Koehler Greek tub) that fits into a 3/4 bath. I love that thing. The water comes up to my shoulders. I’d love to add a warm booty shower to my toileting experience.

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Well I guess I'd rather have as little "poop molecules" as possible floating around in my undies. A wet wipe or bidet gets the germs off people, especially if (not to be too TMI in a thread about bidets) there's any...hair in the nearby vicinity? And while I don't go around touching my bum and/or touching things with my bum, I have a lot of little kids and I don't think my kids are the only ones randomly putting their hands in their pants.

 

Basically, I just don't think dry wiping gets us clean enough and I don't know why people are ok with it, generally speaking.

Clean enough for what? Our bodies can cope with a certain amount of bacteria, and there is interesting research on the effect of too much hygiene.

 

When I saw my children with their hands in their pants, I made sure they washed their hands.A bottom is never going to be sterile. If others want to do more, that's fine too.

 

My family rarely gets stomach upsets.

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So how about very cold water in the bidet? 

 

 

But back to the cold - right now, the water in our house is quite cold - our well water bladder tank holds it at "room temp" which is probably around 45-50 degrees and maybe even colder since it's along an outside wall in a unheated room.

 

I suppose I could try to add it to the hot water line too -but that invites new complications.  To get the perfect hot/cold ratio for warm water in our house because that depends on how hot the water wants to be at that moment (hello oil-fired hot water heater with attitude). It's always changing and our water can be *extremely* hot which I think worries me more than an icy blast. 

 

 

 

Oh, I never even thought of that!

I just ran downstairs to measure my cold faucet temp.  44.2*. That'll wake you in the morning!  :scared:

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I'm now wondering if bidets are considered necessities at nudist colonies.........y'all and your thought provoking questions! 

 

I read an article about a nudist colony in the Dallas Observer once.  At least in this one, you were required to carry around a little towel to sit on.  Which makes sense, no matter how clean and disease-free someone is, I don't want my parts touching where someone else's parts had just been.  Of course, I'm not a nudist.   

Edited by shawthorne44
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Clean enough for what? Our bodies can cope with a certain amount of bacteria, and there is interesting research on the effect of too much hygiene.

 

When I saw my children with their hands in their pants, I made sure they washed their hands.A bottom is never going to be sterile. If others want to do more, that's fine too.

 

My family rarely gets stomach upsets.

 

Okay, my first post was kind of tongue-in-cheek ranting with a bit of truth behind it, but to answer your question:

 

I just don't like the feeling of only dry-wiping the bum and the reason is that it does not feel clean or fresh. It feels like I rubbed most of the stuff off with soft paper. The same way I would not wipe dirt off of my hands with only a dry paper towel because it wouldn't feel clean enough. It isn't even mostly about spreading germs (which as people have pointed out is more of a concerns with hands than bums), it's mostly about how I clean and fresh I happen to feel. Or, I should say that I far prefer the cleanliness of a wet wipe or bidet, and I'm well aware that is not sterilizing anything. (I'm not sure if I mentioned sterilization or how that came up, because obviously that's not going to happen).

 

(and in general, maybe my kids are grosser than others, but I assume the hands-in-pants, nose-picking, fingers-in-mouth, toy-touching goes on even when I'm not there to see them and tell them to wash their hands)

 

I'm far from a germaphobe and don't use flushable wipes or a bidet currently because it's not practical. But I have in the past, and the difference in general cleanliness and, uh, freshness is amazing. Not to mention, like PPs have said, when things are messier than usual down there they are quite useful.  For example, post birth, every time, I've been sent home with a peri-bottle to clean the area.

 

It's fine if it doesn't bother you. I don't think most people even think about it because it's really not common in the US to do anything but use dry toilet paper.

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