A Toilet of Admiration
Posted on | January 29, 2007 |
Toto’s Neorest toilet, which ranges in price from about $3,200 to $5,980, depending on model and color, is just as majestic but for a different reason: This tankless, one-piece toilet automatically opens when you approach it, then automatically flushes and closes the lid when you leave.
But what really sets this sleek toilet apart is that it washes and dries your bottom for you. At the touch of a button (the controls are either attached to the seat or on a remote control), a small, hidden wand extends from the back of the rim and sprays heated water upward. Afterward, an air dryer turns on, followed by an automatic air purifier. No more searching the cupboards in the dark for toilet paper.
Toto’s Neorest toilet automatically opens, closes and flushes, and it will also wash and warm your bottom.
Click photo for larger image.
Conceding its price is a bit “scary” for most homeowners, Brenda Corbett, of Elite Plumbing Kitchens & Bath in Canonsburg, said her showroom has probably sold fewer than a dozen a year since the Neorest came on the market about four years ago. But for those for whom money is no object (Will Smith and Cameron Diaz are rumored to be owners), it’s a winner.
“It’s truly for the person who wants the Mercedes or Cadillac of toilet,” she says.
Almost as kind to the rear end but a whole lot cheaper are toilet seats that double as bidets. Designed to be retrofitted on traditional toilets, the seats provide the personal hygiene benefits of a good bidet — namely, a warm, cleansing stream of water and a drying mechanism — without the space requirements of an additional fixture. (You will, however, need an electrical supply.)
Models include Kohler’s C3 toilet seats, which range in price from $750-$1,300; Toto’s Washlet seats, priced from about $727 to $1,248; and Brondell’s Swash seats, which start at about $429.