Toilet Seats

     The use of toilet seat dates back 2,000 years to China, when it was made of stone and was a luxury. Latrines featuring just a hole in the ground could be found in public places and the seats were nothing more than a part of the communal bench where the holes were cut out. 

     In Ancient Egypt, they had proper bathrooms and toilets in their homes with toilet seats made of limestone. In Ancient Rome, wealthy people also had their own toilets, while public bathrooms consisted of stone seats right next to one another.

     During the Middle Ages, toilet were pits in the ground with wooden seats over them. Medieval castles had shafts for toilets with a stone seat; they were called garderobes and they stuck out of the side of the castle. A hole in the bottom let everything drop into a pit or the moat. People who didn't live in castles used pits and sat on wooden planks. 

     Eventually toilets made their way into most homes and today the seat is a hinged unit typically made from plastic or a blend of wood and plastic. It consists of a round or oval open seat that typically has a lid bolted onto the bowl. 

     A toilet seat consists of the seat itself, usually contoured to provide a more comfy seating, but lids are often absent in public restrooms. There are reasons for the lids. They can be closed to prevent small items from falling in, to reduce odors, for aesthetic purposes or simply to provide a chair. Some studies show that closing the lid prevents the spread of microscopic aerosols on flushing which end up covering everything in the bathroom with fecal bacteria. 

     Toilet seats are manufactured in a range of styles and colors and are usually shaped to fit the shape of the toilet bowl: elongated or round. Some toilet seats are fitted with slow-closing hinges to reduce noise and prevent them from slamming against the bowl. Some are made of wooden materials, like oak or walnut, and others are made soft for added comfort. There are also novelty seats such as floral designs or transparent plastic with small decorative items such as seashells or coins. 

     Some metal toilets, such as those in jails and prisons, have built-in toilet seats that cannot be removed, so that an inmate cannot fashion it into a weapon, shield or escape tool. 

     Some seats have an open front. The International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials' Uniform Plumbing Code, section 409.2.2, requires that "all water closet seats, except those within dwelling units or for private use, shall be of the open front type." 

     The code is followed by most public authorities, many public toilets feature open front toilet seats , also known as split seats. This seat design prevents genitals from contacting the seat and also omits an area of the seat that could be contaminated with urine and it makes for easier wiping. 

     Nowadays there are also high-tech toilet seats such as heated seat, bidets and blow driers. These seats are most common in Japan. Electrically heated toilet seats have been popular in Japan since the 1970s because Japanese bathrooms are often unheated and the toilet seat can double as a space heater. 

     Seatless toilet have no seat (no surprise there!). It's claimed they are much cleaner and easier to clean than toilets with seats. While it is possible to sit on the toilet without a seat many users prefer to hover over it. 

     Back in 1987 there was a huge brouhaha over the Lockheed Corporation's charging the US Navy $34,560 for 54 toilet covers, or $640 each on P-3C Orion antisubmarine aircraft which went into service in 1962. 

     In 1987 it was determined that the toilet shroud, the cover that fits over the toilet, needed replacement and because the airplane was out of production that would require new tooling to produce. 

     These on-board toilets required a uniquely shaped, molded fiberglass shroud that had to satisfy specifications for vibration resistance, weight, and durability. The molds had to be specially made and the price reflected the design work and the cost of the equipment to manufacture them. The charge was for the large molded plastic assembly covering the entire seat, tank and full toilet assembly. The seat itself cost $9 and some cents. 

     President Ronald Reagan stepped in and held a televised news conference where he held up one of the shrouds and stated, "We didn't buy any $600 toilet seat. We bought a $600 molded plastic cover for the entire toilet system." The Pentagon admitted that the Navy was overcharged and the president of Lockheed adjusted the price to $100 each and returned $29,165. "This action is intended to put to rest an artificial issue," he said. Still, the whole incident stunk and Lockheed appears to have deliberately overcharged (stolen) from the Navy. 

 

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