Wash and dry toilet

[Redjune1]

We are going to be moving to a ground floor flat in the summer and at the moment there’s a bath in the bathroom so we are going to have the whole room changed. We are going to put in a level access shower and I was also thinking about getting a wash and dry toilet too. I had never heard of these until I attended an MSA trust zoom meeting. Can anyone tell me if these are a help? I know they will be expensive, so are they worth buying? My husband struggles to clean himself after using the toilet because he is so stiff.

[Yanno]

Hello June,

We had one of these fitted when we converted our bathroom to a wet room. We think they’re well worth the investment. We primarily did it to try and reduce UTIs.

There are a couple of things to watch out for:- medical ones are available and are VAT exempt in the UK. These however don’t appear to be discounted whilst the standard retail versions are discounted from time to time.

Also be aware that your husband will probably require an over the loo shower chair as his condition progresses. Do check the the wash and dry will work with the iver loo chair.

Finally on a more general note I have said on this forum before that one of the best things we did when we fitted out our wet room was to fit a pocket sliding door. This creates more space and makes moving the wheelchair much easier

Hope this is helpful, feel free to ask any further questions should you wish.

Take care, Ian

[Redjune1 in reply to Yanno]

Thanks Ian, can you tell me how the over the loo shower chair works exactly? I’ve not heard of them.

[Yanno in reply to Redjune1]

Hi JuneSome people refer to them as commodes. Jackie's was provided by the local NHS supplies arranged by our OT. We could not manage without one of these now. They wheel over the loo and can then be wheeled to the shower. A typical one can be seen on this link completecareshop.co.uk/bath...

Some wash and dry loos are switched on by pressure on the seat. Obviously if you roll a shower chair over the loo one keeps the loo seat up and so the pressure switch will not work hence the need to check.

[Helenhooter]

Hiya, we are in the process of building a bungalow and have ordered one of these toilets and also a pocket door 🤞

[Redjune1 in reply to Helenhooter]

What is a pocket door? I’ve never heard of this

[Helenhooter in reply to Redjune1]

One that slides into the wall so it hasn't got the usual hinges and slides completely out the way 😘

[Redjune1]

So is the pocket door simply to save space in the bathroom?

[Helenhooter in reply to Redjune1]

Yes but you can have them in other places too! x

[Hidden]

Just to add have you gone through your OT? There will be help there, we were given a bio bidet fit it works really well. Depending on your circumstances you may have access to a grant, to help with a bathroom convertion. Again the OT can help you with this. X

[Redjune1 in reply to Hidden]

Thanks I will speak to the OT about it

[AMBD]

Hello, we had our bathroom altered. Initially went through all plans and then the guy said he'd never heard of the VAT relief on the work. So, we had to start all over again. Worth it because we saved a lot of money.To go to the loo we'd hoist husband onto wheeled commode which went directly over the loo. I would clean him.

As regards shower area, we had that hospital type flooring installed with just a shower curtain ( I know, not the most attractive thing) across the area so the commode could then be wheeled directly under the shower with no impediment on the floor or door/screen to navigate. It worked very well.

We considered one of those toilets but decided against, initially because of cost but realistically we would have needed yet another ceiling hoist to transfer him onto the toilet. Thus making a difficult procedure worse with two hoists there and two back. Not a nice procedure for my hubby. He hated being hoisted.

Ultimately my husband became bed bound so 'all change again'.

You can spend a lot of money on something, resolving an issue, which within a shortish space of time becomes redundant.

Same applies to mobility scooters, car hoists and WAV cars.

A deal of foresight is needed.

I wish you well. Courage.

My thoughts are with you.

♥️

[Redjune1 in reply to AMBD]

Thank you, I know what you mean about things only solving a problem for a short amount of time, in the ten months since my husband was diagnosed he has got significantly worse and his mobility is poor now. I will take that into consideration when we are able to get started with the bathroom

[AMBD in reply to Redjune1]

Don't forget a wide door! x

[Fatwallet]

Hi we have had a bio bidet fitted which is really helpful. This was suggested by my husband’s OT. Well worth speaking with them before you buy one direct. You could be eligible for a grant.Take Care x

[Redjune1]

Thank you for all the replies, it’s certainly given me more ideas about what we need to do with the bathroom.

[Diane831]

We had ( and still have!!) a Geberit Care 8000 which we purchased ourselves when the wet room was done. I wanted it to be useful and nice enough to continue living with later. It is controlled by a remote control which the person can use pressing the button, or it has a proximity infra red control as well which is set to the personal requirements and then just needs a waft past it not an accurate touch.

You can get a shower chair that fits over it, our OT suppled that.

We found it really useful and missed it if we were ever away on holiday!! I think it was used for 4 years for Geoff from him initially being totally independent using the bathroom to getting hoisted out of bed onto the shower chair and then wheeled to the toilet. We just had one hoist fixed over the bed, not one in the wet room

[Redjune1 in reply to Diane831]

Thank you Diane

[minimBrahms]

minimBrahmsI had a Villeroy and Boch top of the range, all singing and all dancing bidet toilet fitted for my own comfort. This was before my husband was diagnosed with MSA. I would not recommend it as the water jet is not quite powerful enough for removing any solid soiling. The drying facility also seems to take forever.

[Redjune1 in reply to minimBrahms]

Thanks it’s good to hear the pros and cons of buying one

[Ssandyy]

OT paid for the toilet to go in but in a council house not bought so yes check with them first . Though we had to get it raised after they put it in which will cost too £250 OT finally paid for this but that’s cause our ot fought for it. So my advice is to have it at the highest set when fitted. Also my partner finds it does not always clean him very good and I have to clean him. So he sometimes clean himself 5 times before he’s clean. Though I like the idea of the chair people have mentioned

[Bailando]

We have the Gerberit Mera Care wash and dry toilet and it has been a life saver. Gerberit are very helpful and have local reps who are very happy to visit and advise. They also recommend shower/commode chairs that fit over it without disturbing the wash/dry function. Strongly recommend - bought for my husband who is wheelchair bound now but I love it too!!

[Redjune1 in reply to Bailando]

Thank you