Four years after the toilet paper shortage of 2020, bidet converts say they’re never going back
While the toilet paper shortages that hit the United States during pandemic lockdowns in the spring of 2020 ultimately eased up, they’ve had a lasting impact on one industry: the bidet business.
“The industry here in the U.S. just blew up. You couldn’t get a bidet if you wanted to,” says James Lin, founder of BidetKing.com, an online marketplace for all varieties of the bathroom appliance. “We all sold out. … There was a huge scramble to get more.”
I’ve had a bidet for years, before covid even. It really is a game changer. You’d be surprised how much more clean you feel.
They have relatively cheap and easy to install ones that just go under your toilet seat and connect to the toilet’s water supply. That’s what I use.
The little bit of water needed is usually already in the house and relatively heated by ambient warming. Its enough.
Many pre-heat the water. I have one lux one that has a heated seat, heated water, and a warm air blow-dryer. $300? $600? I don’t remember, I’ve had it for a decade; it was cheap at whatever price and 100% worth the investment.
Nope. Many are plugged in and it will keep the seat and water warm. It further warms the seat when it detects someone is sitting on it. Kinda depends on budget, features, manufacturers.
NGL, middle of the night visits are still a bit jarring because the heating logic tries to conserve energy at night so it tends to me room temperature. But whatevs.
Honestly, worth it. Absolutely no regrets other than maybe not spending more 😂. At a couple hundred dollar Costco Toto model, it was already a risky purchase that at the time I simply wasn’t sure about. But yeah, it’s awesome 😎.
It’s a dollar more to install the ones onto the hot and cold taps, then you can set and forget the temp of the water, so it’s always the right temp.
And obviously they have the tech on-demand heated ones, but you can buy the sprayer and taps version for 15 bucks with stainless steel parts.
I’m lazy so I use the kind you can screw directly into the sink tap itself, find the right temp in the regular sink faucet handle, set and forget.
30 second installation, adjustable water temp, switch adjustable nozzle to use bidet or sink faucet, easy.
I just went with the basic cold water ones because I don’t have a hot water tap at my toilet and didn’t want to go through the trouble of installing hot water due to finished walls.
Probably why my mother-in-law doesn’t have a bidet, no hot water. Yes, I offered to buy her a water heater and pay for it to be installed she turned it down
Mine, sadly, doesn’t hit me in the right spots and I constantly have to move around the seat. Then my undercarriage is wet and takes time drying.
Same, but that’s an installation error. If yours isn’t absolute ass, it’s adjustable.
Mine is, I’ve just been too lazy for two years to fix it. I should do that.
I have the cheapest of the cheap lol. It has an adjuster that doesn’t work. Need to invest into something better.
It took me using my friend’s bidet just once to convert. I ordered one that night, from BidetKing. Now I really hate using the toilet in public.
Portable bidet.
🙋♂️ - count me in that camp. I feel like a peasant if I have to shit on anything else. Splurge for the heated seat and heated water if you can afford it and prepare to be spoiled.
I already had a Bidet when Deadpool II came out and that scene about toilet paper… I fully thought they were gonna go the bidet route… Nope, a shitty ad for shitty wipes that clog your pipes and city pipes and don’t biodegrade in septic systems.
Bidet is the clear winner. Deadpool should know better.
I was sad to learn it would cost so much to add power near my toilet, that I might as well fully remodel my bathroom… if money were no object.
In some countries we use a bidet ‘wand’ which is like a small handheld sprayer connected to the sink. No need for heating the seat or waiting for some computer to squirt water at me. It’s clean, efficient. I use a small amount of toilet paper to dry the area/confirm cleanliness. 🙈
Question from someone interested. Do you let the water do all the work, or is there hand involvement as well?
I let the water do the work, but mine specifically has something called “turbo mode”. It has the highest water pressure and seems to do the best job cleaning.
Edit: I forgot to mention my model also has a fan for the drying function. It runs for about 4 mins - so it takes a bit to dry.
I got a bidet, unrelated to COVID and I never want to go back. ~~~~
Truly the headline we all needed.
That being said, yes, use a bidet!
