WE ASKED the mothers of Ireland about their secret bathroom habits - and they've come forward in their hundreds to reveal what goes on behind closed doors. SONAS Bathrooms have found out the good, the bad and the ugly about what happens in the most private room in the house.
Our findings:
The survey - which we carried out to celebrate the launch of their 2017 catalogue - was filled out by more than 700 mums from all over Ireland. A total of 84% were aged between 26 and 41 and the majority had between two and three children. It also found that busy mums don't necessarily have time to take a shower every day - just 50% manage it in fact, while 31%, manage to get one in every other day.
A total of 13% shower just a couple of times a week while 3% admitted to only getting around to it once a week. At the other end of the scale, 3% said they take showers twice a day. As for managing to get some peace and quiet in the shower, our survey revealed that just 31% of Irish mums manage to have one without their kids being in the bathroom at the same time. A total of 30% of mums either never or rarely manage to have a shower without an audience, while 40% manage it sometimes.
Cleaning Routines:
When washing themselves, 73% of women wash their hair first and 10% wash their face first. For 8% of women, it's the torso first, while it's 4% each for bums and arms. Just 1% of our respondents wash their legs first. And when it comes to the chore of cleaning the bathroom, 60% of Irish mums manage to do it once a week. A total of 17% give their bathroom a clean a couple of times a month. 12% get the rubber gloves and bleach out only when it starts looking really bad. One in 20 of our respondents said they only manage to tidy their bathroom when they're getting visitors. 3% do it monthly and another 3% get someone else to do it - either their partner or a cleaner.
Rimless Toilets are much easier to keep clean - nowhere for germs to hide!The most unpopular chore was cleaning the toilet, flowed by cleaning the shower or bath. Next was cleaning tiles, unclogging the drains, emptying the bin and cleaning the mirror.
As for what's inside their bathroom cupboards, it seems that the traditional medicine cabinet is on the way out. Just 2% keep medication in their bathroom. The most popular items stored in vanity units or storage mirrors are toiletries (71%) followed by spare toilet roll (14%) cleaning products (7%) towels (3%) and sanitary products (3%).
With regards to bathroom crimes, 53% of Irish women admitted to leaving their hair in the plug hole. 21% don't clean toothpaste off the taps and 50% don't clean splash marks off the mirror. 29% leave dirty clothes on the bathroom floor and 26% leave empty toilet roll on the holder.
Bath time for kids
17% of mums admitted to not bathing their kids as often as they should. 49% bathe their children a couple of times per week, while one in five do so once a week. A total of 15% of mums give their kids a bath every day. When asked how they'd describe bathing their children, 40% said it was enjoyable, 16% said it was stressful and another 16% said it was a chore. For 28%, it's just another part of the routine and 21% described it as messy. And when it comes to flushing the toilet, 39% of respondents said their kids only flush sometimes. 11% said rarely, 4% said never and 25% said their kids aren't potty trained yet. Just 22% said their kids always flush the loo.
Pic credit: Smyths ToysAs for their partner's worst habit, the most common complaint was leaving the toilet seat up, followed by leaving hair in the basin after shaving, not flushing, leaving skid marks, bad aim and leaving water all over the floor.
sonas says:
Commenting on the results of the survey, Managing Director of SONAS Bathrooms, Richard Sloan, said: "We had a lot of fun with this survey - it was great to get Irish mums answering questions so honestly about what they get up to in the bathroom. We surveyed Irish men recently too so it was nice to compare the results."
He continued: "We wanted to carry out this survey because the bathroom is a central part of the house. It's the one room that every single member of the family will use at one point or another throughout the day or night, yet very few people talk about what goes on behind closed doors. We thought it would be fun to spill some of the nation's secrets. We found that mums do find it hard to get privacy or relaxation time - even in the bathroom!"
Mother's Day is coming up next month - and if you think the mum in your life could use some pampering, you should definitely check out our collection: what would be a better treat than a luxury freestanding bath or a whirlpool bath to relax in at home?
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