Trend Lines: Bath Fixtures

Universal Style Universal design in the bathroom doesn’t have to be bleak and institutional anymore. New grab bars, tub grips, shower chairs, and benches from Creative Specialties International combine safe, solid construction with an appealing design.

Creative Specialties International, a division of Moen Inc., focused on developing products that give consumers the ability to maintain their independence as they get older, says Brian Grant, senior product manager. “We spent hundreds of hours in people’s homes to allow them to demonstrate their typical bathing routine—from stepping

into the shower, to how they steady themselves, to where they grab their soap or shampoo, even to how they pick up the towel when exiting.” To help create the popular “suite look” for the bath, grab bars in chrome or brushed nickel coordinate with Moen’s line of matching faucets and bath accessories. The Dual Tub Grip was also created with aesthetic quality in mind, according to Grant. In a cool white color with a sleek design, “it is sure to look like a natural part of anyone’s home,” he says.

An adjustable tub and shower chair (shown), a transfer bench, an elevated toilet seat, and bathroom accessories round out the new line. 800.882.0116. www.moen.com

Off the Wall The his-and-her bath has just taken a big leap forward, putting an end to the battle of the toilet seat. Toto has introduced the Lloyd residential urinal, designed to integrate with the Lloyd collection of fixtures that includes toilet, bidet, lavatories, tub, and air bath.

Toto spokesperson Lenora Campos says that because it’s designed to be part of a suite of fixtures, the urinal blends aesthetically with the rest of the bath. That should make this convenience for men and boys more acceptable to women, she adds, who generally control the decorating decisions in the home.

The ultra-low-flow urinal is also a water saver. Incorporating the maker’s “fuzzy logic” water conservation feature, it uses less than 1 gallon of water per flush. The fixture also includes Toto’s new electronic flush valve with an integrated piston that contains an ultra-fine screen to filter debris and prevent pilot hole clogging. The maker says the piston design delivers consistent valve action and does not require resetting, even with low or high water pressure. Batteries in the electronic valve can be changed without turning the water off.

The 29-by-17-inch urinal has a universal height lip of 17 inches, which makes it ADA compliant, and protrudes from the wall 14 inches. The Lloyd residential urinal is available in cotton white, colonial white, Sedona beige, bone, gray, and ebony. 800.350.8686. www.totousa.com.

Gourmet’s Dream The Waldorf cooking suite from Jade Appliances gives home chefs the ability to do just about anything the pros can do. Originally created for commercial kitchens, the custom suites come in a wide variety of configurations for residential installations.

The company says it will combine any conceivable arrangement of its cooktops, French tops, broilers, grills, wok burners, ovens, sinks, drawers, cabinets, refrigerators, dishwashers, and more, to please the serious cook. Each unit is built to the homeowner’s exact specifications. Features run the gamut from a 500-BTU simmer burner for making delicate sauces to an island layout for multiple cooks or culinary demonstrations. All components are crafted from commercial-grade stainless steel. These epicurean masterpieces can be fabricated in approximately eight to 12 weeks. 800.884.5233. www.jadeappliances.com.

Storage Gems Diamond Cabinetry goes behind closed doors to reorganize the kitchen. The new Logix collection offers clever storage solutions to give homeowners extra visibility, accessibility, and more efficient use of space.

The SuperCabinet (above), available in 30- and 36-inch widths, features pullout drawers, shelves, wire baskets that hold up to 45 pounds each, and built-in door storage. Thanks to adjustable all-wood shelves, the cabinet can house small appliances as well as dry goods and dishes. Homeowners can choose from four different configurations of fully extendable drawers mixed with side shelves and rolling baskets.

Lids have long been the bane of kitchen organization, but the Base Pots & Pans pullout makes locating the right pan/lid combo a snap. Slide the unit out of the cabinet and the bottom shelf extends even farther for easy reaching.

The Super Susan and the Tall Pantry Pullout are designed to keep items close at hand. The slim Pantry Pullout adds pantry space to any size kitchen while the Super Susan features a segmented disk whose pie-shaped sections are fully extendable. The unit makes essential storage out of previously awkward corner cabinets. 812.482.2527. www.diamond2.com.

Certified Pure The Purefecta water purifier uses a seven-stage, multi-barrier process to remove bacteria, viruses, and protozoa from drinking water. The drinking water system is certified to remove more than 99.99 percent of unhealthy organisms from water by the National Sanitation Foundation International, Underwriters Laboratory, the Water Quality Association, and BioVir Laboratories. Purefecta meets the EPA standard for virus removal and exceeds the EPA standard for bacteria and protozoa removal.

Developed by Pall Corp. and Kinetico Inc., the Purefecta system combines Kinetico’s reverse-osmosis technology with a membrane from Pall that filters out microbiological contaminants such as heavy metals, compounds, and cysts. Contaminants are then flushed from the system as water molecules pass through. A .02-micron virus filter eliminates any viruses, then water is stored in a non-corrosive, self-circulating tank until it is needed. When the lead-free faucet is tapped, the water passes through a carbon block post-filter that removes any remaining bad taste, odor, or volatile organic compounds, then passes through a bacteria filter.

Indicators track the life of the filter and alert the user when it’s time to change the cartridges. The Decorator Drinking Water Faucet features a single-lever design and a high-arched spout and comes in a variety of finishes, including satin nickel. 800.944.9283. www.kinetico.com.

Makes Scents No one wants a funky-smelling home—at least that’s the reasoning behind Aromatic Bio-Technology Systems’ aromatherapy-oil diffuser systems, which can be incorporated into a home’s HVAC system. The key difference between Aromatic Bio-Technology’s diffusion system and other aromatherapy systems is the use of cold-air diffusion, the company says.

Because essential oils are highly volatile substances, they evaporate quickly and burn easily. According to experts, heat fractures essential oils, separating the components of a particular scent and reducing the benefits delivered. Aromatic Bio-Technology’s cold-air diffusion system combined with ionization delivers a complete oil mixture along with negatively charged air to enhance a home’s standard HVAC system.

The EcoScent Remote and the EcoScent Remote Duo diffusers both consist of a pump, a timer, and two diffusers with either a one-reservoir or two-reservoir capacity. The systems can be connected to a home’s HVAC system through the nearest duct by a 6-millimeter hose. An anodized aluminum cabinet conceals the workings of the 500-millimeter reservoir and pump and can be concealed within a cabinet or a wall. The EcoScent Remote feaures one timer with four program settings while the EcoScent Remote Duo has two timers, allowing eight program settings. A single EcoScent Remote system can scent about 2,500 square feet, and multiple systems can be combined. 800.577.2298. www.aromaticbiotech.com.