The whizzer - Kids Travel Friendly Portable eco-Toilet
I have very clear memories from when we potty trained my first daughter aged 2. It was the Summer and we were lucky enough to be spending a few weeks in rural Sweden with my family. We opted for the ‘Go Wild’ technique. This is an entirely made up technique, which essentially entails your child being predominantly naked 12 hours per day (apart from her sun hat - it was warm of course and she was slathered in sun cream too), placing multiple potties all over the house and garden and reading her body language and cues for when she wanted to go to the toilet. She picked it up fairly quickly - however when we returned home to a less naked norm, it was trickier to maintain the progress we’d made.
I recall one instance - heading off for a family day trip to a child friendly farm, which was on a guided loop - making it challenging to turn around and exit because of all the other families behind us. At the mid point when we were truly cornered, she of course needed a wee - so on the narrow path I whipped out the enormous plastic potty I’d been lugging around and popped her on it. It felt less than ideal and didn’t really offer up any privacy - with the addition of the potty walk of shame as I balanced a precarious slippery device back to the toilets trying not to spill it, because it felt too embarrassing to decant in the middle of the walkway.
With all of this in mind, I was delighted to road test the Kids Whizzer by Kiddiwhizz. Since it’s launch in 2020 and with an appearance on Dragons Den, female entrepreneur and founder Zoe Chapman has taken the company from strength to strength and it’s become a household favourite amongst parents.
The concept of this compact and discreet portable eco toilet has also found it’s use elsewhere with adults. Whether you are on the go travelling, camping, at a festival, suffer from medical conditions or are on a long journey without suitable facilities, this is an ideal solution. In the past I have not been shy about my fandom for the original Shewee - the Whizzer feels like a huge step up as it actually contains the fluid and can be used anywhere.
The Kids Whizzer
My girls tried out the glow in the dark kids whizzer. This comes in five detachable parts and is very easy to assemble and user friendly. Accessories include a carry strap (which is super to loop on to a bag or hang in the car) and a water resistant bag for you to pop it into after use (once emptied of course).
The unisex soft silicone spout is designed to provide privacy and cover your child as they go to the toilet. It is also shaped to reduce any splashing or spillage. Once finished, simply remove the entirity of the top pieces and pour away discreetly. Theres a knack to this!
My eldest loved the fact that this Whizzer was truly glow in the dark (so many glow in the dark products fall short!) and found it simple and easy to use. My toddler was curious and found it good fun to play around with, which was all I wanted from her just now - it’s a gentle introduction with no pressure! It does of course look quite different to a standard potty so I’m glad I can introduce this to her from the get go, at the same time as a larger potty - so that she’s familiar with both before we require it out and about.
The only element that could potentially improve this product is if it had been able to be totally sealed and leak proof once your child has had a wee - in the rare instance you are unable to decant the waste straight away and need to carry it around. Saying this, it IS splash proof so won’t pour out easily and it’s a minor point as I don’t know if I’d ever trust any device that claims to be leakproof, having experienced too many water bottles soak through my bag in the past.
The Adult Whizzer
My husband of course found it highly amusing that I tried out the Whizzer (I am always FULLY committed to product testing!). My adult brain had to take a moment here but actually - if you trust the device and go for it - it’s really straight forward and neat to use. I WISH I’d had this when I was pregnant as I was in constant need of the toilet in awkward places, so I’m late to the party. We do however regularly go on long car journeys and camping trips, so this is going to be so useful.
It is of course larger than the Kids Whizzer and comfortably holds up to 500ml. How many ml is the average adult wee? It can be anywhere between 250-400ml so you’re very much in the safe zone.
The adult Whizzer folds down inside itself making it slightly wider but shorter in height than the Kids version. Just don’t confuse it with your coffee keep cup if you’re a tired parent on the go!
Verdict
These products are a bit of a no-brainer for travelling with children. It’s such a small item that can save you so much angst - we ALL go through those hair raising emergency loo situations with our children, so to have back up on our person feels like a fantastic use of packing space. The handy strap means you can hang it off a backpack so it doesn’t even need to take up room inside your hand luggage.
I’d recommend having more than one as it’s been useful having one in our car permanently and one in our bag. I would also probably have separate whizzers for each child too for hygiene reasons. At a price point of £19.99 I feel this is reasonable for how much use you’d get out of it over the years. They feel sturdy and built to last and come in a variety of colour ways aside from the Glow in The Dark version.
The Whizzer will be added to our packing list from now on!
Get 10% off here or use code FSC10 at checkout.
