Thailand To Upgrade From Squat To Sit-Down Toilets

[edwinclapham]

The places where westernised toilets will be most welcome are on the trains. (Take Note Thailand & Malaysian Railways). Squatting over a hole in the floor whilst the whole train is shaking and moving must be a learnt skill I have yet to master. Besides, too be safe, trousers/pants etc. have to be removed completely and with a dirty wet floor from being washed down by others who have yet to master crapping on a moving train squat toilet you always leave the toilet wishing you had swallowed a packet of lomitil so you didn't have to crap for the whole train journey.

I so agree with you there! You have to be an accomplished trapeze artists to perform your ablutions!

[Pseudolus]

The places where westernised toilets will be most welcome are on the trains. (Take Note Thailand & Malaysian Railways). Squatting over a hole in the floor whilst the whole train is shaking and moving must be a learnt skill I have yet to master. Besides, too be safe, trousers/pants etc. have to be removed completely and with a dirty wet floor from being washed down by others who have yet to master crapping on a moving train squat toilet you always leave the toilet wishing you had swallowed a packet of lomitil so you didn't have to crap for the whole train journey.

I so agree with you there! You have to be an accomplished trapeze artists to perform your ablutions!

Take a large plastic bag with you. Find a dry part of the toilet cubicle. Crap in bag at your leisure and throw bag down toilet. Job done. If no dry part of toilet, a quiet part of the train will do nicely if you are shy about these things.

Edited June 13, 2012 by Pseudolus

[edwinclapham]

The places where westernised toilets will be most welcome are on the trains. (Take Note Thailand & Malaysian Railways). Squatting over a hole in the floor whilst the whole train is shaking and moving must be a learnt skill I have yet to master. Besides, too be safe, trousers/pants etc. have to be removed completely and with a dirty wet floor from being washed down by others who have yet to master crapping on a moving train squat toilet you always leave the toilet wishing you had swallowed a packet of lomitil so you didn't have to crap for the whole train journey.

I so agree with you there! You have to be an accomplished trapeze artists to perform your ablutions!

Take a large plastic bag with you. Find a dry part of the toilet cubicle. Crap in bag at your leisure and throw bag down toilet. Job done. If no dry part of toilet, a quiet part of the train will do nicely if you are shy about these things.

Plastic recyclable then I might think about it

" a quiet part of the train will do nicely ".. but no bum guns!!

[wichianburi1]

Upgrading to a sit-down toilet requires additional engineering/plumbing work often achieved by raising 'the throne" by one step. In Kosovo, some ten years ago, I observed a peace keeper (name of country withheld for obvious reasons) who emerged from the cubical with a wet face, suggesting he mistook the sit-down loo with a wash basin. Hence, written/pictorial instructions might be beneficial to some.

[Bagwan]

[Mosha]

They'll need training session to prevent muddy footprints on the seats.

Usually takes me at least a month to break a new teerak of that habit. . .

When we have a party, 1st job next morning is cleaning the foot prints off of the toilet seat.

[Suradit69]

I'll miss the yong yong.

Splashing my fecal matter down the pipe with a slimey bucket with mosquito infested water.

Only the height is being changed, the bucket and mosquitoes remain ... and unless you use sufficient force with a full bucket, they won't be all that remains.

[Hollywood]

Just one more thought...please put more toilets at the airport.

[cowslip]

Ah! "siwilai" at last!

So Thai joins the ranks of the constipated.......

and a spate of injuries as people fall off the new loo they were standing on.......

on of the more absurd examples of Thailand thinking they are saving face and getting "siwilai"?

[Reasonableman]

Just one more thought...please put more toilets at the airport.

and potable water in the departure lounges

[8OA8]

Hmmmm, I wonder who has an interest in the firm(s) that make the toilets.

The population is getting older so let's start the replacement program with public schools. Nice.

The re-education of the aged population must be about to start, perhaps they will start to educate those that sell their votes that there is no free lunch!

[spiritrace]

My Thai mother in law is 86 and after we put in a sit down toilet I became the best son in law ever........

[sprq]

Why an "upgrade"?

A seat toilet passes on germs and dirt from previous users, and provides an unnatural body posture for defecating.

A squat toilet leaves your body in no contact with anything left by previous users and provides the natural body posture for defecating.

In other words, squat toilets are superior to seat toilets on all the most important counts. Changing from squat toilets to seat toilets is therefore a downgrade, not an upgrade.

[Kananga]

Just don't take away the Bum Guns!

You do realise that public toilet bum guns carry a horrendous amount of bacterial matter from the splash back of a thousand dirty butt holes? I wouldnt touch one of those things if you paid me.

[dude007]

Good idea from the Minister of Health, but these sit-toilets should come with a manual in order to avoid Thais to squat on top of a sit-toilet, what usually happens. The next visitor has then all the mud and the sticky chewing gums on the toilet seat...

[Kananga]

Why an "upgrade"?

A seat toilet passes on germs and dirt from previous users, and provides an unnatural body posture for defecating.

A squat toilet leaves your body in no contact with anything left by previous users and provides the natural body posture for defecating.

In other words, squat toilets are superior to seat toilets on all the most important counts. Changing from squat toilets to seat toilets is therefore a downgrade, not an upgrade.

What do you have in your house?

[Reasonableman]

Why an "upgrade"?

A seat toilet passes on germs and dirt from previous users, and provides an unnatural body posture for defecating.

A squat toilet leaves your body in no contact with anything left by previous users and provides the natural body posture for defecating.

In other words, squat toilets are superior to seat toilets on all the most important counts. Changing from squat toilets to seat toilets is therefore a downgrade, not an upgrade.

Well, for those with imperfect sense of balance, the consequences of a backward falling squat with pike can be painful, messy, and odiferous. Some non-slip treads on those footprints, and a little less water sloshing around the ankles and trouser-cuffs might help improve the amenity of the process.

Edited June 13, 2012 by Reasonableman

[dude007]

Why an "upgrade"?

A seat toilet passes on germs and dirt from previous users, and provides an unnatural body posture for defecating.

A squat toilet leaves your body in no contact with anything left by previous users and provides the natural body posture for defecating.

In other words, squat toilets are superior to seat toilets on all the most important counts. Changing from squat toilets to seat toilets is therefore a downgrade, not an upgrade.

simple mind... We live in the 21st century!

[Reasonableman]

Just don't take away the Bum Guns!

You do realise that public toilet bum guns carry a horrendous amount of bacterial matter from the splash back of a thousand dirty butt holes? I wouldnt touch one of those things if you paid me.

Sure you would. How much?

Edited June 13, 2012 by Reasonableman

[JohnAllan]

For the average size Thai, that's fine. For the no small number of outsized Thais, making for a comfortable fit is likely to prove a challenge.

[rayw]

About bloody time too. So so outdated those squat toilets and bloody unhygenic too. Hey proper sit toilets are cheap enough anyway and maybe the Government should offer grants to everyone upgrading their old fashioned squat ones.. Heck I would almost rather sh*t myself than give myself the back pain from using a silly squat toilet and the long hosing down job of cleaning up the floor and toilet surroundings from the almost inevitable missed aims

Where it is difficult to get running water for full flush facilities at least you could still use the water storage tank and scoop method still infinitely better and cleaner than the horrid prehistoric squat ones. I love Thailand but it does really need to catch up wit modern, cleaner, more [practical solutions to many of its prehistoric facilities and no most upgrades are NOT expensive either. So this move at least is part of Thailand's much needed and very welcome growing up stage. I can see absolutely NO benefits at all in squat toilets over proper sit ones only a very marginal one off price difference which spread over say a 20 year life would work out at about 20 Baht a year I would guess that is less than 2 Baht a month for the huge benefits of a sit toilet. Great news this one.

[bobmac10]

Well frankly I think it's a retrograde step.

Squatting is the best way to release and sitting places more load on the lower back.

They had it right to begin with, I have squatter loos in my house and I think they're great

[bangkokheat]

what a shitty idea, I wouldn't give a fart in a tin box for these new boggers, give me the asian crappers anyday. Who was the stool that come up with that idea?

[paulward]

Who gives a sxxt?

[Radar501]

WHAT??!! Sit-down dunnies coming to Thailand? How am I going to lose the car-keys and small change that fall out of my pockets now?

[balo]

An instruction manual would be needed here, so rural thais will not get confused when they see something that look alien to them......

[luckyman]

That is good news.

Until you find out that Thais will still use the new toilets in the old way. i.e. 'squatting' on top of the seat and by doing so, leaving it very dirty for the next guy/woman...

Almost every newly built PTT fuel station all over the country offer at least one new type of 'European' toilets already but you really need to clean the seat thorouhly first!

[TinoThailand]

Good! What is wrong with those Farangcé? (lol)

[edwinclapham]

An instruction manual would be needed here, so rural thais will not get confused when they see something that look alien to them......

The relatively new Nong Khai station installed western toilets and they are spotlessly clean. Not a manual insight!

[TinoThailand]

That is good news.

Until you find out that Thais will still use the new toilets in the old way. i.e. 'squatting' on top of the seat and by doing so, leaving it very dirty for the next guy/woman...

Almost every newly built PTT fuel station all over the country offer at least one new type of 'European' toilets already but you really need to clean the seat thorouhly first!

Chinese do this more then Thai hehehe, but yes it all does not mean you can drop it when it's hot hahaha