HOW DO THEY WORK?

Automatic, self-cleaning toilets like the ones Montreal plans to install are common in Europe.

According to the technical specifications of the TMAX toilet designed by Toilitech, the Italian firm supplying Montreal’s new loos, their system guarantees a “perfect wash, disinfection and drying of the toilet” when the user is not in the cubicle.

A moving arm that emerges from a slot in the wall slowly passes over the toilet, spraying water and disinfectant to clean it and then pressurized air to dry it.

At the same time, a horizontal bar comes out from the bottom of one wall and pushes any debris across the floor and into a slot that opens on the opposite wall.

The bar, which runs the width of the cubicle, has eight nozzles that spray a disinfectant wash on the floor, which drains through slats.

Then the bar reverses, drying the floor with squeegees similar to windshield washers.

The walls around the toilet and wash basin are also washed, up to a height of just under a metre. The whole process takes about a minute.

There is a self-cleaning stainless steel wash basin, and an emergency button to call for assistance.

The entire structure measures roughly two metres wide by three metres long and can accommodate a wheelchair.

The interior walls are made of a high-pressure laminate impregnated with resins designed to be fireproof and resistant to graffiti and vandalism.

The doors will still work in the case of a power outage, and will open automatically after 15 minutes to deter people from using the space for prostitution or drug-taking.

A weight-detecting sensor can be installed in the floor to detect if there are more than two adults inside and won’t allow the door to close.

The prefabricated toilet structure is lowered onto a prefabricated concrete foundation from a truck outfitted with a crane. Connections to electrical, sewage and water outlets are carried out by the city, and the firm takes care of maintaining the facility and supplying soap and toilet paper.

The wash basin and garbage chute are “anti-syringe” and the mirror is stainless steel. “Vandal-proof” is a running theme in the technical descriptions.

If the toilet is blocked, it is programmed to shut and post an “out of order” sign automatically until a technician comes to fix it.