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Why aren't we all using Japanese toilets?

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Re: Why aren't we all using Japanese toilets?

#271

Post by mrb »

mibbitier wrote: post #194
aplusbi wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Perhaps you are one of the stand-to-wipe types, but if you remain seated throughout the drying operation you will not have to deal with any rivulets. Also some toilets have an air-dryer.

Air dryers are incredibly bad. Hand dryers are practically a waste of time since they barely do anything IMHO.

Hand dryers are very efficient! They don't seem to do anything for the first ~20 seconds, but in the last 5 seconds you feel all the water evaporating. That's because only the water surface evaporates, until your skin is exposed dry. You are probably like most people who I see use them in public bathroom, using them only for <10 seconds.

Re: Why aren't we all using Japanese toilets?

#272

Post by mistercow »

aptimpropriety wrote: post #9

Every one of these articles gets the pitch of these toilets completely wrong - for every person, and in every scenario, these are not universally better. Consider the following experiment: Smear some mud on your arm. Now, using a jet stream the power of a squirt gun and very low precision, wash it all off in 10 seconds. Not so easy. Then - imagine if you put mud on a place with hair! Not only will it not be clean wit…

No, they definitely don't replace toilet paper. But they can make it so you don't have to use nearly as much.

Re: Why aren't we all using Japanese toilets?

#273

Post by bluedanieru »

>These toilets, known as “washlets”, have many amazing features - the most notable of which is they render toilet paper obsolete.

Uh, no they don't. And if the author is using them that way, that's fucking gross. If they rendered toilet paper obsolete then Japanese bathrooms wouldn't have toilet paper, or Japanese wouldn't use it anyway, but neither statement is true. The 'feature' of Japanese toilets is that your asshole will be clean, regardless of how dire the shit you just took is. And believe me, it's a wonderful thing, but it doesn't render the paper obsolete.

Pardon the pun, but this author is talking out of his ass.

Re: Why aren't we all using Japanese toilets?

#274

Post by brianmcdonough »

sk5t wrote: post #193
blazingfrog2 wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While we're knee-deep into the toilet conversation, you make an interesting observation. I'm originally from France and have lived in California for over 11 years but, to this day, I'm still astonished at how little embarrassment there is in American toilets (my experience is limited to the mens rooms) as far as unpleasant noise goes. It is obviously a fact of life but, where I come from, denial is king in that depar…

I think it's just cultural: American men are not expected to be discreet or embarrassed in "practical" all-male environments such as locker rooms and public toilets. A loud belch or other powerful, resounding emanation signals manliness... and it was funny when you were 7, it's still a bit funny now.

"off-screen sounds" as they're called in entertainment, meaning sounds that have no visual cue to explain their existence, ignite a fleet startle response from ear to brain. The science behind the funny and the awkwardness of farting or belching. When expressed loudly, might not even be that far from the roar of a large carnivore.

Re: Why aren't we all using Japanese toilets?

#275

Post by bmelton »

wilfra wrote: post #258
greggman wrote: post #247

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You mean people who are snobs tend toward the French way where as people who are fun and warm hearted have no problem laughing at farts. I would much rather be with a person that thinks farts are funny then one who doesn't. To each their own.

I wasn't passing judgement on either group, simply stating the facts as I know them to be.

Those are hardly 'facts' as much as they are anecdata. From the working class families I grew up in and around, I could assert with just as much first hand data how baseless your assertions are.

Re: Why aren't we all using Japanese toilets?

#276

Post by tomrod »

You know, sometimes there just needs to be a match to light the fire. Supposedly (but indeterminately) Clark Gable wearing no undershirt drove undershirt sales down 75%[0]

I reckon an episode Modern Family or Community where this type of toilet/bidet is a positive driver of the comedy would bring in a lot of sales for bidets.

[0] http://www.snopes.com/movies/actors/gable1.asp

Re: Why aren't we all using Japanese toilets?

#278

Post by tomrod »

wilfra wrote: post #235
blazingfrog2 wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While we're knee-deep into the toilet conversation, you make an interesting observation. I'm originally from France and have lived in California for over 11 years but, to this day, I'm still astonished at how little embarrassment there is in American toilets (my experience is limited to the mens rooms) as far as unpleasant noise goes. It is obviously a fact of life but, where I come from, denial is king in that depar…

For working class white American men, that is not limited to public restrooms. They're doing it at home too and laughing about it to their wives/girlfriends/kids - who probably call them disgusting to which they laugh even more. People with more class and manners tend toward the French way of doing it.

This is an excellent example of circular reasoning, as I see it.

"More mannered people are more mannered because they do not do things I consider ill-mannered."

A fart is a fart. Go to southeast Asia, it's still just a fart that people laugh at. Go to Europe and fart and now leave a bad impressions due to culture? I see which is the optimal setup for practicality and sanity.

Re: Why aren't we all using Japanese toilets?

#279

Post by krakensden »

joezydeco wrote: post #84
tomjen3 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How long does a toilet last? Ten years? Then we are talking less than the cost of your internet connection (and we won't mention the cost of food, which is way more than that).

The tank and bowl itself will last 30-40 years no problem. There are no moving parts to the porcelain. The valves and seals may need replacing, and the bowl should be kept clean to avoid staining, but I've never heard of someone replacing the entire unit every 10 years.

In California most toilets are newer- water shortages compelled upgrades.

Re: Why aren't we all using Japanese toilets?

#280

Post by mahyarm »

seanmcdirmid wrote: post #163
jinushaun wrote: post #157

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, we (Thai, Laos, and Cambodian) do eat with our hands. Chopsticks were a cultural import from the Chinese.

Really? I never saw anyone eating with their hands in SE Asia, well, anything but street food. Its hard to eat a rice or noodle dish with your hands, especially without bread! Genuinely curious.

Go to more rural areas and villages, such as north east thailand (Issan, etc).
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