Looking for something new for your bathroom? Consider a smart toilet today to add a piece of luxury into your space that will surely make your bathroom feel more modern and advanced.
A smart toilet is a plumbing fixture that incorporates technology to add additional functionality such as self-cleaning, lighting, warming and massaging features to a toilet. Smart toilets can be controlled with voice command, remote control or mobile apps.
Brief History on the Smart Toilet
After it’s introduction in 1596, it wasn’t until the 1980s that electronic bidets were introduced in Japan, Europe and North America. From there, numerous vendors such as American Standard, Duravit, AXENT, and Kohler began production of a one-piece electronic bidet. By 2010 smart toilets are becoming more commonplace with digital lighting, entertainment, appliance, and home monitoring systems.
Smart Toilet Pros/Cons
Like any bathroom fixture, smart toilets have their own set of positives and drawbacks to consider:
Pros
When it comes to smart toilets, there are quite a few benefits and drawbacks. Smart toilets provide many usage benefits and are much more comfortable, but they can be quite pricey.
Hygienic- Smart toilets are operated touch-free, making them more hygienic than traditional toilets. In addition, they also have self-cleaning capabilities, which makes them quite clean to use.
Low water consumption-The smart capabilities of the toilet extend to the flushing action, meaning that your toilet won’t waste water, making it a much more sustainable option.
More comfortable-Additional features add comfort to just going to the bathroom. The addition of the water spritz, heating, and voice-activated features ensures that the experience is always comfortable.
Good for aging or disabled individuals-Many, features of smart toilets are readily available for all individuals, making them ideal choices for aging or those with movement impairments.
Saves space-Smart toilets are generally smaller than other toilets, which saves a great deal of space and make them ideal for all bathroom sizes.
Cons
High electrical bills-Additional features will require a great deal of power usage. The addition of a smart toilet will increase to your electricity bill.
Costly Repairs-Smart toilets have a lot of specific components that are costly and time-consuming to repair. If your toilet breaks down, you can expect a long delay for repairs compared to traditional toilets.
Total Cost-Smart toilets aren’t cheap, so expect to pay roughly $2000+ for one, whereas an average toilet costs around $250.
Learning Curve-Smart toilets have many features and functions that will take time to learn and isn’t as straightforward as a standard toilet.
Smart Toilet vs Smart Toilet Seat
Although similar, a smart toilet seat and a smart toilet have a few key differences, with the first being it’s size. Smart toilet seats are much smaller and are easier to install, but their features will be much more limited compared to the smart toilet. The purpose of this is to offer a small list of features that can easily adapt to your bathroom’s regular toilet. Toilet seats generally have warming, light functionality, WIFI, Bluetooth, and entertainment functions. However, they will lack all the functions and features of a smart toilet.
Common Features of Smart Toilet
These are the features you can expect to come with every smart toilet:
- Remote control-You can control every aspect of your toilet through voice command, a mobile app or touchpad controls, giving you a greater deal of freedom when going to the bathroom.
- Overflow protection-Sensors detect the water level in your toilet, controlling how much water should be present. This will prevent any mishaps, such as spills or overflows.
- Self-cleaning-Smart toilets come with auto-cleaning features that ensure the hygiene of your toilet at all times.
- Perfume Spray adjustment-Many smart toilets have smell or perfume sprays to help control the odor of the toilet.
- Light source-Smart toilets come with many illumination features to help you find your way in the dark.
- Seat Warmer-To ensure that you are always comfortable, all smart toilets are equipped with heating elements to ensure optimal temperature while the bathroom is in use.
- Touchless flushing-To ensure the hygiene of your toilet, all smart toilets are equipped with touchless flushing that activates either through pressure sensors or motion detection.
How do Smart Toilets Work?
Smart toilets generally work by using sensors that control flushing and auto-wash systems. The toilet measures the distance, water level, and weight of the toilet bowl. You can also utilize voice command, mobile control, or motion detection to activate the features of the toilet.
Do You Need Toilet Paper with Smart Toilets?
If the smart toilet is working as intended, you do not need toilet paper at all as the toilet will clean you after use.
Average Cost of Smart Toilet
You can obtain a smart toilet for roughly $600, but generally, you should pay around $1200-2,000 starting factoring in installation costs and electricity bills.
Is Installation Difficult with a Smart Toilet
No, installation isn’t difficult as the installation method is similar to a standard toilet. All components of a smart toilet are usually housed within the toilet itself, so the plumbing and layout remain the same with a few extra considerations, such as power connections. However, while the installation is the same, maintenance is much more complex. You will need to find a specialist who understands and can fix your toilet system’s electrical systems and functions. For that reason, only have a specialist install your smart toilet to ensure nothing goes wrong.
Are Smart Toilets Worth the Money?
This question will depend on you and your household. Smart toilets have a lot of useful features and only increase in value over time. However, they do require expensive maintenance and carry a steep initial investment. If any of the features seem worth it to you, then they are worth the money.
Smart toilets are quickly gaining in popularity and if any of the features discussed today interest you, consider one for your home.
Post time: Nov-20-2023