5 Steps on How To Clean A Waterless Urinal

Here we will provide information about the benefits of installing waterless urinals and also how to clean a waterless urinal.

The proper procedure on how to clean a waterless urinal cartridge will depend on the amount of traffic the restroom has, and also the brand of waterfree urinal cartridge you are using. There are many brands of cartridges, but the one we recommend is the EZ Trap Waterless Urinal Cartridge. It fits perfectly on Sloan, Falcon, and Bobrick waterless urinals, and it last 3 to 4 times longer than regular manufacturer cartridges. The EZ Trap also cuts maintenance cost dramatically because you can clean your urinal with any cleaner, and it does not need special, and costly sealants for urine odor control. CLICK HERE for information on the EZ Trap Waterless Urinal Cartridge.

Waterless urinals help conserve water. The urinals work without requiring water to flush the waste. The waste matter is eliminated from the urinal by gravity. The urinal is ideal for places that face water shortage. Replacing traditional urinal with waterless urinal can result in saving of thousands of gallons of water every year.

Both commercial and residential property owners can greatly benefit from replacing traditional urinal with a waterless urinal. The urinals are ideally suited for highly trafficked bathrooms. They can help in savings of thousands of gallons of water resulting in reduced water bills.

Background of Waterless Urinals

Introduced by a German inventor Klaus Reichardt in the 1980s, waterless urinals have become extremely popular in the US. The urinals were introduced to the public in order to address the water shortage issue that was then prevalent in the state of California. The urinal greatly helps in conserving precious water resources.

Unlike traditional urinals, waterless urinal does not flush the urine down the toilet. Instead, the special design of the urinal allows waste water to drain automatically without flushing. The urinal contains a special sealant. The oil based sealant is housed inside the urinal cartridge. You will learn more about how to clean a waterless urinal later in this article.

The sealant seals the urine inside the urinal and prevents it from overflowing. Since the sealant is less dense than urine, it keeps the liquid waste inside the urinal. The urine flows down the drain and is eliminated from the urinal due to displacement.

On top of the urinal cartridge, small holes are present. The holes act similar to a strainer preventing items such as cigarette butts and gums from getting trapped inside the urinal. As a result, there are no blockages in the urinal.

Waterless urinals are available in different sizes and shapes. Moreover, the urinals differ in the way they eliminate liquid waste. Keep in mind that all of the waterless urinals drain the liquid without the use of water. This results in conservation of water. Let’s take a look at the most common urinals that you can find in the stores.

What are the Most Common Waterless Urinals?

Most of the waterless urinals contain the oil-based sealant. However, in some urinals, a one-way valve is used to keep the urine inside the urinals. Others have microbiological cartridges instead of oil based sealants.

Sealant Based Urinal

Sealant based urinals use oil based liquid barriers to trap the urine. The sealant prevents overflowing of the urine being less dense. You will know how to clean a waterless urinal that contains a sealant later in this article. In order to avoid damage to the urinal, it’s essential that you use compatible liquid based cleaning product.

Microbiological Systems

Another type of urinals that you can commonly find in the stores is microbiological systems. These systems make use of replaceable cartridges. The cartridges trap the urine in the u-bend. The action of the microbes breaks down the urine into odorless components. In order to prevent blockages, regular servicing is required. In addition, the product requires special cleaning products. The urinal can be damaged if the wrong cleaning product is used.

Valve Barrier Systems

The valve barriers systems also use cartridge similar to the liquid barrier and microbiological systems. But, instead of the sealants, the urinals have a one-way valve. A rubber tube valve opens to allow the liquid waste to pass through after which it closes quickly. Having said that, these urinals are not as effective as sealant based waterless urinals.

The valve barrier systems make use of cartridges similar to microbiological and liquid barrier systems. However, instead of sealants, the urinals use the one-way valve to prevent odors and keep the liquid waste inside the unit. As with all other types of waterless urinals, you should carry on regular services. This is required to ensure that the urinal works flawlessly without any problem.

Maintaining a Waterless Urinal

Cartridge based waterless urinals are easy to maintain and care. You need to regularly replace the cartridge to ensure that the urinal properly drains the liquid waste. The cartridge requires replacement after certain hours of use.

Generally, most manufacturers recommend replacing the waterless urinal cartridge after every 3,000 to 7,500 uses. For high traffic area, the cartridge may require replacement every three months. They may require replacement once a year in less trafficked areas.

Here are some steps that outline how to replace the cartridge of a waterless urinal.

Step 1: Insert a key and then turn it left to open the cartridge.

Step 2: Now, lift the cartridge from the urinal. You should tilt the cartridge a little when lifting to drain urine and water. Make sure that you wear proper gloves when lifting the cartridge from the urinal.

Step 3: Next, you should place the old cartridge in a bag. This is the third step of replacing the urinal cartridge.

Step 4: Seal the bag containing the cartridge and dispose of in the trash can.

Step 5: Using a soft bristle brush, scrub the inside of the urinal. Make sure that you scrub deep inside the piping. For this, using a 1.5-inch nylon brush is recommended.

Step 6: Once you have completed scrubbing the unit, you should next flush the urinal using soapy water. Consider using about 5 gallons of water in order to flush the urinal. This is the sixth step regarding changing the waterless urinal cartridge.

Step 7: The next step in changing the cartridge is to wipe the inner stainless steel rim. You can use a soft cloth to wipe the rim of the urinal.

Step 8: After you have completely wiped the rim, you should now insert the new cartridge inside the housing. Once the cartridge is securely in place, you should next insert the key and turn it right to close the cartridge.

Step 9:The next step is to fill the cartridge with about a quart of clean water. Continue filling until you don’t see any air bubbles.

Step 10: The last step of changing the urinal involve adding a blue sealant. You should allow the sealant to drain into the cartridge and then spray a cleaner and then wipe using a soft cloth.

The above steps outline how to change the cartridge of a waterless urinal. The cartridge can easily be replaced without any professional help. Now let’s find out how to clean a waterless urinal.

How to Clean a Waterless Urinal: Step-by-Step Guide

The following steps outline how to clean a waterless urinal. Before cleaning the urinal, you should consider placing a ‘Cleaning-in-Progress’ sign at the entrance area. In case the bathroom has multiple entrances, you should place a signboard in front of each of the entrances.

Step 1: Put on gloves and safety goggles.

Step 2: Next, you should remove any objects such as cigarette butt and other items from the urinal. This is the second step of how to clean a waterless urinal.

Step 3: Now, you should pour all-purpose cleaner on the surface of the urinal. Leave the cleaner on the surface for a few minutes. This is the third step of how to clean a waterless urinal.

Step 4: Use a soft bristle brush to clean the urinal. Consider dipping the brush in the water bucket before cleaning the surface of the urinal. This is the fourth step of how to clean a waterless urinal.

Step 5: After you have cleaned the urinal, you should use air freshener in order to mask any lingering smell. This is the last step of how to clean a waterless urinal.

One important thing that you should keep in mind is that you should never pour chemical or soiled water down the urinal. This is because it can flush sealant present inside the urinal.

One more thing that you should remember about how to clean a waterless urinal is that you should use proper cleaning agent to clean the urinal. Using harsh chemicals can greatly harm the surface of the urinal. Consider using a neutral cleaner to clean the urinal.

Now that you know how to clean a waterless urinal, you should recognize that cleaning waterless urinal is much easier as compared to cleaning a traditional urinal. The best thing about how to clean a waterless urinal is that it doesn’t require professional help. There is no need to call a professional plumber. Once you know how to clean a waterless urinal, you can easily clean the urinal.

Knowing how to clean a waterless urinal is not that difficult. With the right cleaning product and tools, you can easily clean the urinal. The urinal bowl is liquid repellent. This reduces the formation of bacteria and other harmful pathogens. However, you should consider applying disinfectant just to be on the safe side. You can apply the disinfectant using a soft microfiber cloth.

Regular cleaning of the urinal is essential. When you know how to clean a waterless urinal, you won’t have to pay a professional to clean the urinal. In other words knowing how to clean a waterless urinal will help in saving costs. You should know how to clean a waterless urinal to prevent damage to the unit. Consider creating a schedule for cleaning the urinal to ensure that the urinal works without any problem.

Tips for Caring for the Waterless Urinal

Apart from knowing how to clean a waterless urinal, you should also know how to properly care for the unit. Knowing how to clean a waterless urinal and how to take care of the unit will ensure that the unit lasts for a long time.

Regular cleaning is required to ensure that the urinal works flawlessly without any problem. Apart from cleaning, the cartridge must be replaced at regular intervals. This will prevent odor issues. Also, it will prevent blockage problem. Regularly replacing the cartridge will prevent any problem with the urinal cartridge.

You should consider noting down the time and date on which the cartridge was last replaced. This will make it easy for you to know when to replace the cartridge. Moreover, you should always buy a cartridge that is recommended for the cartridge. You can read the instruction manual to find out about the compatible cartridge for the urinal.

Installing the wrong type of cartridge can result in plumbing problems. So, it’s important that you buy a cartridge that is recommended by the manufacturer.

Moreover, you should make sure to flush the urinal using water when replacing the cartridge. This should be done prior to placing the sealant inside the cartridge. After you have replaced the cartridge, you should make use of a disinfectant spray. Using a disinfectant spray will remove all traces of any harmful pathogens in the urine bowl. The disinfectant should be used more frequently in highly trafficked areas of the bathroom.

Benefits of Installing Waterless Urinals

Waterless urinals provide various benefits over traditional urinals. The urinals are best for places that receive a lot of traffic. Installing the urinals in such areas can result in significant savings in water bills. Some of the best places for installing waterless urinals include schools, shopping malls, rest stops, cinemas, and restaurants.

Installing waterless urinals is also recommended in countries with a water shortage problem. The urinals can greatly contribute in saving the precious water resources. In states such as Arizona and California that experience water shortage, waterless urinal can serve as the best water conservation solution. In order to conserve water, legislations are in the pipeline in many states to make waterless urinal important in public buildings.

Installing the waterless urinal can greatly reduce the water bills for house owners. Since no water is used in flushing the liquid waste, it can result in savings of hundreds of dollars every year. What’s more, less waste water will flow to the sewage resulting in reduced sewer charges.

Another benefit of installing waterless urinal is that it will eliminate odor problem. The odor that we associate with urine is actually of ammonia gas. This gas is released when urine comes into contact with oxygen and water. With waterless urinal, no water is used. As a result, you won’t face any odor problem.

Urine remains sealed inside the cartridge. The oil based sealant keeps the liquid waste inside the urinal. Since, the urine is not exposed to the air or water, no odor problem will develop. The odor that emanates near the waterless urinal is due to urine spilled on the floor or walls. Cleaning the floors and walls on a regular basis will prevent odor problem.

Overall, waterless urinals are more hygienic as compared to traditional urinals. With waterless urinals, fewer bacteria formation occurs. On the other hand, bacteria flourish in flush urinals. Like all living organisms, water is important for the bacteria to thrive. Since flush urinals use water to drain the urine, they harbor more bacteria as compared to the waterless urinal. So, if you want to ensure hygienic and clean environment, you should install a waterless urinal in the bathroom.

Since there is no piping in the case of waterless urinals, pipe blockages do not usually occur. The blockage generally occurs when solid waste accumulates inside the pipe. Flushing the water worsen the problem. Blockage problem is not an issue with waterless urinals. No water is used to flush the waste in waterless urinals. So, there is no issue of blockages. However, the urinal cartridge should be replaced on a regular basis to avoid any issue. Failure to replace the cartridge regularly can result in blockages.

Conclusion

Waterless urinals provide various benefits over traditional flush urinals. You should know how to change the urinal cartridge and also how to clean a waterless urinal. This will ensure that the waterless urinal works flawlessly without any trouble.

Learning about how to clean a waterless urinal is easy. You don’t need to hire a professional to know how to clean a waterless urinal. The urinals can be easily cleaned without much problem. Once you have the required tool and know how to clean a waterless urinal, you can easily clean the urinal without any problem.

Waterless urinal is the best for public places. They can help in saving a lot of water. The annual savings in water bills can amount to hundreds of dollars. What’s more, they are more hygienic as compared to traditional flush urinals. Once installed the waterless urinals can last for a long time without developing any defects. An investment in a waterless urinal will provide dividends long after the purchase.

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