Designing a marine bidet

Ajax

Ajax

Super Anarchist
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Edgewater, MD
The "poo" thread got me thinking-  Why not design a bidet fixture for marine toilets?

I recently installed a bidet into my toilet at home. I'm no stranger to these fixtures, having used them in the Near East and Europe. I greatly prefer them to wads of paper.  One of the biggest gripes about marine toilets is how easily they clog and people putting foreign material into them.  I've read many posts from people who state that they keep a trash can for used toilet paper next to the toilet because they refuse to risk clogging the toilet with paper.

Such a fixture could be designed to work with salt or fresh water. It could have the option of an electric or hand pump to generate the spray. It would simply bolt on under the existing toilet seat like my unit at home.

What say the quorum? Would you use it if it existed?

 
loneshark64

loneshark64

Super Anarchist
1,421
1,248
Midcoast Maine
I want mine connected via NMEA 2000 so I can control it from the MFD. Maybe WiFi for the video feed. And gimbals, of course.

 
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Israel Hands

Israel Hands

Super Anarchist
2,377
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coastal NC
That's going to fill the waste tank rather quickly, no?  And would have to tap into fresh water system...who wants a shot of marina bottom water up in the netherparts? :huh:

 
Ajax

Ajax

Super Anarchist
14,502
2,797
Edgewater, MD
Israel Hands said:
That's going to fill the waste tank rather quickly, no?  And would have to tap into fresh water system...who wants a shot of marina bottom water up in the netherparts? :huh:
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A fine spray under high pressure uses very little water.  I agree that nasty marina or harbor water is not optimal. I would design the system to use both. There are serious health risks involved with tying anything toilet related to the fresh water system. I'm thinking a small, dedicated tank for the bidet is the solution.

I know that there are ways to tie fresh flushing water from the water tanks that involve check valves and solenoids. I'm not sure I want to go that route.

 
Elegua

Elegua

Generalissimo
4,348
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Lower Loslobia
Ajax said:
The "poo" thread got me thinking-  Why not design a bidet fixture for marine toilets?

I recently installed a bidet into my toilet at home. I'm no stranger to these fixtures, having used them in the Near East and Europe. I greatly prefer them to wads of paper.  One of the biggest gripes about marine toilets is how easily they clog and people putting foreign material into them.  I've read many posts from people who state that they keep a trash can for used toilet paper next to the toilet because they refuse to risk clogging the toilet with paper.

Such a fixture could be designed to work with salt or fresh water. It could have the option of an electric or hand pump to generate the spray. It would simply bolt on under the existing toilet seat like my unit at home.

What say the quorum? Would you use it if it existed?
Click to expand...
There's the ulta-cheep indo/India style bum-gun. Just hook a pot/sink sprayer it into your pressure water. Of course some user skill is required. 

 
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The Lucky One

The Lucky One

Member
193
63
Rexford, NY
I'd like to replace the traditional head in my Centaur with a dessicating/composting head. I can deal with semi-dried shit a lot better than liquid shit, and I'd rather not deal with the plumbing issues inherent with a traditional head. I just haven't found a way to incorporate a bidet yet, though. Mixing poo water into the urine holding "tank" isn't good. Adding moisture to the solids tank isn't good. I've seen recommendations to move to wet wipes instead, but it seems like a half-arsed solution.

 
Steam Flyer

Steam Flyer

Super Anarchist
41,233
8,123
Eastern NC
Ajax said:
A fine spray under high pressure uses very little water.  I agree that nasty marina or harbor water is not optimal. I would design the system to use both. There are serious health risks involved with tying anything toilet related to the fresh water system. I'm thinking a small, dedicated tank for the bidet is the solution.

I know that there are ways to tie fresh flushing water from the water tanks that involve check valves and solenoids. I'm not sure I want to go that route.
Click to expand...
There's what is called a biological barrier, more than a check valve (although there is one of those too). I put a freshwater-fed electric potty in our trawler for cruising, following the mfgr's instructions on installing the feed system. There was a large-diameter section, an air chamber basically, with a vacuum breaker and shut-off sensor; this prevented any reasonable possibility of backflow or even any germs swimming upstream. It was not difficult to install but it did have some system requirements, like installing this chamber X height above the potty level. It was certainly not a job for Joe I-Don't-Follow-Instructions-Boatyard-Hoofhands-Guy.

Don't recall the name of the model, I think it was a Raritan. My wife considered it a HUGE improvement over the old head. And push-button flushing took the scary-boat-potty factor out of the equation for guests. Didn't use too much water but then our trawler had ~150 gallons.

- DSK

 
Bull City

Bull City

Bull City
6,902
2,538
North Carolina
My brother lived in Japan for a while, and mentioned to me that they have these little warm water spritzers that are placed on the underside of the seat, and aimed so as to clean your bum. He said it saved time and paper. I don't recall what the activating mechanism was (button, foot pedal, remote control, smartphone app, who knows). Anyhow he liked it.

As to having such a thing on a boat, my experience with toilets on small boats is limited, but they seem pretty small. It might be tough to accessorize them with one of these.

 
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El Borracho

El Borracho

Sam’s friend
6,346
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Pacific Rim
We simply wash in the cockpit, aft, with the shower sprayer. Never a rash. A pail in the cabin works in extreme weather. Never cruise with prudes. 

 
Zonker

Zonker

Super Anarchist
9,132
5,046
Canada
I recently stayed at a hotel with a toilet with a fancy bidet. Best feature was the night light that just illuminated the bowl.

As you walked toward it in the darkness it really looked like a portal into another dimension. Kinda worried it would suck my bum into another space time.

Kind of like this but classier.

image.png

 
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