Bathroom Remodeling Glossary DC

The following was sourced from the bathroom design guide.

Back to wall toilet - fits tight up to furniture unit or false or stud wall. A cistern concealed within the unit or boxed in the wall connects to the pan by a short flush-pipe which, like the cistern.

Basin - see sink.

Bathscreen - a screen that sits on one side of the bath and is used to deflect water thus enabling the bath to double as a shower enclosure.

Bidet - is an item, similar in appearance to a toilet, however it projects water that is used for personal cleaning.

Ceramic discs - a new tap mechanism which replaces the need for washers, and provides you with a drip free tap which is easier to operate (quarter turn is often all that is required to activate flow).

Chromotherapy - treatment by coloured lights - alternative therapy which uses colours and their energy frequencies.

Cistern - the area in which water is held for flushing of the toilet. Sometimes known as tank or closet.

Close coupled toilet - water sits directly on top of the toilet pan, which is fixed to the floor, and the cistern is fixed to the wall.

Combination boiler - a boiler that provides a constant flow of hot water without the need for a roof tank or hot water cylinders.

Electric showers - draw water from the cold mains domestic supply and heat it as it is used. They do not require a full tank of water.

High level toilet - has a cistern that is mounted high on the wall and connected to the pan by a long flush-pipe, the flush is powerful and operated by a pull-chain and handle.

Hydro massage - massage produced by streams of water.

Hydrotherapy - external use of water in the medical treatment of certain diseases.

Low level toilet - has a cistern, which is fixed above the toilet pan to the wall, and is connected by a short flush-pipe. The cistern is most likely operated by a lever on the front of the cistern, and due to the height of the cistern (and gravity) the flush will probably be more aggressive than that in a close coupled toilet.

Mixer shower - uses a simple shower valve to combine your hot and cold water supplies to produce the showering temperature and flow that you require.

Power shower - combines a mixing valve with a pump in one complete unit. The valve blends hot and cold gravity fed water to achieve the showering temperature that is required. The pump boosts the flow of water to give a powerful, invigorating shower.

Sanitaryware - ceramic or enameled bathroom plumbing fixtures such as toilet bowls, sinks etc.