Скачать или смотреть The S-Trap Secret: How a Watchmaker Made Toilets Safe

Flush toilets existed in 1596. So why do we credit an 18th-century clockmaker for the invention?

It's true that Sir John Harington designed a flushing water closet for Queen Elizabeth I. It could get rid of waste, but it came with a huge problem.

The design had a straight pipe, which meant that foul and potentially disease-carrying sewer gases could flow right back into the room. This made it unpleasant and unhealthy.

Because of this major flaw, the idea never really became popular, and for nearly two hundred years, the problem of indoor sanitation remained unsolved.

Then in 1775, a Scottish watchmaker and inventor named Alexander Cumming devised a simple and brilliant solution. 💡

He patented a design that included an S-shaped bend in the pipe just below the bowl. This was the S-trap.

That simple curve held a small amount of clean water after every flush, creating a seal that blocked gases from entering the home. It was a huge step forward for health and hygiene. 🚽

Even with this breakthrough, progress was slow. Cumming's toilet used a lot of water and widespread sewer systems were not yet common.

However, the principle he established was revolutionary. The same basic S-trap design patented by a humble watchmaker is still used to protect almost every home today.

Sources: Cumming's 1775 patent records, Harington's 1596 publication A New Discourse of a Stale Subject