Sometimes the Latest and Newest – Isn’t Either

They’re doing some renovations where I work and one of the key components of the new build is to reduce our corporate draw on natural resources – which is an admirable goal that I support.

However, crews just finished the “green” updates to the men’s room and they’ve installed new “Water-free Urinals” –note from the picture that there are no pipes or flushing apparatus.

This “new” idea of “Water-Free Urinals” strikes me as an oxymoron similar to “Hat-free Kentucky Derby” or “Frosting-free Cake” or “Taxpayer-Free Health Care.” It’s boggling .

So I went to the manufacturer’s site for some answers…..

Here’s the link to a single-page sell sheet on this “new” major advancement in waste management.
http://www.sloanvalve.com/Specifications/Waterfree_WES-1000_Urinal.pdf

I've highlighted below a prominent feature/benefit of the “Water-Free Urinals” from the sell sheet.

The New Sloan Waterfree Urinal — Preserves our Natural Resources and Saves CostsSloan Waterfree Urinals reduce water and sewer costs, maintenance and repair bills, and create more hygienic, odor-free restrooms. A Patented, Sealed Cartridge eliminates the need for water, conserving 40,000 gallons per unit per year…and the Cartridge is engineered for 7,000 uses.

Like I said, I appreciate the need to conserve natural resources; however, let’s not be so politically-correct as to call a waterless trough “New” – peeing without water has been around since the dawn of humanity. My other issue has to deal with cleanliness. While the bathrooms don’t smell – as the aforementioned ad copy suggests – does a waterfree urinal really  “...create more HYGIENIC…”  restrooms?

If you look a bit further down the linked sell sheet you’ll find this text in a box regarding the question of cleanliness.

MAINTENANCE AND CLEANING
• Perform cleaning once a day, or as needed
• Remove any litter in the bowl and clear cartridge drain slots
• Use mild disinfectant cleaner on a cloth to wipe the bowl
• DO NOT use aggressive/concentrated detergents or any other chemicals
• DO NOT dispose of water into the urinal

It’s that last bit that gets me – DO NOT pour water into the urinal!  Huh?

The thing is engineered to handle 7,000 pints of urine down it but NOT water to clean it out?

Call me old-fashioned but I prefer urinals that flush, if for no other reason than to let everyone who might be waiting in line to use it, know that you’re wrapping things up – figuratively speaking.

One day, I expect to be sitting in my Rocking-Less Chair, sipping Coffee-Free Coffee telling my grandkids about the good ole’ days when I was a kid – when we had flushing urinals.