As a student at Seattle University, I would be remiss if I didn't do at least one bathroom review on campus.
That's why this week, I'll be reviewing FIVE bathrooms or more accurately the five best places to answer nature's call on campus!
As always, we'll do a little story time before getting into the actual review so if you don't want to read about it, click here (I'll only be offended a little if you do).
In 2020, during my freshmen year at Seattle University, pretty much the entire campus was closed after 8 p.m. The dining hall closed, the Student Center doors locked and all the buildings around campus denied our ID cards.
I'm sure the school did this to prevent the spread of COVID. I mean it's only contagious after 8 p.m., right? In all seriousness, I understand it was probably to prevent us from gathering indoors beyond the required meals and class schedules.
But what the school didn't think about was that by denying access to all indoor areas they also denied access to the restrooms around campus.
Sure we were supposed to stay in our secluded rooms when we weren't in class or getting food but sometimes you weren't in or near your residence hall after 8 p.m. which meant there were no toilets!
My friends and I followed all COVID safety measures, masking up, washing our hands, staying in our own "pods" (if you were at SU in 2020 you know what I'm talking about) and going outside if we wanted to get together.
But the last safety measure meant that when we went outside to eat dinner together and of course, we'd be out past 8 p.m., I would either have to run back to Campion (where I lived at the time) from the dining hall or hold my pee.
I think it's also important to note that many of the nights we spent eating dinner outside on the library plaza between the Student Center and the library, it was absolutely freezing! For someone who came from Hawai'i, I was ill-prepared for the cold.
More importantly, the cold actually does have some correlation to the frequency of your pee trips.
According to Arkansas Urology, there is no official explanation for the connection between the two, but something called "cold diuresis" could be the answer.
Arkansas Urology defines cold diuresis as "the body’s way of preserving heat when it feels that you may be in danger of hypothermia."
Without getting too technical, when you're cold your blood vessels constrict to keep your blood closer to your organs. Since there is less space for your blood to flow, your blood pressure increases in order to continue pushing blood throughout your body. As a response to this pressure, your kidneys filter out excess fluid in your blood to reduce its volume which ultimately means more pee.
I'm definitely no doctor or science expert so do your own research and look into this weird phenomenon for yourself!
All of this is to say that the cold didn't help my already precarious situation with the limited available toilets on campus. Since 2020, bathroom access has improved with each year but I still look back on the times I almost didn't make it.
There is so much more I have to say about the wackiness of those times on the SU campus but alas, this is a toilet review blog so let's get into it!
TOP 5 RESTROOMS ON THE SEATTLE UNIVERSITY CAMPUS
1. ADMIN'S GENDER-NEUTRAL RESTROOM
MY RATING OUT OF 5: 4.5
Cleanliness: 5 | Free: 5 | Accessibility: 5 | Style: 3
MY REVIEW:
What I particularly enjoy about this restroom is the floor-to-ceiling doors. This is SU's first multi-stall gender-neutral bathroom and to say I love it would be an understatement.
Going forward, I think all bathrooms should be like this. Regardless of if it is gender-neutral (though it would be great to have these as the norm), having stalls that actually cover your stall adequately should be a requirement, not a suggestion.
If you've used the bathrooms in the Student Center, you know privacy there is more of a suggestion with an extremely wide gap between the door and the wall.
In terms of accessibility, the handicap stall is spacious AND has a sink and trash can. If you know me, you know I love a good sink inside the stall. They also have free tampons and pads and a changing table which is always a plus!
You can find this restroom on the second floor of Admin. To learn more about SU's gender-neutral stalls and find where they are on campus, click here.
2. BANNAN'S BIG BATHROOMS
MY RATING OUT OF 5: 4.5
Cleanliness: 4 | Free: 5 | Accessibility: 5 | Style: 2
MY REVIEW:
These bathrooms are always so fun to use because there is SO MUCH SPACE! I hate stalls where I have to pivot to flush and exit so, when there is ample space I appreciate it very much.
The wide-open concept also means it is definitely wheelchair accessible. There is also a changing table with a bag hook right next to it which is very convenient.
I believe every floor of Bannan has a gender-neutral restroom in addition to a men's and women's restroom. This particular restroom is located on the first floor.
3. SINEGAL'S GENDER-NEUTRAL RESTROOM
MY RATING OUT OF 5: 4
Cleanliness: 4 | Free: 5 | Accessibility: 5 | Style: 2
MY REVIEW:
This review counts for all the bathrooms in Sinegal since they look the same no matter what floor you're on. It has that "new" bathroom look that's seen in Vi Hilbert and Bannan. While it's not ugly, it's also not super creative.
I do however like how the gender-neutral restrooms have changing tables, a bag hook, and ample space. These bathrooms aren't usually crowded either so you can take your time doing your business!
Sinegal also has women's and men's restrooms on every floor and in the women's room, they have menstrual products available for 25 cents.
4. SULLIVAN HALL COURT LEVEL RESTROOM
MY RATING OUT OF 5: 3.5
Cleanliness: 3 | Free: 5 | Accessibility: 5 | Style: 1
MY REVIEW:
I just found this bathroom this year and was pleasantly surprised to see there were menstrual products out for free!
While the rest of the bathroom is a plain Jane, the sheer fact that menstrual products are provided elevated the experience. As you've seen above, other bathrooms at SU have menstrual products too, but for a price.
You can find more bathroom locations in Sullivan Hall here.
5. VI HILBERT LOBBY RESTROOM
MY RATING OUT OF 5: 3.5
Cleanliness: 3 | Free: 5 | Accessibility: 4 | Style: 2
MY REVIEW:
This restroom used to be one of my favorites solely because it had the best smelling soap on campus. However, since coming back from summer break, they changed the soap and now it smells like every other bathroom on campus.
Now, it's not one of my favorites but one I frequent as a resident of Vi Hilbert when I just can't hold my pee any longer to wait for the elevator to get to my apartment.
It does smell sometimes which isn't great but it's usually pretty clean otherwise.
Just like the Bannan and Sinegal bathrooms, the design has the same tile and overall aesthetic. I assume they were all installed around the same time.
Due to the lack of creativity, I have given these restrooms a score of two. I am a sucker for funky (but functional) restrooms so answering nature's call in the same bathrooms all the time can get boring.
This was a longer post, so thank you to those who stayed with me till the end! I hope you get to try these restrooms (especially the one in Admin) or saw your own favorite bathroom on this list!
Let me know in the comments which bathroom was your favorite!
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