The bidet comes from a time when we were not very hygienic. We are cleaner these days, and medicine has made great strides as well, so bidets are less necessary.
Although it looks like a toilet, its function is comparable to a washbasin. You also can wash your feet in a bidet, but a shower or bathtub is much more efficient.
During the housing boom, some very high-end developers installed them in the bathrooms of their models. They also installed urinals in their bathrooms.
The manufacturers of these fixtures then had their media departments inform the press that this was a trend. It wasn't, and the housing downturn has, thankfully, closed that source of hype.
What does a bidet cost? Between $300 and $600.
High-wind warning. Here are three ways to storm-proof your home, from Deltec Homes:
Install extra braces in the trusses to prevent the roof from being blown off, the number-one cause of catastrophic failure in hurricanes. A qualified builder can also install galvanized metal hurricane straps to secure the roof to the walls.
Install storm shutters, which can be bought from manufacturers or built out of plywood by do-it-yourselfers.
Most doors and garage doors are not designed to withstand hurricane-force winds but can be reinforced with beefier hinges, bracing kits from the manufacturer, and heavier supports.
The right way to redo a kitchen. Some advice from Consumer Reports:
Don't rush. Take time - from a few weeks to several months, depending on the scope of the project - to meet with pros, browse the Internet, and visit showrooms and home centers. A recent survey of almost 3,000 Consumer Reports readers on remodeling revealed that haste can be costly - respondents who changed their mind after the work got started typically added about $1,500 to the cost of a kitchen project.
