Easy Steps to Convert Traditional Urinals to Waterless

Traditional Urinals are the most commonly used urinals in office spaces, restaurants, and public restrooms.

According to Social Story, at least 118 crore liters of water are flushed daily in India.

Traditional urinals utilize about 1.6 litres of water every day; as they use a lot of water, they also require maintenance too often and may have more sanitary issues as people tend to be forgetful or careless when it comes to flushing.

So, how can corporate spaces, restaurants, and public spaces shift to using a greener alternative?

The answer is simple and already exists – Waterless Urinals

Before we understand how you can install a waterless urinal or convert a traditional urinal into a waterless one, let’s understand the types of urinals currently in use and assess their pros and cons.

There Are Multiple Types of Urinals

For example, the electronic flush urinal requires a battery to flush. These urinals function on a sensor and are extremely high maintenance. After every 5000 uses, the battery of the urinal needs to be replaced.

Another example of a urinal is the one with hydraulic flushing systems; they tend to break down easily and are required to be repaired more than once a year.

A waterless urinal is a vessel/bowl that does not require water to clean the urinal bowl, which can result in saving anything between 56,800 litres to 1,70,000 litres of water per urinal (Per Annum)

What Are the Key Benefits of Waterless Urinals?

• A waterless urinal has zero odour since the urinal doesn’t use water to flush down the urine; the liquid layer isn’t left behind or splashed outside the urinal.
• The second benefit of a waterless urinal is only using 20-30 litres of water to clean the urinal bi-weekly, saving enormous freshwater quantities.
• Another benefit of a waterless urinal is that it enhances the efficiencies of sewer lines and wastewater treatment plants. The urinal may use hard water to flush the urine, which can be challenging to treat at a wastewater plant.
• Waterless urinals also conserve electricity, which is usually used for pumping water & treating wastewater.
• Since the urine is in its purest form, it can be replaced and used as a fertilizer to grow crops.
• Waterless urinals also reduce the emission of greenhouse gases and decrease the pollution of water bodies.

How Are Waterless Urinals Beneficial for Office Spaces and the Environment?

• 20% of the water used in buildings/office spaces is in toilets; if a traditional urinal is replaced with a waterless urinal, the water can now be used for flushing or cleaning the urinal for other activities.
• Usage of chemical products will be reduced to none, as a waterless urinal does not require regular cleaning,
• If waterless urinals are correctly maintained, the possibility of odour built-up and blockage will be reduced, which improves the overall hygiene of the toilet and the safety of the employees.
• Since waterless urinals do not require valve repairs, calling in a professional is not needed, ending the concerns of overflowing, clogging, and urine cake.

A traditional urinal can also be converted into a waterless urinal through the following mechanisms.

1. A retrofit system installation
2. Convert to waterless urinals without hardware changes – Use a microbial-based product.

Here’s How They Work:

The Retrofit System:

The system contains a replaceable cartridge with a chemical block and releases harmless microbial spores.

Once the urine touches the chemical block, the spores are carried into the waste pipe. The urine helps activate the spores and turn them into live microbes.

Once the spores turn into live microbes, enzymes are created to break down the urine.

The bacteria (Enzymes) help feed the content and multiply to help break down the urine.

The trap in the urinal turns into an odourless fluid seal and blocks the smells from entering the washroom.

• Also Read: FAQs About Waterless Urinals

Microbial-based Products:

Microbial products are another way to convert a traditional urinal into a waterless urinal.

The product helps boost good bacteria, such as enzymes, which are perfect for breaking down the urine.

Organica Biotech’s OB Care Professional Flushless Urinal is one such product that offers a combination of products, such as the Flush free Urinal and Urinal Drain Cleaner, that work together to convert any urinal into a waterless urinal.

Using a Microbial-based product helps avoid large and costly changes to the physical urinal units by simply converting the traditional urinal into a flushless one.

The product allows the urine to break down as it boosts the population of the enzyme bacteria that helps break urine down.

Every converted urinal saves approximately 100,000 litres of water annually, saving important resources and reducing carbon footprint.

All it takes is a mindset shift, the right resources or solutions, and sufficient training to adopt waterless urinals and make them more commonplace, thereby ensuring an environment-friendly, clean, and hygienic bathroom for everyone!