# Why Aren't Toilets made of Plastic? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 26, 2013, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236 "2013-12-26T22:43:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2013, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/1 "2013-12-26T22:43:45Z")
Ceramic toilets are durable-but they weigh a ton. Couldn’t they make them out of fiberglass reinforced plastics? the weight savings would be nice, and they probably would cost less to make. are there any? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2013, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/2 "2013-12-26T22:55:36Z")
Once plastic is scratched, it’s much harder to clean. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2013, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/3 "2013-12-26T23:29:19Z")
Plastic is porous, not something you often look for in a crap receptacle. ---
**Author:** ![desertmonk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/898d66/32.png) [@desertmonk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/desertmonk)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2013, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/4 "2013-12-26T23:32:37Z")
Porta-Potties are made from some kind of fiberglass/plastic material. I don’t know how long their service lives are. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2013, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/5 "2013-12-26T23:36:26Z")
How often you need to move a toilet? Once or twice a decade? Porcelain is impervious, doesn’t scratch, doesn’t degrade, doesn’t absorb and release various substances, and on and on. If you’re so displeased by how heavy your porcelain fixture is, you can dig a hole in the backyard and do your business there. ---
**Author:** ![goldmund](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a4c791/32.png) [@goldmund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/goldmund)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2013, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/6 "2013-12-26T23:37:37Z")
Here’s [Gizmodo’s take on the question](http://gizmodo.com/5930537/why-toilets-are-still-made-of-porcelain), which names the above reasons and a few others. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2013, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/7 "2013-12-26T23:38:40Z")
Or, for that matter, Plexiglass? Borderline NSFW. [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/qB-nGVqNciE/hqdefault.jpg "STYX - Don't Sit Down On the Plexiglass Toilet") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qB-nGVqNciE) This song was the #1 request on the “Dr. Demento Show” for many years. People generally do not believe it really exists until they hear it. And yes, it is by the same band that did “Lady”, “Come Sail Away”, and even “Mr. Roboto”. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/8 "2013-12-27T00:27:09Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > Or, for that matter, Plexiglass? > > Borderline NSFW. > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qB-nGVqNciE](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qB-nGVqNciE) > > This song was the #1 request on the “Dr. Demento Show” for many years. People generally do not believe it really exists until they hear it. And yes, it is by the same band that did “Lady”, “Come Sail Away”, and even “Mr. Roboto”. > > 😛 That is a _fascinating_ bit of trivia. Any reason the tank can’t be made from a lighter, possibly cheaper, material? ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/9 "2013-12-27T00:30:29Z")
I prefer the latest in front wall fresh air orifices combined with a wide capacity gutter installation below. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/10 "2013-12-27T00:39:47Z")
You don’t have to clean toilets on any kind of regular basis, do you? ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/11 "2013-12-27T00:45:54Z")
Behold, the [carbon fiber toilet.](http://www.carbonfibergear.com/carbon-fiber-toilet-bowl/) ---
**Author:** ![Arrendajo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Arrendajo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrendajo)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/12 "2013-12-27T02:58:00Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > Behold, the [carbon fiber toilet.](http://www.carbonfibergear.com/carbon-fiber-toilet-bowl/) Ouch! I’d shit in a coffee can before I’d spend $10,000 on a toilet. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 8:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/13 "2013-12-27T08:33:39Z")
Some people weigh 300# pounds. On more than one occasion, I’m sure they are known to just “plop down”, full force. What plastic did you have in mind? ---
**Author:** ![AaronX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7bcc69/32.png) [@AaronX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AaronX)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/14 "2013-12-27T09:40:12Z")
They’re made of stainless steel in utilitarian situations where aesthetics aren’t required (prisons), so I think SS is at least as practical, but ceramics win on appearance. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/15 "2013-12-27T12:42:17Z")
Nothing beats the comfort of a velour toilet. The fact that it’s a single use item makes it cost prohibitive for most. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/16 "2013-12-27T12:50:57Z")
They have plastic toilets in Japan. Not exclusively, but they seem to be fairly common in hotels. They’re heated and include a built-in bidet and some other stuff. Really, it’s more accurate to say they have plastic bathrooms in Japan. I suspect if the toilet broke they’d replace the entire bathroom as a single unit. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/17 "2013-12-27T13:26:16Z")
[QUOTE=desertmonk] Porta-Potties are made from some kind of fiberglass/plastic material. I don’t know how long their service lives are. [/QUOTE] All of the ones I’ve seen are made of thick, but fairly soft plastic that can be blow-molded - probably something like high density polyethylene. It’s tough, resilient, long-lasting, etc., but it can be easily scratched. This isn’t a problem for how porta-johns are serviced, but unless you spray and scrub your bathroom with disinfectant than blast the room with a hose to rinse it all out, it’s not so good for home use. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/18 "2013-12-27T14:49:44Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Nothing beats the comfort of a velour toilet. The fact that it’s a single use item makes it cost prohibitive for most. Think of all the money you save on toilet paper, though! ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/19 "2013-12-27T16:57:23Z")
Any true elimination connoisseur knows that the way to save money on toilet paper is to keep a flock of geese on hand. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2013, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236/20 "2013-12-27T17:17:36Z")
> [@desertmonk](#): > > Porta-Potties are made from some kind of fiberglass/plastic material. I don’t know how long their service lives are. I’d say between 300-400 dumps. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-toilets-made-of-plastic/677236.md?page=2)