Mall restrooms are often the target of many forms of vandalism. The task of making these bathrooms vandal resistant can be tackled cost effectively by systematically upgrading the fixtures and accessories that are most frequently targeted by vandals. By doing so, repair and replacement costs can be drastically lowered. In most cases too, the overall amenities and aesthetics of the bathroom can be significantly improved just by making a few basic improvements.
One of the most common types of vandalism in mall restrooms is the writing of graffiti on toilet stall partitions. If the partition material is water absorbent to any degree, liquid marker ink and pen ink can easily sink into the material. In order to build more vandal resistant toilet partitions, we recommend investing in solid plastic, phenolic core, or plastic laminate panels, pilasters, and doors. Solid plastic, in particular, is 100 percent moisture resistant. This makes it possible to wipe off most graffiti with standard cleaners. Solid plastic is also very hard to dent, scratch, or cut, although with sufficient pressure, it can be damaged. In the event that it is damaged, it is easy to repair in-house with a heat gun without the need for outsourced repairs.
Vandals will also target various types of accessories in public bathrooms. Acts of vandalism include breaking plastic toilet dispensers, breaking mirrors, pulling levers on soap dispensers with the intention of either breaking the lever or wasting the soap, and breaking the plastic cases of paper towel dispensers. There are a number of vandal resistant options that mall facility managers can invest in that will prevent future, similar acts from occurring.
Mirrors can be purchased with glass that is highly break resistant, or mirrors made from highly polished stainless steel. Mall restrooms can also be furnished with lavatories that have built-in, sensor-activated soap dispensers. These devices do not operate with levers, so they are much more difficult to break. These lavatories can also be outfitted with faucets that use capacitance sensor technology to activate water flow.
Unlike previous generations of infrared faucets that were activated by a sensor window, capacitance sensors are built deep within the body of the faucet and cannot be broken in the same way that IR sensor windows are broken.
If purchasing new lavatories is beyond the current budget, more vandal resistant soap dispensers can be purchased as individual bathroom accessories. The new Bradley Diplomat series features a very compact design whose dual-curve geometry and stainless steel construction make it less easy to damage than cheaper plastic dispensers operated by levers. There are also dispensers from our line of anti-ligature and security fixtures that are almost impossible to break or remove from the wall. These accessories are specifically designed for environments where criminal mischief is likely.
Toilet stall interiors in mall restrooms can be outfitted with combination toilet dispenser units made from stainless steel. These accessories are designed to save on paper waste and are almost flush to the partition wall. We recommend these as replacements for plastic dispensers with are often cracked or broken by acts of vandalism.
As far as paper towel dispensers go, facility managers can opt to use stainless steel dispensers or electric hand dryers. Hand dryers eliminate the possibility of paper towels being used to stop up lavatories and toilets. Not only do they make mall restrooms more vandal resistant, they also reduce operation costs by eliminating the cost of replacement paper towels.
XPB Lockers carries a wide variety commercial industrial sinks, commercial bathroom equipment, commercial outdoor furniture, bleachers, and industrial warehouse equipment delivered nationwide. If you can not find what you are looking for call us toll free at 1-877-483-9270 and we will find it for you. Our home office is located in New Braunfels, Texas with warehouses located throughout the United States that enable us to service all 50 states including New Orleans, La., Cleveland, Ohio, Kansas City, Mo., Mesa, Arizona, Virginia Beach, Va., Omaha, Nebraska, Oakland, California, Miami, Florida, Tulsa, Oklahoma, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Colorado Springs, Colorado, Houston, TX, Arlington, Texas, Beaumont, Texas, Denton, TX, McKinney, Texas, Midland, TX, Killeen, Texas, ALBQ, NYC, LA, MPLS.
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