I wanted to get one after visiting Japan, but I realized that it was something that would have to wait until I moved into a place with more than one bathroom, so I could leave a normal toilet in the one guests would use. I just didn’t want to have a conversation about it with every person who visited my home.
I echo that the toilet hose or (apparently this is the common slang for them) "bum guns" that you see in many Asian restrooms would be pretty cool to retrofit to a Western restroom (they really are more sanitary than the simple paper wipe, MHO). They are indeed pretty cheap. Scanning forums, though, there are two points I see that one would have to consider.
The first seems to be that hoses / sprayers can be little more prone to leaking or, even in proper operation, creating a bit of a spray mess vs a typical Western toilet installation. Most Asian restrooms designed around toilet hoses have floor drains, so the dangers of general flooding and water mess are a lot less. Western bathrooms typically lack full-room floor drains. This point I can honestly see, which is why the built in washlet might have to be the practical solution for many Western bathroom designs unfortunately.
A more "technical" issue is that these toilet hoses may not be "up to Western code" in some countries per a few forum posts. The impression I get is the code violations are more "technicalities" due to Western code not really considering this concept. Forum posts are not what I would consider an authority, but it is enough where I think it would be a good idea to check with a plumber to see if there's any code the sprayers could somehow violate.
When you say "Western", which countries are you referring to? I ask because in Finland at least, bidet showers are very common, although so are floor drains in toilets. Nevertheless, I'm not aware of any widespread issues with leaks or mis-spraying.
Sorry, by "Western" I more refer to the countries (United States, Canada, UK) where bidets of any sort do not seem to be common at all. There are also other Western countries (such as France, Germany, and Spain) where I remember bidets being common, but they were stand-alone plumbing fixtures and not a simple hose shower like you see in many Asian countries. This type is probably a lot more expensive to add onto a US bathroom or similar.
I wasn't aware of toilet hoses being standard in Finland, thanks for the information. I'm currently in Malaysia for a couple weeks and personally I am seeing a little bit of mis-spray when using some public restrooms; the misspray issue popped up when looking at forums as well as well. Maybe the issue can be more easily mitigated than I thought (personally, I don't have a problem making sure the spray stays inside the bowl) but plumbing codes might like the drain just in case (it's not easy looking up technical codes in an unfamiliar language so I'm not sure about this though :) ).
It is probably a lot harder to mitigate this type of issue with the "squat" type toilet (you see a random mixture of both types it seems over here).
Good points, my bathroom does indeed have a drain. As long as you don't have a carpeted bathroom I wouldn't worry too much though. Just don't have full on pressure.
No conversation needed. If people can't seem to figure it out, they're the sort that won't want to talk about it. See the aforementioned western taboo around discussing such things.
If they do figure it out, folks are generally eager to ask about where they can get one.
A friend of mine brought a toilet back from Japan with him when he moved back and I was always in envy. I'm looking at a Toto Neorest 700H right now, it's about $5000. Is that the kind of system you'd recommend or what are you using?
This. I think I even have a cheaper version than that. Check Amazon for available washlets.
The mass-market Toto toilets are ~$250. Make sure you get the elongated bowl version. I have two in my house, one elongated and one round. The washlet for the round bowl was hard to source and it makes things somewhat cramped for larger people.
If I were doing it again, I'd replace the toilet with an elongated bowl version before adding a washlet.
I agree 100% about the life changing part. But for a cheap solution, go with a hose attached to the toilet. I'd say I prefer them over the Japanese versions. More versatile and the only thing you really lose is the .. heating?
I do agree that the shower hose looking thing next to the toilet cleans just as well and is a lot cheaper, but for my money? I personally think the automatic nature of the toto is an entirely different (and, imho, better) overall experience.
Maybe. My thing has adjustable pressure, it oscillates, and one can adjust the location.
The warmed water is nice, but it has an "eco" mode so there are definitely times when it's not warmed and it's no big deal. I'd guess the biggest advantage would be the ability to just sit there and have the robotic arm take care of things for you without having to move around.
Unless you want something fancy, just check Amazon. The most commonly installed ones are obvious and quiet a bit cheaper.
I've installed a few toilets in my day and they were always a few hundred dollars. I was a bit blown away when I discovered that some of the nicer ones could be had for $5k.
Bathtubs similarly soar in price when one wants something a little fancier.
I don't mean to overstate this, but it is life-changing. I can't imagine going back to a time when I used only paper and considered that sufficient.