Women's' Urinals

[Pangloss62]

This is a sister post to the string about all things lavatory. A few years back I came upon the below women's' urinal while documenting some historic rest-rooms on the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia:



Made by American Standard, these "Sanistand" models were a postwar response to the increased use of public rest-rooms by women as families took to the road on family vacations. I did a little research and it turns out (as most women would admit), that women do not like to pee on public toilets for fear of "catching" something nasty. In fact, most women, when confronted with no choice, will "hover" over the standard toilet rather than let their buttocks touch it. Unknowingly to them, doing so constricts the bladder and prevents full evacuation of the urine, leading to an increased chance of UTIs.

For whatever reason (probably because they were awkward to use and had a lot of "splash back"), the women's' urinal fell out of favor and now they have the automatic cover machines on some standard toilets. So for today's women, it's "hover or cover."

[glatt]

I never understood toilet seat phobia. Skin is an effective barrier to germs. Just don't touch your face after using a public toilet until after you have washed your hands, and you will be fine. To be fair, I do understand it. It's all about the cooties. I just don't think it's rational.

and that urinal looks like it could be dual purpose. The trap appears large enough to pass solids.

[Pangloss62]

I thought that at first as well, but further research revealed that it's for liquid waste only.

Do hovering women want to risk getting "cooties," or get a UTI? That's the question.

[SteveDallas]

I don't know why you felt the urge to put this in Nothingland. Bathroom-related tpoics darn near deserve their own forum area here on The Cellar!

Anyway, thanks for the pic. I read about these but had never seen one. Could you tell us more about how you came to be "documenting some historic rest-rooms"?

[Ibby]

Historic to whom, and for what reasons...? Or do I want to know?

[funkykule]

I saw this thread and thought of this :

"The Electric Picnic is taking care of female concert-goers this year by providing female urinals at the boutique music festival in Stradbally.

Everyone knows that the worst element of any festival is the long queues for portaloos that are often too awful to even consider sitting on. The Electric Picnic will be the first in Ireland to provide female urinals in a bid to cut loo queues and offer women a more time efficient & hygienic option to portaloos.

Female urinals for girls will be used in association with P-Mates. The unique and original P-Mate enables woman to pee while standing upright. The P-Mate is a small conical device made out of leakproof, firm and reliable material and is used by girls to enable pee-ing standing upright. It is then instantly disposed of; it is environmentally friendly, fully recyclable material.

At Electric Picnic ladies will be able to walk into an enclosed girls-only urinal, pick up a P-Mate and go! No queues, no waiting around for your turn, no fuss.

Female urinals are just one of the many new facilities that will be provided at the festival this year."


1)WTF? are we supposed to pee standing up, in front of all and sundry?
2) What happens if you're wearing jeans? Its leaving me with a picture of lots girls with trousers around their ankles, in very prone positions..eww. They are probably gonna be totally high/drunk aswell..should be funny...


Has anyone else used one of these or seen them in use? I've never heard of them before. I think I'll take my chances with the minging portaloos....

[Pangloss62]

I'm a cultural resources specialist and historian for a large government organization that manages thousands of historic buildings. Up on the Blue Ridge Parkway (now you know what organization), many of the "comfort stations" at the several recreation areas along the route were built by the CCC during the 1930s. We are nominating the Parkway as a National Historic Landmark, so I must survey and document all that is there. That is how I came upon the female urinal; otherwise, I may never have discovered it. I think it speaks to many issues we all deal with in our daily lives, and represents a curious blip in American plumbing history. Besides, I've always been fascinated by urinals; and I'm not the only one:

http://www.urinal.net/

[Cheyenne]

Originally Posted by glatt

I never understood toilet seat phobia. Skin is an effective barrier to germs. Just don't touch your face after using a public toilet until after you have washed your hands, and you will be fine. To be fair, I do understand it. It's all about the cooties. I just don't think it's rational.

pffft! I got pregnant 3 times from sitting on a toilet seat!

[mrnoodle]

Originally Posted by glatt

I never understood toilet seat phobia.

I can help with that.

People's ass goes on them. There's no way I can summon the desire to mix my ass sweat with someone elses and carry the film around on my buttocks all day.


lol. okay it's cooties.

[wolf]

The original construction side of high school had those female urinals.

They were rarely used, even when there was a line.

[Elspode]

Those female urinary cones, which I like to call "portapenis", are available in travel catalgoues such as Magelleans. Apparently, they're handy when confronted with normally untenable or undesireable locations when nature calls. Utilizing them in a traditionally nasty and crowded scenario (such as a festival and its ubiquitous portajohns) seems to me to be a pretty good idea.

Do you think that women will reject the notion for standing while urinating in a single-gender environment because of sociology, habituation, or ???

[Pangloss62]

There are powerful cultural, sociological, and perhaps genetic factors that influence the psychology of public waste evacuations. I remember the Boston Public Library had a real problem with men using the stalls for some hot fellatial action; they took off the doors and added cameras. Now I'll be honest and tell you that I just don't want to pinch a loaf while a bunch of people are watching me. Yet in other countries, communal bathrooms are not uncommon.

[Elspode]

And what is the Boston Public Library restroom webcam site url, please? Clever moneymaking idea...live library pron.

[glatt]

Originally Posted by Pangloss62

Now I'll be honest and tell you that I just don't want to pinch a loaf while a bunch of people are watching me.

On the other hand, I'm not into taking a dump in a semen covered stall. But I'll be honest and say it's all about the cooties. Or maybe the heebie jeebies.

I'd hold it in both cases and get all constipated and stuff.

[funkykule]

Originally Posted by Elspode

Do you think that women will reject the notion for standing while urinating in a single-gender environment because of sociology, habituation, or ???

yes....and my propensity to get extremely embarassed about things like this has something to do with it.

Maybe in the next few years it will be common, so we'll all be fine with it.

Also women can't direct their pee with such precision as men..and we need to wipe...there are loads of problems...