Why do some men flush the urinal before using it?
Is it just me, or does this process make no sense?
Are they afraid of splashback? They'll get it anyway. Not that much difference to your pants whose urine it is.
I can see the idea using a toilet. You want to make sure the flushing system is fully operational before you add to it and potentially make the problem worse. "Sorry plumber! Yeah, I saw the pool of urnine in the bowl, but really had to drop a load off, and didn't think it would hurt. What, no, I didn't think to check if there was a problem..."
But a urinal is basically just an open pipe, many models have no stagnant collecting pool at all, so only need a sporadic flush which acts like more of a wipe-down. (Related: This is why some establishments keep ice cubs in their urinal basins rather than rely on drunks to remember to flush)
Why do some men waste the water before letting go?
Comments
DWDavisRSL wrote on October 22, 2015, 3:53 PM
Whether I flush the urinal before using it depends on what i see in it when I walk up.
2Nezzyknowzzz666 wrote on October 22, 2015, 3:58 PM
I don't necessary flush urinals but I always flush before I number 2 so I don't get splashed lol wasting water is better catching a stray std from a public urinal
1MegL wrote on October 22, 2015, 4:19 PM
I have never heard of this before. On the other hand, many years ago, I joined an organisation that had originally had only male employees and when they started to employ women, they converted one of the male washrooms into a female washroom. This was in an old building and they kept the urinal in the washroom but it wasn't like the modern ones you see these days (on Pixabay,etc) this was a wall, rather like a waterfall, that dropped into a horizontal open drain. There was a water pipe along the top of it, with several outlets from it and it flushed itself periodically, whether anyone was near it or not. If you were in the washroom, every so often, the waterfall would start and then stop and of course, as only women now used that washroom, there was never anything to flush away. I would reckon probably half a dozen men could have used that wall simultaneously. You were probably more likely to get splashback on your shoes on that contraption!
Jeramey wrote on October 22, 2015, 8:33 PM
Yes, streaming walls or troughs are common in older high volume bathrooms, but splashback isn't a worry for your feet, but your clothes! (Also, maybe just because your feet are small and easy to move quickly, unlike, say, a torso)
Jeramey wrote on October 22, 2015, 8:34 PM
Yes, everyone seems to, that's why I'm here to find out anonymously! I want answers!
Jeramey wrote on October 22, 2015, 8:35 PM
Yes, but in a lot of cases I know for a fact these are empty/clean urinals or at worst have a small amount of diluted urine in them, not causes for concern.
Jeramey wrote on October 22, 2015, 8:36 PM
I'm not sure it works that way... unless you have some open sores somewhere you don't want to tell us about...
DWDavisRSL wrote on October 22, 2015, 8:38 PM
You have a valid point in those cases. Flushing a clean/mostly clean urinal before using it is a waste of water.
Feisty56 wrote on October 22, 2015, 10:28 PM
Lol, this is more than I'd like to know about what happens in the restroom. I'm more concerned with just how many people, men and women, actually wash and/or sanitize their hands before leaving said room.
MegL wrote on October 23, 2015, 1:43 AM
Yes, that's important. I am astounded by how many people leave a bathroom without washing their hands! Even my 3 year old granddaughter automatically goes across to the sink to wash her hands. It's just ... automatic.
2JohnRoberts wrote on October 27, 2015, 11:05 AM
I never use a urinal which I consider crude and invasive toward privacy in doing one's business. If I did, I would not pre-flush a urinal unless it was necessary.
cheri wrote on November 3, 2015, 10:25 PM
That I do not understand because I do not use male toilet
vanGogh wrote on January 26, 2016, 12:24 AM
some men automatically washes hands plus their faces...getting sloshed on the face; that's one mighty spray