Many of the objects that surround us they present peculiarities that we do not know to what motive they obey. If the first time we have seen them we have found this peculiarity strange, everydayness makes us forget it and stop questioning about it. In Supercurioso we have seen the reason why holes in the pens or in the sticks of lollipops and on this occasion we wanted to find out something about equipment that we use daily at home and in common places. Do you know why the top of many public toilets is U-shaped?
Why the top of many public toilets is U-shaped
Surely you've thought it was curious to find in many public toilets that U-shaped lid that we rarely see in the bathrooms of private homes. Manufacturers usually make them for public toilets for a reason and this is a sanitary regulation that had its origin, apparently, in the state of California.
A norm of this state about plumbing talks about " The toilet seats " In point 408.2.1 it states that "The toilet seats shall be of smooth material and in no case absorbent" and in point 408.2.2 states that "All toilet seats, except those in units of private homes, they must be open faced or have an automatic dispenser of protective covers for the seat. " Many states adopted similar standards and, to comply with them, the easiest is to install public toilets U-shaped caps. From there and because of its sanitary interest, this type of cap was extended to many public toilets of all the world.
The U-shape has the functionality of prevent contact of the genito-urinary areas with the lid avoiding infections, since the open front reduces the surface area in which there may be accidental contact. Secondly, to provide the women with hygiene in that area when they come to the service. According to one of the designers of this type of toilet cover, this space is designed so that women can clean the perineal area without touching the seat .
Once the enigma is solved, we echo a study that explains which is the cleanest cubicle when you go to a public toilet. They are the first or the last because they are the least used! Oddly enough, people often get into the middle of the middle for an effect that psychologists call " centrality preference "
Did you know the reason that many tapas public toilets had a U shape? Did you notice it? Do you follow the principle of "centrality preference" when choosing a cubicle in public bathrooms? If you want to know more about the toilets, we invite you to read the post: 10 curiosities about the toilet that you probably did not know .