Dear Ed: I'm a senior citizen and I have a question that might be a bit off the wall. In the interest of continued independent living, I'm considering having a bidet installed in my home. Now that I'm older, I want to do something nice for myself even though it may not be totally practical. What are my choices? Will a bidet waste a lot of water? Also, what about water temperatures? I would like the choice of having warm water when I want it. I hope you are interested by this question. — Sandy, Florida
Answer: I always enjoy hearing about people who decide to spoil themselves by installing a luxury plumbing fixture. A bathroom should be a special place to relax and pamper yourself a bit, so hats off to you.
For those of you who don't know what a bidet is, just think of it as a sit-down wash sink for your bottom. In Europe, a bidet is commonplace. It's usually a separate fixture next to the toilet with its own water and drain lines. Bidets never really caught on in American bathrooms, except for high-end installations where they were more of a conversation piece than a plumbing fixture. This labeled a bidet as a luxury item that would be impractical to add to an existing bathroom.
Until now.
A form of the traditional bidet is becoming popular in America, thanks to new technology. It's called a bidet toilet seat and basically it can turn your existing toilet into a functioning bidet. This saves a lot of space and drastically cuts down on installation costs compared to installing a separate plumbing fixture.
For selections, contact a plumbing supply house and get information on the "toilet seats with bidet functionality." These seats use automatically extending water wands that give a soft aerated private spray wash. This leads us to your next question. As far as water use, bidets have long been considered a water-saving fixture, because they allow the user an option of partial bathing instead of a total body shower.
Finally, your last question is about comfort. Yes, you do have the option of controlling water temperature, because the quality bidet toilet seats on the market today have in-line water heaters. Some bidet seats even have seat warmers, flow settings, warm-air drying, and even odor control. Put that in a nice package with a "remote control" option and you may never want to leave your bathroom.
Remember, you'll need to work with a licensed contractor, because bidet seats do require electrical and plumbing work, plus any permits needed. And the seats themselves can be pricey. But, the payback is you'll end up with a plumbing fixture that can do "double duty" as a toilet and a bidet. Not a bad investment in the end!
Master contractor/plumber Ed Del Grande is the author of "Ed Del Grande's House Call" and hosts TV shows on Scripps Networks and HGTVPro.com. Visit eddelgrande.com or write eddelgrande@hgtvpro.com. Always consult local contractors and codes. Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service.