Geberit solutions for bathrooms and toilets for people with disabilities

According to statistics, more than 10% of Americans can be classified as people with disabilities. These are elderly people, as well as people with disabilities, including those who move around in a wheelchair. Many of them cannot use the toilet or the bathroom without assistance.

The concept of a “barrier-free environment” makes public bathrooms more accessible to people with disabilities. It involves special layouts, adapted sanitary ware and additional fixtures – such as supports and handrails. These approaches are applicable in medical and educational institutions, hotels, restaurants, airports, as well as in city apartments and private homes to facilitate the use of sanitary facilities by the elderly members of the family.

Barrier-free environment standards

In order for an elderly or disabled person to engage in personal hygiene without resorting to the help of relatives, the bathroom must have certain dimensions and equipment. The most clearly formulated requirements for the equipment of toilets, adapted for use by wheelchair users, related to its dimensions

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thresholds no higher than 2.5 cm

– the width of the doorway – not less than 80 cm

– a distance of at least 90 cm from the toilet bowl to the side wall, so that it is possible to approach from the side

– The height of the toilet bowl – at least 45 cm from the floor. On both sides of it are handrails at a height of 75 cm from the floor. And on one side of the support should be folded to facilitate planting

– If there is a special urinal for the disabled – it must be at a height of 40 cm and be equipped with a special handrail.

All requirements being taken into account, a stall adapted for use by wheelchair users must be at least 1.65 m wide and at least 1.8 m deep. If the toilet is equipped with a washbasin, the minimum size of the room is increased to 1.65 m by 2.2 m. And a combined bathroom with a shower area must have dimensions of at least 2.2 by 2.2 m.

Choosing plumbing solutions

In a private residence, homeowners can adapt the bathroom to meet the needs of a single disabled or elderly member of the family. In the case of public toilets in airports, restaurants and cafes, at railway stations, etc. the Geberitix Duofix overhead toilets have a glass panel.p. Contractors and designers should take into account all possible needs, so the facilities can be used by all categories of people with limited mobility. So you need a one-size-fits-all solution that meets all requirements with minimal effort.

Geberit Duofix pre-wall installation kits for wall-hung toilets, for example, make it possible to adjust the height to suit wheelchair users comfortably. They also allow the safe installation of special wall-hung toilets with a depth of up to 70 cm. The Duofix pre-wall installation frames are also equipped with handrail and support stand elements that can be quickly and securely installed after the basic flushing and draining equipment has been installed.

It is also important that these mounting elements are compatible with the WC remote flush systems. They can be mounted as switches in the handrails or as a button on the wall – to the right or left of the toilet.

In sanitary facilities for disabled people, it’s particularly convenient to use non-contact flush systems, such as the Sigma80. It can be used with concealed cisterns Geberit Sigma and installation systems Geberit Duofix for wall-hung toilets. It looks like a panel of dark or frosted glass, which is triggered when you bring your hand. But fully automatic mode, which starts the flush when the user leaves the bathroom, will be more convenient for people with low mobility.

Water procedures

Another challenge for people with limited mobility is hygiene after using the toilet. A bidet toilet was developed to make this task easier. It was first used in hospitals, and later more and more frequently in public institutions and private residences.

In particular, the engineers of Geberit, the European market leader in sanitary ware, have developed a series of wall-hung toilet bowls AquaClean, which wash the body with retractable hygienic shower with adjustable temperature, force and direction of spray. All control of the process takes place with a remote control or from an electronic panel next to the toilet. After completing the ablutions, a hair dryer is turned on, which dries the user’s body with warm air. And best of all, the user can perform all procedures without a relative or attendant.

It must be noted that even the washbasins for the disabled must be of special design. Many manufacturers of sanitary ware – for example, the famous Swedish brand Ifo, a member of the Geberit Group – now have models of suspended washbasins with a recess in the middle, which facilitates their use by people in a wheelchair. But that’s not enough! Also washbasins should be equipped with special siphons reduced in size and offset to the wall, so you can drive up to the sink closely.

There are also special requirements for the handle of the mixer – it must be very large and easy to use. But there is a high-tech alternative – touchless faucets. They are activated by an infrared sensor when you bring your hands near and thereby greatly simplify the process of using the washbasin, as well as reduce water consumption, t.k. Automatically turns off after a set period of time. Geberit’s Piave and Brenta ranges of touchless electronic faucets, in particular, are available as premixing versions, so that the user always receives a stream of water at a comfortable temperature without extra manipulation.

Of course, the creation of barrier-free sanitary facilities with modern solutions requires considerable expense and high qualifications of designers and builders. But the result is more than worth the cost: millions of Americans get a chance to feel more independent and to refuse to be helped by others when undergoing hygiene procedures.