Urinals in home bathrooms?

My husband and I recently bought a house with a large basement that we plan to re-do this winter. Part of the plan is to add a half-bath off the room that will be used as a rec. room, we have darts and ping-pong, foosball, and will be adding a bar. This is a favorite spot of Mr. Velma and his friends to hang out, drink beer, etc. I am not down there as often, but when it is re-done the adjoining room will be the family room with tv and entertainment center, a nice room with a fireplace to hang out, so I and other people will be down there more, and presumably will use the bathroom down there.

Mr. Velma will be doing the rennovation himself and wants to put a urinal in the half bath (along with a regular toilet). I’m hesitant about this, I just think it’s…tacky. Am I just having a woman reaction here? His friends think it is the greatest idea ever. If we had you over for an evening, and watched a movie, played darts, etc. and you went in the bathroom and there was a urinal there, would you find it icky? I’m interested to see if this is a guy / girl thing or if other women wouldn’t have a problem with it. I just don’t want to look at a urinal while I’m in there, but this could just be because I’m not used to it.

What’s the verdict, men / women? If most people think it’s ok I’ll let it go.

I have always liked the idea. However my wife would probably only let me get away with it if I had a small bathroom in my garage. I think it would be a bit odd to see, but it is a very functional addition. Hey, Lowes sells them, so you must put them in a house :slight_smile:

You’d save a lot of water.

Maybe have him put an extra shield/divider between the urinal and whatever it’s next to.

They’d probably have more fun with a bidet, wouldn’t they?
Plus… instant ice chest.

I think it’s a fantastic idea! And I suspect there’d be a whole lot less urine on the toilet seat and floor, and the toilet seat would tend to stay down, all of which, if I’m not mistaken, are Good Things, especially in the eyes of women.

About the only improvement I can think of is to add one of those cool auto-flushers to the urinal. Those things rule.

Velma - we have a urinal in our basement bathroom, and every male who has ever been in our house has declared this to be the most wonderful thing in the world. (I had nothing to do with it, it came with the house.) There’s a regular toilet as well, and women and girls have used this bathroom with no more comment than a raised eyebrow. If the sight of a urinal bothers you, take bup’s advice and put it behind a screen to separate it from the main area of the washroom.

Think of the gum collection you’ll soon have.

Are you going to get one of those little blue disinfectant disks? They really ought to make those with a bullseye on 'em. They’re great for target practice.

I once asked about home urinals here, too-

http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=108839&highlight=URINALS

It is a good idea; but expect graffiti.

Actually, because of the water savings some plumbing companies have developed home type urinals. They don’t look like the traditional large white urinal. Actually, they went into the wall and had a concealed panel over them. Definitely a good option, but I thought it would go better behind the garage. :sunglasses: Either type of urinal is a good idea, neater, cleaner, etc. It just seems strange and foreign to you.